Deschutes Land Trust

Ochoco Preserve Project - Phase 2 Near Prineville, Oregon Is the Second Step in a Multi-year, Multi-phased Restoration Effort That Supports the Reintroduction of Spring Chinook Salmon and Summer Steelhead and Helps to Achieve the Restoration of Self-sustaining Upland, Wetland, Floodplain, and Stream Ecological Processes. Over the Past 150 Years, Landscape Changes Have Occurred on the Preserve in Order to Facilitate Agricultural Practices. Common Land Manipulations Such as Stream Relocation, Straightening, Armoring, and Diking Have Transpired. Further, Most Oxbows and Wetlands Were Filled and Leveled. the Ecological Value of the Preserve Has Been Drastically Reduced. This Project Is Designed in Order to Allow Ochoco Creek and the Crooked River to Access Floodplains to the Maximum Extent Possible With Consideration for Risk and Constructability. This Will Allow for a More Sustainable Project Over Time, Where Dynamic Stream Processes Occur, the Floodplain Is Frequently Accessed, and Variable Habitats Form That Are Able to Support All Life Stages of Anadromous and Resident Fish.significant Land Manipulation Must Occur in Order to Reset the Current Channelized Conditions on Both Systems . Therefore, Heavy Equipment Will Be Used to Construct Stream Channels, Off-channel Habitats, Wetlands, Floodplains, and Uplands Across About 86 Acres of the Preserve. the Length of Ochoco Creek and the Crooked River Will Nearly Double. Much of the Increased Length Will Include Complex Habitats Suitable for Chinook and Steelhead Rearing. for Example, the Newly Created Ochoco Creek Will Contain 3,390 Feet of Side Channels, 34 Pools, and 35 Riffles.