UPDATE: Sturgeon Lake Restoration

Originally published August 24, 2018

What lacks in beauty, is gained in preparedness; as the image below depicts crews lay foundation for the new bridge to be installed along Reeder Road to improve connectivity of Sturgeon Lake.

Image: Portland Tribune

Sturgeon Lake on Sauvie Island is an important resource for migratory bird species and fish, like juvenile salmon. For decades the lake has been filling with silt, however, due to long-term connectivity issues. We are now in the early phases of installing a two-lane bridge along a portion of Reeder Road that crosses Dairy Creek as a part of ongoing restoration work to improve seasonal water flow to the lake.

The 96-foot-long, 40-foot-wide bridge is intended to replace a series of culverts installed under the road years ago that are now starting to show signs of failure. The culverts allow connectivity between the Columbia River and Sturgeon Lake on the northeastern portion of the island.

Replacing the culverts with a bridge will also increase the amount of water flow to and from Sturgeon Lake via Dairy Creek. The two 12-foot culverts being removed were the largest possible size. Putting in a bridge allows vehicles to use the road while also ensuring the creek's water flow won't be impeded.

In July, the fish in Dairy Creek were removed and relocate before construction work could begin, with, of the ~2,300 fish, 26 of which were juvenile Chinook salmon. Warm temperatures and shallow water are typically not where juvenile salmonids thrive, leading to believe that some of the fish may have been trapped in the creek with the seasonal changes in weather during April, May and June, when fish are typically found in the area.

In early July, construction began on the island with a bypass road installation to the west of the culverts so that traffic could move through the area while the culverts were removed piece by piece. Over the next few weeks, crews will do foundation work before the box beams and abutments can go in. The goal is to have the bridge installed by September.

We are very proud of this project and all that have been involved, and thank you to all who joined us in September on Sauvie Island to help celebrate this huge success.