U.S. Department of Energy Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Golder Associates, Inc. Application of Geophysics to Define Hanford Fall Chinook Salmon Spawning Habitat FY Golder Associates and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Problem Statement Characteristics of the hyporheic zone are important components of fall chinook salmon spawning habitat, but are difficult to assess over large spatial scales.

U.S. Department of Energy Pacific Northwest National Laboratory 3 Golder Associates, Inc. Rationale for Project Directly supports needs identified in BiOp Feasibility of habitat modifications at Ives Island (ESA chum) Evaluation of potential fall chinook habitat in Snake (ESA fall chinook) NPPC 2000 Fish and Wildlife Program Mainstem habitat protection and restoration Consistent with Sub-Basin Summary Extension of on-going efforts to improve definition of spawning habitat in Hanford Reach

Surface and ground water converge in hyporheic habitats

Spawning controlled by geomorphic features of the river bottom Upwelling Potential Permeability Sediment structure

Sediment Permeability

U.S. Department of Energy Pacific Northwest National Laboratory 7 Golder Associates, Inc. Objectives Objective 1. Development of a technique(s) that is able to efficiently characterize the surface and subsurface lithology and geomorphology underlying fall chinook salmon spawning areas in the Hanford Reach of the Columbia River. Objective 2. Improve existing conceptual models (e.g., Geist and Dauble 1998) of fall chinook salmon spawning habitat.

U.S. Department of Energy Pacific Northwest National Laboratory 8 Golder Associates, Inc. Study Design Stratify the Hanford Reach based on geomorphic characteristics Conduct geophysical investigation Correlate fall chinook salmon spawning locations to geophysical characteristics Compare predicted spawning utilization to actual utilization

U.S. Department of Energy Pacific Northwest National Laboratory 11 Golder Associates, Inc. Expected Results Development of a technique to more effectively and efficiently define hyporheic zone structure, which is an important component of fall chinook spawning habitat. Potential application of this technique in other areas (Ives Island, Hells Canyon) and/or to other salmonid populations (chum, spring chinook).