Crossing 125247 - Chuchinka-Table FSR and CN Railway - Trib to Parsnip River
Site Location
Crossing 125247 is located on an unnamed tributary to the Parsnip River near the 12.8km mark of the Chuchinka-Table FSR. The culvert is located 0.2km from the confluence of the Parsnip River which is located approximately 3km downstream of where the Table River flows into the Parsnip River (Table 1). At the time of the field surveys, there was active logging on the FSR.
Background Information
At the crossing location, the stream is considered 3rd order with a watershed area upstream of the road of 9.9km2. The elevation of the watershed ranges from a maximum of 1400m to 760m at the culvert. One previously unassessed crossing (16603287) is located approximately 200m upstream under the CN Railway. Representatives from Canfor’s engineering team report that this crossing is undersized, the culvert is damaged and that water has backed up and overflowed onto the road on two occasions since 2017.
Provincial records indicate that Rainbow Trout have been captured just upstream of the crossing (MoE 2019).
Hagen et al. (2015) have identified the upstream Table River watershed and several tributaries to the Table as containing critical spawning and juvenile rearing habitat for large body Bull Trout with an estimated minimum spawner abundance of 100 fish.
The Parsnip River mainstem has been identified as containing critical habitat for juvenile and fry Arctic Grayling. Additionally, the Table River (along with the Anzac River) just south of the crossing is identified as the primary core of post-Williston Arctic Grayling distribution in the Parsnip River watershed with life history, migration behaviours and critical habitats summarized in Hagen et al. (2015). The mainstem of the Table River contains critical habitats for all life stages of Arctic Grayling with adults observed moving among mainstem locations and tributaries during summer (Hagen et al. 2015).
Following office review, PSCIS stream crossing 125247 was ranked as a high priority for follow up with habitat confirmation due to the potential for rehabilitation of the crossing to provide access to modeled instream habitat (17.7km) with a relatively large channel size (2.9m) and Rainbow Trout documented upstream (Table 2). The habitat confirmation was completed on September 06, 2019. A map of the watershed including areas surveyed is provided in Attachment 1 – Map 093J120.
Stream Characteristics at Crossing
At the time of the survey, the un-embedded and backwatered (0.9m each) crossing was considered a barrier to upstream fish passage with a pipe length of 12m and a culvert slope of 2% (Table 3, Figure 1). Water temperature was 11\(^\circ\)C and conductivity was 163uS/cm.
Stream Characteristics Downstream
The stream was surveyed downstream from the culvert for 190m to the confluence with the Parsnip River. Overall, total cover amount was rated as abundant with small woody debris, undercut banks dominant (Figures 2 - 3). Cover was also present as overhanging vegetation. Gravels suitable for spawning were abundant throughout the area surveyed. The average channel width was 3.5m, the average wetted width was 2.9m and the average gradient was 2.5% (Table 4). Habitat value downstream of the crossing was rated as medium with moderate potential for rearing and overwintering.
Stream Characteristics Upstream
The stream was surveyed upstream from the culvert for 755m. Modeled crossing 16603287 was located upstream of the FSR approximately 200m and under the railway (Figure 4). The crossing under the railway was assessed as a barrier with a length of 92m, a diameter of 3m and a slope of 0%. The average channel width was 3.8m, the average wetted width was 3.5m and the average gradient was 3% (Table 4). Riparian vegetation was comprised of a mature coniferous forest and instream cover quantity was rated as abundant. The dominant cover form was deep pools with small woody debris, large woody debris, undercut banks, and overhanging vegetation also available. Gravels suitable for spawning were present intermittently throughout the area surveyed and the channel morphology was riffle-pool (Figures 5 - 6). Although there were no permanent barriers, a beaver impounded area was located at the top end of the site (Figure 7). Habitat value upstream of the crossing was rated as medium.
Conclusion
Although there is approximately 4.5km of mainstem habitat upstream of crossing 125247 modeled as less than 22% gradient, there is only 200m of stream between the FSR and the upstream CN Railway culvert barrier. Habitat surveyed was rated as medium value for salmonids between the FSR and the railway as well as between the railway and the top end of the site surveyed. At the time of the survey, the forest licensees in the area were Sinclar Group and Canadian Forest Products Ltd. The road tenure holder was the Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations & Rural Development. Overall, the crossing was ranked as a high priority for rehabilitation. Fish passage restoration at the crossing upstream under the CN Railway would also be required to achieve habitat gains greater than 200m.
| Site | Stream | Road | Tenure | UTM (10N) | Fish Species | Habitat Gain (km) | Priority |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 125247 | Trib to Parsnip River | Chuchinka-Table FSR and CN Railway | FLNRORD 5506 08 0 | 542959 6062815 | RB | 0.2 | High |
| Map 50k | Instream (km) | Lake (ha) | Wetland (ha) | Channel Width (m) | Fish Upstream | Habitat Value | Rank | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 093J120 | 17.7 |
|
18.6 | 2.9 | RB | Low | High | Larger watershed with fish noted at crossing in FISS system. Railway crossing (16603287) upstream to be assessed. |
| Site | Diameter (m) | Length (m) | Embedded | Backwatered | Fill Depth (m) | Outlet Drop (m) | Outlet Pool Depth (m) | Stream Width Ratio | Barrier Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 125247 | 0.9 | 12 | no | 100 | 1 | 0 | 0.5 | 3.9 | Barrier |
| Site | Location | Length Surveyed (m) | Channel Width (m) | Wetted Width (m) | Pool depth (m) | Gradient (%) | Habitat Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 125247 | Upstream | 755 | 3.8 | 3.5 | 0.4 | 3 | Medium |
| 125247 | Downstream | 190 | 3.5 | 2.9 | 0.4 | 2.5 | Medium |
Figure 1: Inlet of PSCIS crossing 125247 (UTM: 10N 542959 6062815).
Figure 2: Habitat downstream of PSCIS crossing 125247 (UTM: 10N 543044 6062695).
Figure 3: Confluence with Parsnip River downstream of PSCIS crossing 125247 (UTM: 10N 543048 6062640).
Figure 4: Railway crossing (modeled crossing 16603287) located 200 m upstream of PSCIS crossing 125247 (UTM: 10N 542901 6062899).
Figure 5: View of habitat upstream of crossing 125247 (UTM: 10N 542807 6063148).
Figure 6: View of habitat upstream of crossing 125247 (UTM: 10N 542788 6063196).
Figure 7: View of habitat upstream of crossing 125247 (UTM: 10N 542648 6063450).
References
Hagen, John, Susanne Williamson, Mike Stamford, and Ray Pillipow. 2015. “Critical Habitats for Bull Trout and Arctic Grayling Within the Parsnip River and Pack River Watersheds.”
MoE. 2019. “Known Bc Fish Observations and Bc Fish Distributions.” Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy - Knowledge Management. https://catalogue.data.gov.bc.ca/dataset/known-bc-fish-observations-and-bc-fish-distributions.