This project improved fish passage through the nearly 400-foot Caltrans I-80 double-bay box culvert on Pinole Creek in the City of Pinole, Contra Costa County. Construction added concrete notch baffles, training walls, a terminal rock pool, and a rocked downstream chute, opening nearly 7 miles of documented spawning and rearing habitat. The project benefits a federally threatened steelhead population recognized as one of very few viable runs within the San Francisco Bay Area.
Location: Pinole Creek at the Caltrans I-80 double-bay box culvert, located at I-80 Milepost 8.4, City of Pinole, Contra Costa County. The culvert is situated 1.5 miles from San Pablo Bay, which is part of the larger San Francisco Bay Estuary. The Pinole Creek Watershed covers approximately 15 square miles in the northwest part of Contra Costa County.
Historical Presence of Anadromous Fish: In the upper watershed, Pinole Creek maintains a self-sustaining steelhead trout population, which is listed as threatened under the Federal Endangered Species Act. Pinole Creek has regional significance as one of only a small handful of viable steelhead runs within San Francisco and San Pablo Bays. Monitoring in the upper watershed indicated steelhead presence only twice in the 12 years prior to the project (2002 and 2011), due to the near-total blockage posed by the I-80 culvert.
Project Lead Organization: Contra Costa Resource Conservation District (CCRCD)
Project Partners: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (CFPF/USFWS grant FC15AC00085); California Department of Fish and Wildlife SHRRC Program, California State Coastal Conservancy; California Natural Resources Agency EEM Program; Phillips 66 (SEP matching grant); Nute Engineering (design and construction management); Pacific Biology (regulatory compliance and biological monitoring); Bridgeway Civil Constructors (construction contractor); Mike Love and Associates; Contra Costa County Flood Control District; Caltrans; City of Pinole; East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD); Friends of Pinole Creek Watershed; Wildlife Research Associates.
Project Description: The nearly 400-foot-long Caltrans I-80 double-bay box culvert on Pinole Creek creates a severe barrier to upstream passage of juvenile and adult steelhead trout. The culvert slope and shape lack sufficient water depth and produce excessive water velocities at fish migration flows. The project entailed constructing fish passage improvements on the existing culvert by building a concrete notch with baffles, training walls on the culvert aprons, a terminal rock pool, and a rocked chute in the downstream channel, using a coffer dam and dewatering for access.
Expected Completion: Fall 2016.
Project Effectiveness: Completion of the Pinole Creek Fish Passage Improvement Project at Highway 80 removed the only significant barrier to fish passage and hydrologically reconnected habitat in the upper watershed with the San Pablo and San Francisco Bay Estuaries. The project opened access to nearly 7 miles of documented quality steelhead spawning and rearing habitat on the main stem of Pinole Creek. EBMUD biologists conduct three spawning surveys per season to confirm steelhead presence and spawning success in the upper watershed, with monitoring planned for a minimum of five years.
