Partnering to Improve Range Health and Fish Habitat

Radiant Creek: Partnering to Improve Range Health and Fish Habitat

Radiant Creek is a tributary of the Clearwater River and an important habitat for threatened native Bull Trout in the Upper North Saskatchewan Watershed.  In 2019, Trout Unlimited Canada completed a site assessment identifying possible riparian restoration opportunities along Radiant Creek and other tributaries of the Clearwater River. Over time, the section of Radiant Creek downstream of the Forestry Trunk Road has become overly wide and shallow, and there are several sources of fine sediments to the stream, which can be detrimental to fish spawning habitat.  By early October of this year, much of the water in Radiant Creek except for some small pools had evaporated following a hot dry autumn, and there were dried up fish in depressions along the creek. Due to its potential for Bull Trout population recovery, Radiant Creek has been identified as a high priority restoration area.  The reach of the stream chosen for restoration suffers from heavy bank erosion due to flooding which exacerbated some of the existing issues. Unfortunately, due to decades of shrub encroachment throughout the valley, grazing opportunities have become more limited over time, resulting in increased grazing pressure along the riparian zone. Grasslands represent a small grazing area within the broader landscape and are shrinking over time due to shrub encroachment.

The issue of shrub encroachment in this portion of the Rocky Mountain Forest Reserve was studied by Angela Burkinshaw and Dr. Edward Bork with the University of Alberta, who quantified the loss of open grasslands in the area over a 40 year period from 1958 to 1998 (Burkinshaw & Bork, 2009). The results of this research, published in the journal Environmental Management in 2009, showed that open grasslands had declined by 1111 hectares, a reduction of 58%. Grasslands are an important source of forage for native grazers like elk, cattle which spend the summer and fall on the range, as well as for horses.

While cattle grazing in the area is managed based on the health and productivity of the rangeland and only permitted during the summer and fall, invasive horses are present in the area throughout the entire year, resulting in additional use of sensitive riparian areas throughout the summer and fall. Research by Salter and Hudson (1979) along the foothills of west-central Alberta showed that horses feed primarily on high-quality forages such as grasses and sedges, and can spend considerable time foraging in previously grazed and disturbed areas, especially during the spring (1980).

Horse populations along the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains are rapidly increasing, nearly doubling in number from a minimum count of 980 in 2013 to 1679 in 2019; with populations in the Clearwater and Sundre Equine Zones of the west-central foothills increasing from 610 to 1082 over the same 6 year period (Government of Alberta, 2020). These population trends increase the potential for issues, due to a greater number of grazers utilizing a declining supply of forage, leading to increased pressure on the remaining grasslands. Furthermore, research has shown that grazing by horses may have a greater impact on riparian areas than grazing by only cattle and wildlife and thus needs to be carefully managed especially where horses, cattle, and wildlife overlap (Kaweck, Severson, & Launchbaugh, 2018). This has implications for native trout, which rely on healthy and diverse riparian areas to hold together streambanks, provide shade over the stream, and contribute to aquatic habitat and food webs as plants grow, die, and fall into the stream. Trout Unlimited Canada (TUC) is interested in working together with all stakeholders in the Clearwater allotment to work on solutions to this complex issue that affects the health of riparian and aquatic habitats here and elsewhere in southwestern Alberta. Similar situations have been developing in the absence of frequent low-intensity fires and the proliferation of horse populations along the eastern slopes and in the northwestern United States, where growing horse populations are impacting the health of the rangeland and riparian areas.

In June 2020, TUC and our partners at Cows and Fish planned out the recommended restoration work in partnership with the grazing allotment holder who is keenly interested in the stewardship of this unique landscape for both grazing values and ecosystem health.  Recommendations included installing a fence around a portion of the riparian zone to limit access for grazing, and by planting deep-rooted, native woody plants to strengthen soils, stabilize the banks and prevent the continued contribution of fine sediments into the stream, as well as helping to reverse the effects of scouring and widening of the stream channel. During a handful of workdays in September and early October, over 200 willow stakes were planted along eroding streambanks, and a truckload of coarse woody debris (lodgepole pine tops) was distributed throughout the project area. A few weeks later, in mid-October 2020, approximately 550 meters of aluminum panel fence was installed around Radiant Creek by the allotment holder, immediately downstream of the Forestry Trunk Road, to limit access to grazing for a period of five years. Cows and Fish completed a preliminary riparian health inventory of the fenced-in area and a reference reach upstream of the trunk road. The exclusion area will be continually monitored for a period of five years to measure and assess the success of the project and determine if additional actions or adjustments are needed. Both riparian health sites will be re-assessed by Cows and Fish during the fifth year of the project to help understand how management actions have impacted riparian health along the stream.

TUC and Cows and Fish continue to investigate and advocate for other long-term management solutions for the Radiant Creek area and the Clearwater allotment, in partnership with government, and academia, to ensure that the landscape can support healthy native trout populations and productive rangeland for grazing.

This project was undertaken with the financial support of Environment and Climate Change Canada.

References

Burkinshaw, A. M., & Bork, E. W. (2009). Shrub Encroachment Impacts the Potential for Multiple Use Conflicts on Public Land. Environmental Management(44), 493-504. doi:10.1007/s00267-009-9328-2

Government of Alberta. (2020). Feral Horse Management. Retrieved from Feral Horse Count: https://www.alberta.ca/feral-horse-counts.aspx

Kaweck, M. M., Severson, J. P., & Launchbaugh, K. L. (2018). Impacts of Wild Horses, Cattle, and Wildlife on Riparian Areas in Idaho. Rangeland, 45-52. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rala.2018.03.001

Salter, R. E., & Hudson, R. J. (1979, May). Feeding Ecology of Feral Horses in Western Alberta. Journal of Range Management, 32(3), 221-225.

Salter, R. E., & Hudson, R. J. (1980). Range Relationships of Feral Horses with Wild Ungulates and Cattle in Western Alberta. Journal of Range Management, 33(4), 266-271.