Wild Chinook Salmon in the Long Tom?

While most people don’t think of the Long Tom when they think of salmon, the Long Tom River is an essential piece of the endangered wild spring Chinook Salmon’s complex life history in the Willamette system. Wild fish born in the McKenzie or Middle Fork make their way down the Willamette during winter’s high flows in search of rearing habitat like the Long Tom. The warmer, slower, and naturally clay-silted waters make for great places to hide and get a little bigger before heading out to sea. Historically, juvenile fish would have been common in parts of the Long Tom system in the winter. Currently an Army Corps of Engineer’s structure in Monroe prevents these fish from accessing most of their historical Long Tom range. The Watershed Council is currently engaged in a multi-year collaborative effort alongside the Army Corps and the City of Monroe to figure out how to provide passage for these special little visitors to the watershed! You can get more details on the project at our Lower Long Tom Enhancement Plan Page Here, or in the FAQ at the bottom of this page.

How Can I Help?

We have already secured a total of $134,235 in combined grants, and donations from local donors, toward this year’s work on this project! This brings the total cash and in-kind resources invested to this project over the last 4 years to over $300,000 from Dick & Gretchen Evans, the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board, and The Hewlett Foundation’s Open Rivers – Resource Legacy Fund. Now we need an additional $80,000 this year for the council to stay engaged in this critical next phase! Please give today to this important work!

CLICK HERE TO GIVE TODAY!

What will your gift support?

• Engagement with local, and federal partners to continue designing & vetting the fish passage alternatives
• Supporting critical backbone services for the management of the project
• Helping bridge the gap between our robust outreach & vision phase, through the design phase, to keep momentum towards implementation!

Do you have questions about the project?  Check out our project page with background and timelines.

Lower Long Tom Project News & Events

Long Tom’s Work Featured in National Documentary Connecting Whales, Fish & Forests!

Did you know that the work of the Long Tom Watershed Council (LTWC) ​is directly connected to the health of  Orcas in the Pacific North West's Southern Resident Pod? The film illuminates…
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#Givelocal this #Givingtuesday

Do you want to #givelocal this #givingtuesday? Consider joining dozens of your neighbors who have given in support of Long Tom Watershed Council (LTWC)'s current campaign to bring juvenile spring Chinook salmon and…
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Thank You To Our Recent Campaign Donors!

This work is not possible without meaningful support from our community members and donors. Your gifts are our most powerful form of funding to get the work that matters to…
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Lower Long Tom Fish Passage

The Long Tom River rises in the Central Oregon Coast Range and flows east to join the Willamette River.  In 1941, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built a flood…
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Thank You To Our Recent Campaign Donors! [April-May 2019]

This work is not possible without meaningful support from our community members and donors. Your gifts are our most powerful form of funding to get the work that matters to…
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Lower Long Tom Project in the Register Guard

Check out today's The Register-Guard newspaper for a great overview of our work in Monroe. This work has been propelled by the Watershed Council in earnest for the last 4 years in…
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Visit Long Tom Watershed Council’s Booth at Monroe’s Vino, Vintage & Victory Festival! April 27th!

Come to Monroe's Vino, Vintage & Victory Festival on Saturday, April 27th and be sure to stop by the Watershed Council's Booth to say hello! From Monroe's Facebook Event: "We…
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“Explore Oregon” Class from the Department of Geography at University of Oregon visits Monroe

From Department of Geography: " My Explore Oregon (a field trip based geography of Oregon course) class visited the Monroe Dam with reps from the Long Tom Watershed Council (LTWC), the Army…
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Lower Long Tom River Habitat Enhancement Project Homepage [2019]

The Long Tom River rises in the Central Oregon Coast Range and flows east to join the Willamette River.  In 1941, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built a flood…
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New Start 1135 Authority Project Joint Press Release: Army Corps & City of Monroe

From the City of Monroe Website (here) ""On January 27th, 2019, The City of Monroe has been awarded a Continuing Authorities Program (CAP) 1135 project to investigate ecosystem restoration on the…
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Native Fish Of The Long Tom Winter Sampling 2019

Last week the council's Fish Biologist Jed Kaul joined Karen Hans from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife to do some fish sampling below the drop structure on the mainstem of…
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A Vision For the Lower Long Tom

The Watershed Council Partnered with University of Oregon Landscape Architecture student Flora Chen to create some watercolor sketches of a few of the proposed alternatives for fish passage at the…
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Long Tom River Plan Survey November, 2017

The survey for the Lower Long Tom River Plan is now open! This survey is for landowners, residents and stakeholders with an interest in the future management of the Long Tom…
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June 8, 2017 Public Meeting – Long Tom River Habitat Enhancement Project Meeting #3

Thurs, June  8, 6 - 8 p.m. Monroe Community Library 380 N 5th St, Monroe, OR 97456 (Meet and greet with Clinton Begley at 5:30 p.m.)Read more
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Feb 16, 2017 Public Meeting: Long Tom River Landowners – Come review the maps please!

Long Tom River Habitat Enhancement Project - Public Meeting #2 Thurs, Feb 16, 6 - 7:30 p.m. Monroe Community Library 380 N 5th St, Monroe, OR 97456 (Meet and greet…
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Nov 29, 2016 Public Meeting: Lower Long Tom River Habitat Improvement Plan

Tues, Nov 29, 6 - 8 p.m. Monroe Community Library 380 N 5th St, Monroe, OR 97456Read more
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Request for Qualifications & Bid for Community Outreach Project

LTWC is recruiting a consultant to implement the community outreach and restoration planning component of Lower Long Tom River Enhancement Project. RFQ due October 10 Read more
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Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is the function and purpose of the dam in Monroe now? Does it store water?

A: The dam in Monroe is considered a “run of river” dam, which mean there is no water storage function for the dam. As water enters the ponded area behind the dam from upstream, it exits over the dam at the same rate and has no effect on flows downstream. The primary function of the dam is to dissipate energy of the river as it falls over the dam. This dissipation was designed to extend the lifespan and reduce maintenance of the channelized and constructed segments of the river downstream. The Army Corps 1135 process underway will explore the continued utility of the structure in supporting the Corps mission on the Long Tom, and determine what effects, if any, various fish passage alternatives would have upon the constructed channel. A secondary function of the dam is to provide predictable pool depth for the City of Monroe’s drinking water intake. Any proposed alternatives for the dam will include alternatives for securing Monroe’s access to drinking water in the Long Tom. [for more information about the Watershed Council’s work in partnership with the City of Monroe to improve the City’s drinking water: Click here] 

Q: Why does the watershed council need my support to address a federally owned structure?

A: This is a watershed wide vision that is bigger than just the dam in Monroe. The Monroe fish passage barrier is the first that migrating fish encounter on their way upstream from the Willamette, and the most complex to find a solution for. The Watershed Council has stewarded this project for the last 4 years, and has leveraged resources for technical review of the project, inundation modeling, community outreach efforts, visioning with Monroe decision makers, and continued dialogue with a steering committee of local stakeholders, and even an opportunity for local school children in Monroe to interact with the native fish below the dam. The Army Corps’ 1135 process requires continued engagement from local partners, including the Watershed Council to help guide the project locally, leverage local resources, and continue to reflect back the priorities of the watershed into the federal process. Once the 1135 process is complete, the Watershed Council and the City of Monroe will continue to be local partners responsible for continuing the stewardship of the project before and after construction. Our ability to stay engaged is essential for a successful project to secure fish passage at Monroe!

Q: Are there salmon in the Long Tom now?

A: The short answer is yes! Each time we have sampled below the dam in the winter we have found juvenile Chinook trying to make their way upstream! So they are here in the watershed, but cannot access the vast majority of habitat they need to hide, grow, and survive before heading to the ocean. The dam in Monroe is the first barrier they encounter moving upstream – over 100 miles of Long Tom main-stem and tributary habitat would be available with the completion of our Lower Long Tom Habitat Enhancement Plan (learn more).

Q: When do you expect successful fish passage to be achieved at this site?

A: That largely depends upon the alternatives selected. For some alternatives, we may see full fish passage as soon as 2021. Others requiring more complex engineering solutions may not see completion until 2022-23 or later.

Q: Will adult salmon come up the Long Tom to spawn?

A: It’s unlikely that the Long Tom was robust spawning habitat for Chinook salmon. The cold & clear waters, and perfect-size gravel beds of other Upper Willamette tributaries like the McKenzie and Middle Fork Willamette are the area’s spawning habitats, but tributaries like the Long Tom are essential rearing habitat for the juvenile fish once they are born. The Willamette system is as complex as the multiple life histories of these special fish, and habitat in tributaries like the Long Tom is important for salmon recovery in partnership with the high quality spawning habitat in the Cascades.

Q: What about the other structures upstream of Monroe? Are they also fish barriers? Are you going to remove Fern Ridge Dam?

A: Upstream of Monroe there are three additional fish passage barriers. Two of those barriers are passable at some high-flow conditions. One has a design solution that can be implemented in future phases of habitat enhancement in the lower Long Tom river mainstem. The other is also included as a priority in our Lower Long Tom River Habitat Enhancement Plan and potential exists to address fish passage at both structures. The dam in Monroe is the first and highest priority to address for passage as its the first barrier that migrating fish encounter when moving upstream from the Willamette. The Fern Ridge dam is a community resource with multiple values for recreation, irrigation flow management, and flood risk mitigation. While Fern Ridge is a fish barrier at all flows, there is over 100 miles of habitat for native fish available on the Long Tom mainstem and Coast Range tributaries between the Monroe dam, and Fern Ridge dam that is currently inaccessible to migrating fish. Our priority is to reconnect those 100 miles of habitat in the Lower Long Tom (below Fern Ridge Dam), and its tributaries to the main stem of the Willamette River and to restore function of this highly managed and modified section of river. Fish passage at Fern Ridge is not a current priority for the council.