ANNOUNCEMENTS

The Silver Creek Super Project provides a great opportunity to highlight the importance of installing BMPs at road/stream crossings.  To properly accomplish this, Huron Pines is organizing the replacement and/or improvement of 10 road crossings.  Partnering with the Presque Isle Conservation District, under a contract with Michigan DNRE, Huron Pines, volunteers, and partners will monitor several variables that are expected to improve in Silver Creek as the project gets underway.   To ensure that the data collected can be used for scientific analysis by all interested parties, the first step in monitoring will be to develop and file a Quality Assurance Program Plan (QAPP).  The significance of a QAPP is that it demonstrates that our monitoring strategy and protocol have been approved by Michigan DNRE, meaning that the collection is up to their standards and the data is usable in all of their programs as well. 

The focus for this spring is on developing those strategies and writing the QAPP, which will then be submitted for approval to Michigan DNRE.  The plan remains to begin monitoring in late spring of 2010.  Work on culvert improvements is scheduled for this summer.

SILVER CREEK SUPER PROJECT

Located in Presque Isle County in Northeast Michigan, the Ocqueoc River Watershed encompasses approximately 94,394 acres. The river is known for having the largest waterfall in the Lower Peninsula and is located in an area of karst topography characterized by sinkholes and the “undergrounds,” where a tributary disappears and remerges several hundred feet downstream.

To protect this special natural resource, Huron Pines and watershed partners created the Ocqueoc River Watershed Plan. The plan was approved by the Department of Environmental Quality in 2006. It recommended a number of high‐impact projects to improve the watershed, many of which were road/stream crossings (RSX). Four of the top ten most polluting RSX sites are located on Silver Creek‐ a cold, stable tributary to the Ocqueoc River located in Moltke Township.

In addition, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources assessed and prioritized several sites throughout the watershed. According to their findings, five sites were on Silver Creek. Huron Pines then combined these recommendations, creating the Silver Creek Super Project.

This project, approved by the Huron Pines Resource Advisory Group, will address all RSX sites in the upper three miles of Silver Creek. The focus of the project is to protect stream habitat by preventing sediment entry and to reduce fish passage obstacles. By coordinating the restoration of all of these sites, project resources will be better utilized and resource impacts will be realized on a watershed scale.

• The goal is to improve 10 sites where roads cross Silver Creek

• Total Estimated Project Cost = $600,000

• Estimated Completion Date = December 2011

PROJECT DETAILS

Church Highway (one site): Replace and realign culvert, harden road surface, install diversion outlets. Estimate $110,000
North Curtis Road (three sites): Replace and realign 3 culverts, harden road surface. Estimate $115,000
Beach Grove Highway (three sites): Replace one culvert, harden the road surface at 3 crossings, install riprap at one crossing. Estimate $115,000
Spens Road (one site): Replace culvert, harden the road surface on approaches, lower road slopes. Estimate $105,000
Private Driveway Crossings (2 sites): Replace culverts, harden driveway surface. Estimate $55,000

Monitoring Restoration Data: Monitoring data will be collected before, during and after the restoration projects on Silver Creek. Measurements such as water temperature, dissolved oxygen and flow rate will be collected. In addition, other indicators of water quality, such as the presence and abundance of aquatic invertebrates, will be collected. This data will be used to formulate restoration strategies for other small tributaries on coldwater systems throughout Northern Michigan. With high‐quality coldwater streams being one of the most difficult systems to protect, developing a strategy will set the stage for effective protection of small tributaries in other watersheds. Protecting these tributaries, which are the lifeblood of our rivers, is imperative to maintaining and improving the condition of all our rivers.

WATERSHED BENEFITS

Reducing sediment pollution – reducing the amount of sand that enters the river will create more natural stream conditions for aquatic wildlife.

Improving fish passage – a number of fish species, such as brook trout and steelhead, will be able to freely move in the creek.

Fostering community awareness – by working with local partners, we will promote long‐term stewardship of the watershed.

CONTACT
For more information on this project, please contact Patrick Ertel, Restoration Project Manager.