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Russian River Estuary Management Project

About the Russian River Estuary:

The Russian River Estuary closes throughout the year as a result of a sandbar forming at the mouth of the Russian River. The sandbar usually closes during the spring, summer, and fall when river flows are relatively low and long period waves transport sand landward, rebuilding the beach that was removed by winter waves and river outflows. Closures result in ponding of the Russian River behind the sandbar and water level increases in the Estuary. Natural breaching events occur when estuary water surface levels exceed the sandbar height and overtop the sandbar, scouring an outlet channel. Public agencies have been involved in breaching the sandbar since at least the 1960s. The Sonoma County Water Agency became responsible for breaching activities in 1994.

The Sonoma County Water Agency mechanically breaches the sandbar to alleviate potential flooding of low-lying shoreline properties near the town of Jenner. The Water Agency holds permits from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, National Marine Fisheries Service, California State Parks and Recreation, North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board, California Department of Fish and Game, California State Lands Commission, and the California Coastal Commission for the breaching activities. Beginning in Summer 2010, the Water Agency will implement a new way of breaching the estuary, described below. See the Outlet Channel Management Plan and figures illustrating the plan for more details.

For video, photos and descriptions of many species that live in the Russian River estuary, visit this informative presentation done by KQED’s Quest program. http://www.kqed.org/quest/exploration/lower-russian-river-exploration#Overview

Russian River Estuary Management Project - Environmental Impact Report

The Final Environmental Impact Report (EIR) includes responses to comments made on the draft EIR:

View EIR Project Page

Pictures of Estuary Management Project


Outlet channel management implementation July 8	Completed channel July 8	Closed channel July 9

Fact sheets:

Russian River Estuary Adaptive Management

How Russian River Estuary Water Levels are Managed

The Water Agency is mandated under an Endangered Species Act (ESA) Russian River Biological Opinion issued by the National Marine Fisheries Service, and a California ESA Consistency Determination issued by the California Department of Fish and Game, to adaptively manage the Russian River Estuary with the objectives of enhancing summer rearing habitat for juvenile salmonids, particularly steelhead, and managing estuary water levels to minimize flood hazard. Rearing habitat for steelhead may be enhanced by reducing tidal influence on the Russian River Estuary from May 15 to October 15 (lagoon management period) to increase available freshwater habitat. During the lagoon management period, the Water Agency will adaptively manage a lagoon outlet channel with the intent of achieving an average daily water surface elevation of at least 7 feet (water levels may vary between 4 and 9 feet).

To create and maintain a summer lagoon, the Water Agency would excavate an outlet channel, if the sandbar naturally closes, with a bed elevation low enough to allow outflow from the lagoon to pass over the barrier beach, but high enough to minimize the potential for closure caused by ocean waves. Physical establishment of the outlet channel during the lagoon management period would be similar in terms of equipment and duration as artificial breaching.

Breaching activities occur on the sandbar once it naturally closes. The sandbar is accessed from the paved parking lot at Goat Rock State Beach. A bulldozer or similar equipment is off-loaded in the parking lot and driven onto the beach via an existing access point. A “pilot channel” in the sandbar is created at a sufficient depth to allow river flows to begin transporting sand to the ocean. The sand is placed onto the beach adjacent to the pilot channel. After the pilot channel is dug, the last upstream portion of the sandbar is removed, allowing river water to flow to the ocean. The size of the pilot channel varies depending on the height of the sandbar to be breached, the tide level, and the water surface level in the Russian River Estuary. A typical channel would be approximately 30 m long, 8 m wide, and 2 m deep (100 feet long, 25 feet wide, and 6 feet deep). The amount of sand moved can range from less than 100 cubic yards to approximately 1,000 cubic yards.

The Water Agency contacts State Parks lifeguards within 24 hours prior to management activities to minimize potential hazards to beach visitors. Signs and barriers are also posted for 24 hours prior to and after events to warn beach visitors of the hazards of the management area and to be aware of seals hauled out on the beach.

Biological and Physical Studies

Several biological and physical studies have been conducted in the Russian River Estuary to assist in management decisions. These studies began in the early 1990s and many studies are ongoing. Listed below in chronological order are Estuary reports.

Russian River Estuary Study, 1992-1993

The Russian River Estuary Study, 1992-1993, was prepared for the Sonoma County Department of Public Works to evaluate the physical processes associated with sandbar closure, the changes to water quality and biological conditions following sandbar closure and breaching, the flooding impacts of sandbar closure, and develop a management plan for the Estuary. The current management plan specifying breaching the sandbar when the water surface level in the Estuary is between 4.5 and 7 feet NGVD was a result of this plan.

Biological and Water Quality Monitoring, 1996-2000

The Agency evaluated the impact of artificially breaching the sandbar at the mouth of the Russian River on water quality, pinnipeds, nekton, and fisheries from 1996 through 2000. Monitoring included continuous sampling and observations before, during, and following sandbar breaching.

Russian River Estuary Fish and Macro-Invertebrate Monitoring

This monitoring evaluates the distribution and abundance of aquatic species in the Russian River Estuary during late spring through early fall beginning in 2003. Over 50 fish species have ben inventoried, including juvenile steelhead and Chinook salmon. Also, juvenile Dungeness crab rear in the Estuary. This monitoring effort has since been incorporated into the current sandbar breaching monitoring plan.

Hydrography of the Russian River Estuary: Summer-Fall 2009

This report, compiled by John Largier & Dane Behrens, Bodega Marine Laboratory, University of California Davis, is preceded by a data report (Behrens & Largier 2010), in which all field data are plotted and details are provided on instrument deployments. In this report, core sections address (i) water budget and seepage analysis, (ii) tidal and diurnal currents, (iii) hydrographic structure – salinity, temperature, dissolved oxygen, (iv) stratification and water column stability, (v) salt and dissolved oxygen budgets.

Estuary Water Quality Studies

As a part of the State Water Resources Control Board Temporary Urgency Change Petitions, the Water Agency has been monitoring the Russian River and the Estuary for Bacteria and Nutrient levels.

Marine Mammal Protection Permit and Pinniped Monitoring Plan

The Water Agency's Estuary Management activities are authorized under a Marine Mammal Protection Permit Incidental Harassment Authorization.

The purpose of the 2011 Pinniped Monitoring Plan is to detect the response of pinnipeds (primarily Pacific harbor seals) to estuary management activities at the Russian River estuary. This plan includes the conditions of the current Marine Mammal Protection Act Incidental Harassment Authorization, issued in 2010 by the National Marine Fisheries Service.

The Marine Mammal Protection Act Incidental Harassment Authorization (No. 14426) - Report of Activities and Monitoring Results data report was prepared for NMFS and covers pinniped monitoring from April 1 to December 31, 2010.