The Mitigation Commission is directly involved, with numerous federal, state and local entities, in measures to recover
the June
sucker (Chasmistes liorus), a fish endemic to Utah that naturally
occurs only in Utah Lake and spawns only in the lower Provo River. Human
settlement, development and use of water for irrigation, municipal and
industrial purposes resulted in hydrological and habitat changes in Utah
Lake and its tributaries. These, in addition to the more than twenty non-native
species introduced into Utah Lake, contributed to the decline of June sucker.
Small populations of June sucker have been established in a few other locations,
such as Red Butte Reservoir above Salt Lake City, as temporary refuge to
guard against a catastrophic loss in Utah Lake.
The U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service listed the June sucker as endangered with
critical habitat in 1986. The species had a documented wild population
of fewer than 1,000 individuals at the time of listing. In 1987, the wild
spawning population was estimated to be between 311 and 515 individuals.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service finalized a June
Sucker Recovery Plan in 1999. The Mitigation Commission and several other
agencies and groups committed to work cooperatively to develop a Recovery Implementation
Program
for June sucker. A final environmental assessment on agency participation in
the June sucker recovery implementation program has been published. The Mitigation
Commission's participation in the program was formalized on April 17, 2002. The
program establishes a multi-agency cooperative effort to implement the June Sucker
Recovery Plan by funding, coordinating and facilitating
June sucker recovery, while balancing and accommodating water resource
needs.
[Click here to link to the June Sucker Recovery Implementation Program web site.]
The June Sucker Recovery Plan lists, among many other things, establishment of a second spawning run in a tributary to Utah Lake other
than Provo River as a requirement for long-term protection and eventual recovery of the June
sucker. Efforts are being implemented by the JSRIP and other entities to establish Hobble Creek
as this second spawning tributary. (June sucker historically used Hobble Creek for spawning.) These efforts include reconstruction and restoration of the
lower Hobble Creek channel where it enters Utah Lake, which was
completed in late summer 2008,
and delivery of
supplemental flows to lower Hobble Creek.
The Commission recently completed a report describing ecosystem flow recommendations for
the lower Provo River. [Click here to download LOWER PROVO RIVER ECOSYSTEM FLOW RECOMMENDATIONS
FINAL REPORT, September 2008.] The framework developed for the Provo River
recommendations was applied to lower Hobble Creek. In April 2009, the Commission completed a report describing the process and products of developing year-round instream flow
recommendations for lower Hobble Creek. The guiding principle for the study is that the recommended flow regime for lower Hobble
Creek should protect the entire riverine ecosystem year-round. [Click here to download Lower Hobble Creek Ecosystem Flow Recommendations Report, April 2009.]
Mitigation Commission projects aiding
June sucker recovery are: supporting development of a comprehensive Utah
Lake Fish Management Plan that will help clarify how to
best manage Utah lake to improve sport fishery opportunities
while achieving recovery of June sucker; modifying lower Provo River diversion dams that interfere with June sucker spawning and fish passage [click here to link to a 2001 study that evaluated these diversion dams]; acquiring lower
Provo River instream flows and investigating
strategies to lower high flow releases; and, developing
a native species fish hatchery that will produce June sucker,
least chub, leatherside chub, roundtail chub and flannelmouth
sucker.
As part of President Obama’s plan to help stimulate the lagging economy, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act was passed in February, 2009. Funds provided to the Mitigation Commission from the Recovery Act accelerate the opportunity to perform needed improvements at the Fisheries Experiment Station native species hatchery in Logan, Utah. This facility is managed by the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources and was expanded to accommodate an interim facility for raising June sucker. Recovery Act funds will be used to install a recirculation system to better manage temperature and water quality of flows. |