South Fork Boise Watershed Collaborative Group Kickoff Meeting

Trout Unlimited received a grant from the Bureau of Reclamation to initiate and manage a watershed group for the South Fork Boise River and tributaries between Anderson Ranch Dam and Arrowrock Reservoir. The South Fork Boise River is an extremely popular destination for outdoor recreation including fishing, ATV use, camping, hunting, rafting, hiking and birdwatching. It also supports a farming/ranching community and the town of Prairie. Like many other popular natural areas, there are multiple opportunities for improvement that could enhance the long-term health and sustainability of the watershed. The South Fork Boise Watershed Collaborative Group is being developed to identify, prioritize, and seek funding to implement opportunities for improvement in the watershed. As examples, some ideas for potential projects for the group to discuss include improving boat ramp and bathroom facilities along the river, addressing excessive erosion along some sections of road, planting riparian shrubs to help post fire recovery, and investigating the feasibility of increasing side channel connectivity at winter 300cfs flows. If you are interested in the watershed, your knowledge and experience could greatly benefit the process. Even if you haven’t yet visited the area but are interested, you are welcome. You are invited to join the group’s kickoff meeting from 9am-12:30pm on Thursday, October 19th at the Idaho Department of Fish and Game Headquarters office at 600 S Walnut St, Boise, ID 83712. Although we would love to see everyone in person for this first meeting, a link is provided below to join virtually through Microsoft Teams. Updates and a detailed agenda will be posted to www.southforkboise.org as we get closer to the meeting date. If you would like to provide input but are unable to attend this meeting or have questions, please reach out to Anthony.Prisciandaro@tu.org.

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Meeting ID: 288 164 851 119
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New South Fork Watershed Coordinator

In early 2023, Trout Unlimited (TU) secured funding from the US Bureau of Reclamation’s WaterSMART program to establish a new watershed group in the lower South Fork Boise River Watershed. The goal is to foster collaboration and trust related to planning and implementing solutions to address challenges such as degraded water quality, habitat degradation, loss of stream function, and impacts of climate change. 

To lead this important initiative, TU recently hired Anthony Prisciandaro as the South Fork Boise River Watershed Manager. 

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Name: Anthony Prisciandaro 

University/Degree/Background: 

BS in Biology with a minor in Environmental Science and Policy from Hartwick College in New York State (2004). 

Masters in Natural Resources from University of Idaho (2015). 

Anthony is a highly accomplished Fish Biologist, formerly employed by the Bureau of Reclamation (“Reclamation”). With over 17 years of experience, he has excelled in several areas, including facilitating meetings to reach agreements on critical topics related to fish and water management, coordinating interdisciplinary teams for fisheries monitoring and mitigation, securing substantial grant funding, developing and managing programs, and ensuring environmental compliance.  

During his time at Reclamation, Anthony made significant contributions to projects involving water management, bull trout ecology, invasive species monitoring, and water quality assessments. His expertise and achievements have been recognized through awards and honors, and he has actively shared his knowledge through presentations and publications.  

When asked what he is most excited about in this new role, Anthony responded, “I am most excited about being able to use science to inform a proactive conservation strategy for the South Fork Boise River Watershed.” 

Written by Ashlynn Goody, Policy and Outreach Associate for Trout Unlimited based out of Bosie, Idaho. 

We’re Hiring – South Fork Boise River Watershed Manager

Trout Unlimited (TU) brings together diverse interests to care for and recover the rivers and streams on which we all depend. We are a national organization with 300,000 members and supporters organized into over 400 chapters and councils nationwide. Our dedicated grassroots volunteers are matched by a respected staff of organizers, lawyers, policy experts, and scientists, who work out of more than 45 offices across the country.

This position is an exciting opportunity for a self-motivated, highly capable person with a diverse skill set to advance TU’s conservation and planning efforts in the South Fork Boise River watershed (located in southern Idaho). The watershed manager will be responsible for establishing and coordinating a new watershed group for the South Fork Boise River watershed as well as identifying, planning, and implementing restoration projects. This work will require an individual who is action and solution-oriented, works well with diverse stakeholders and personalities, and can build a new program from the ground-up. Candidates for this position will need to demonstrate excellent meeting coordination and facilitation skills, strong project management skills and follow-through, community outreach experience, and technical abilities related to river restoration, hydrology, and aquatic ecology. The position is based in Boise, ID or nearby surrounding areas.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Watershed Group Coordination, 75% 

  • Carry out the goals and objectives of a TU-led Bureau of Reclamation Cooperative Watershed Management Planning grant for the South Fork Boise watershed, including:
  • Building a comprehensive network of agency, nonprofit, business, and community partners within the watershed. 
  • Overseeing organizational development, formal creation of a new watershed group, and meeting coordination. 
  • Coordinating community outreach, communications, and stakeholder engagement efforts. 
  • Conducting research and stakeholder interviews for watershed planning and setting the stage for a future stakeholder-driven watershed restoration plan.
  • Research, plan, and implement a recreational use survey within the watershed. 
  • Manage and maintain southforkboise.org website with relevant work, meetings, and documents.

Project Management and Administration, 25% 

  • Identify, plan, and implement on-the-ground projects, including: 
  • Identifying, developing, and coordinating priority fish passage and habitat restoration projects.
  • Actively identifying and pursuing potential funding sources, including writing grant proposals and budgets, for high priority projects.
  • Conducting on-the ground project oversight and monitoring in coordination with partner agencies.
  • Fostering and maintaining positive relationships with landowners and other stakeholders with varying political and social backgrounds. 
  • Administering projects including grant applications, contracting and procurement, reporting, invoicing, and tracking project budgets.

This is a non-supervisory position. This is not an all-inclusive list of duties and responsibilities. Requirements

  • Bachelor’s degree in fisheries, environmental sciences, or other related natural resources field required; Master’s degree preferred. 
  • Self-motivated and highly energetic, with excellent time-management skills and attention to detail.
  • Superior interpersonal skills and ability to work with multiple and diverse partners in a highly collaborative and inclusive manner, even on contentious issues. 
  • Professional experience working with resource managers, landowners, and other stakeholders in a collaborative setting. 
  • Professional experience in natural resource management or conservation project management. 
  • Excellent written and oral communication skills. 
  • Demonstrated performance in grant writing and other fundraising activities. 
  • Knowledge of conservation, hydrology, and water quality. 
  • Experience in meeting facilitation. 
  • Experience with communications, outreach, and volunteer engagement. 
  • Good organizational and problem-solving abilities. 
  • Knowledge of the region and watershed a plus. 
  • Ability and willingness to travel; valid driver’s license and own vehicle required. 
  • A passion for fisheries conservation and for protecting and restoring rivers and streams.

SALARY AND BENEFITS

Staff and leadership at TU understand that life outside of work is important to personal health, and we strive to create a healthy and family-friendly atmosphere. This is a full-time position with a generous benefits package. The approximate salary range is $50,000 – $60,000 annually, depending on relevant experience. We are committed to building space for all people to participate in our work to care for trout and salmon and clean our shared waters. We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer and welcome you to read more about TU’s equity practice and values.

HOW TO APPLY 

Please upload a resume (2 pages maximum) and a cover letter using TU’s Paylocity application system, accessed from: https://www.tu.org/about/jobs-and-internships/. We will begin reviewing applications on March 29, 2023. The position will be open until filled.

https://recruiting.paylocity.com/Recruiting/Jobs/Details/1530018

Salary Description$50,000 – $60,000

Flows Remain Low This Spring

Wow, it’s mid-May and the flows from Anderson Ranch Dam remain at the winter minimum 300 cfs. Normally this time of year the flows in the South Fork Boise River will be running 600 cfs. As the chart below shows, last year the flows increase from 300 cfs to 600 cfs on April 1, 2021.

Screen grab from the Bureau of Reclamation webpage.

The last time that 300 cfs flows extended into the spring spawning season was 2014, which came after the 2013 debris flows that had covered much of the South Fork Boise in sediment. A double whammy! The flows increased in early June as this chart from a previous post in 2014 showed:

Note this chart only runs to 2014. It’s what we had in the media file.

One result of the 600 cfs flows in the spring months is it waters up some side channels and allows some rainbow trout spawning in those locations. At 300 cfs we probably have less spawning areas available.

Why is this happening? There is a pretty good reason. The Boise River reservoir system is below average in water because last year was so hot and dry and until the last few weeks the snowpack was below normal. And, Anderson Ranch Reservoir sits highest upstream in the Boise River basin among the storage reservoirs and the water stored highest upstream is most valuable for future uses. As the graph below shows, Anderson Ranch is filling, maybe a little faster than it filled last year, but the total contents are still well below both long-term average and last year as well.

The flow of 300 cfs since April 1 being half the normal rate means so far some 25,000 acre feet more water in the reservoir then there would be if the flows were at 600 cfs.

Currently Anderson Ranch Reservoir is approximately half full and the downstream Arrowrock and Lucky Peak projects are well above half, with the natural flows from the Middle Fork Boise River poised to fill those pools when the snow melt starts in earnest.

What are the implications for the fishery? There may be less spawning, or survival from it, in the mainstream river this year, versus when the river flows at 600 cfs. It also points to the importance of the tributaries that can contribute more spawning habitat with actions to improve access (where culverts may inhibit fish passage) and improved habitat. A balance of both mainstream and tributary spawning is necessary or balance the risks to the population.

New South Fork Boise Video

The Idaho Rangeland Resource Commission has produced a new video on the South Fork of the Boise River. The video urges responsible recreation behavior as the area continues to see increased use.