Overview

The Upper Deschutes Watershed Council worked with the Deschutes Soil and Water Conservation District, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and the owners of Vandevert Ranch to develop and implement a fish habitat enhancement project along the Little Deschutes River. 

The project, implemented in 2004, included large woody material placements to help improve fish habitat and reduce bank erosion.  In this reach of the Little Deschutes River flows are heavily regulated by the dam at Crescent Lake, resulting in unnaturally high flows in the summer and low flows in the winter.  The fluctuation in flows, combined with the prescence of highly erosiive soils, has led to bank instability along many of the bends in the river.  Ongoing photo monitoring is helping to track the site changes over time and document the reduction in bank erosion.

The project was funded through the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board's Small Grant Program, with additional funding provided by Vandevert Ranch.