Fish Screen Installed on Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge

Contact: Tom Koerner (307-875-2187)

Fish Screen Installed on Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge            

GREEN RIVER-After several years of monitoring, planning, and fundraising, a screen was recently installed on the headgate of an irrigation ditch at Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge (NWR).  

          Fisheries managers have become increasingly aware that some irrigation ditches may be  trapping fish in them.  Fish that enter the irrigation system may not be able to return to the river and will die as water temperatures increase in the summer and when the ditches are drawn down for the winter. To determine how many fish were being trapped in the ditch system on Seedskadee NWR and to return the fish to the River, volunteers from the local Trout Unlimited Chapter , Seedskadee Trout Unlimited (STU), Wyoming Game and Fish Department (WGFD) staff, and Seedskadee NWR staff electroshocked a small section of the largest ditch on the refuge, the Hamp II ditch, for one day in the fall of 2012. 

          “The first year we saved over 700 trout in a short amount of time with a small crew,” Said Pete Hallberg, STU volunteer. “That first year really opened our eyes to the problem.”

          Project partners stepped up their fish salvage efforts. For one day in the fall of 2013, over 40 volunteers from three Trout Unlimited Chapters in southwest Wyoming (Upper Bear River TU, Popo Agie Anglers, and STU), along with WGFD and Seedskadee NWR staff gathered to save fish in the Hamp II ditch and to determine if this was happening in the two other ditches on Seedskadee NWR.

          “Not all irrigation systems trap significant numbers of fish, so information was needed,”  said Tom Koerner, Refuge Manager Seedskadee NWR. "In 2013, over 1,200 trout were returned back to the river from this effort. From the 2012 and 2013 data, project partners realized a fish screen on the Hamp II ditch would keep significant numbers of trout in the Green River, where they can survive. Efforts began to secure funding for survey, design, and construction of a screen to prevent fish from entering the ditch system. The design would need to allow sufficient water through the screen for management of Seedskadee NWR’s wetland system."

          "In addition,  it would need to be designed to not pin fish, specifically juvenile fish, against the screen from water pressure” said Robb Keith, Green River Game and Fish Fisheries Supervisor. 

          Upon completion of the survey, design, and fund raising, the project was underway.  On November 10th, installation began. 

          “ The screen is a cone shaped structure fitted with a solar powered wiper system to remove fine particles that would plug the screen,” said Nick Walrath, Green River Project Manager for Trout Unlimited.  “The screen is 12 feet across and will allow up to 40 cubic feet per second to enter the ditch at normal river levels. “

          This project was truly a partnership, including STU, WGFD, Seedskadee NWR,  Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resources Trust, WGFD Fish Passage Program, US Fish and Wildlife Fish Passage Program, WGFD Commissioners License, and private donations from Alan Airth and Louis Muller.

           “Completion of this project will ensure that fish are not lost in the irrigation system in future years," said Calvin Hazelwood, STU Chapter President."It is a great example of what partnerships between citizens, Organizations, and State and federal agencies can do to enhance and protect a significant resource that so many value and appreciate”    

~SNWR~

Photo: Compliments of SNWR

The hard working crew behind the installed screen. Once the coffer dam is removed, the screen will be half to fully submerged depending on the level of the Green River. Pictured from left to right: Theron Myers and Brett Carlson with Flare Construction, Ty McCarthy with Intake Screens Inc., Craig Huhta with One Fish Engineering, Ron Swanson and Gene Smith with Seedskadee NWR, and Joseph Lucas with Intake Screens Inc. Not pictured is Sandy Hoffman with Flare Construction. (Photo: USFWS)

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