Has anyone seen what they are doing up there?
There are places on the pysht they are logging right to the river. The spawning gravel on the upper hoko is knee deep in mud.
Who is in charge? I called the state fish and game and they told me to call the DNR, they told me to call the state. The EPA said with out listed stock they cant do anything. They said to take pictures.
Im frustrated. Saw two pairs of steelhead sitting in a creek below a culvert about 10 feet above them with no way to get up and spawn. What can we do?

The first steelhead I've ever seen cought came out of the Hoko. I think we should try to organize something on this BB to try and stop the logging and restore the river to it's original shape. Can you help us out Bob?

Where was the creek & culvert at?? It may have been the hatchery restoration creek up there??

Anyway, I agree with the logging situation up there.. Something definitely needs to be done! I don't have much money (ANY?!?! =) But you have my signature at least as support, if you decide to do any kind of petition... I'd be willing to help out in other ways if possible too..

Tom

If I recall correctly they are only required to leave a 20 yard buffer or was that 20 feet. The compromise with the timber industry last year.

the game dept. is in charge.they may be giving you lip service. hydraulic code RCW 75.20.100-160 which states the authority to regulate work near the water. iam pretty sure thats work up to the high water mark.did not have time to research all rcw codes.will get with you later after i make a couple of phone calls.

As a logger in S.E. Wa. I can tell you that this practice in our area is totally unacceptable. Any fish bearing stream will have a minimum 200 ft. buffer, that is essentially a no touch area. I don't know what local practices there are , but find it hard to believe they are allowing timber harvest to the bank of a stream. Need to look at the Washington Forest Practices Act. It is very specific in this area of stream buffering

wdfw response doesn't surprise me in the least. all you have to do is look at the film footage of the clearcut and subsequent mudding of the nf lewis. a wdfw bio stood there and told the reporter that they don't believe the clearcut was responsible for the slide etc... they were standing at the upper edge of the slide that was in the middle of the clearcut. if wdfw or nobody else wants to step to the plate to handle this very clear violation of not only the timber practices laws but the clean water act call the media and get a news crew out there. that will surely get someones attention. if if a large group of irate steelhead fishers just happen to be there to put the wdfw,epa, doe, and timber comp in the hot seat all the better.

I don't even live out there, and it grates on me. That's why a lot of our rivers here get so muddy. Too much wear and tear on the banks and streamside habitat. Nobody gives a rip. Maybe you can call "Butterfly" and have her crawl in a tree along the bank, for a couple of years. Every body pays attention to a chick that doesn't shower for 2 years. Give her a G Loomis 1083, a dozen pinkies, some herring rigged Kwik fish, dozen slinkies, handful of dink floats, jigs, flies, a zip lock bag of gooey bobs and jensen eggs, heat treated spinners, pre tied leaders, a suitcase full of yarn, business card form Ted's, and a gallon of Pro cured eggs, and set her loose. After that, everyone will know what a steelheader is. She's our gal. All we have to do is have Robbo show up two years form now to help her out of the tree. Get the media involved, as they'll run a mile with this one. Good luck guys.

I read in the paper this week that they just increased the setbacks for the county at the last commissioners meeting.

4NWFish is right, WDFW has total authority over this situation. An HPA (Hydraulic Permit Approval) needs to be obtained from WDFW for any work in "regulated" waters, or fish-bearing streams. If water quality standards are not being met it falls under both WDFW and DOE. I quarantee you someone in Olypia cares.

Remember, the squeeky wheel gets the grease.

i spoke to a wdfw rep yesterday morning about this just for my fyi. he stated that as it is a logging operation dnr has enforcement responsibilities. if they had to ut a road in or place a culvert then they have to have an hpa from wdfw. according to this rep one of these rivers goes through the middle of this logging operation. he said that wdfw does have some enforcement authority because of the stream but this is primarily a violation of the forest practices act and dnr is obligated to respond to the complaint and they can ask for assistance from wdfw & the dept of ecology.

Any additional info on the Hoko logging? Has DNR or WDF&W responded? I understand that Wa. Trout is looking into the matter and are concerned. I'm willing to come up and take photos etc. if it will do any good.

I talked to an Exec at the big 'W' timber/real estate company. I'm being told it depends on who owns the land. Private, state or Federal.

That's bull, about who owns the land! We wouldn't have all this contention (with land use ordinances, and timber/fish agreements,etc.) if landowners had no restrictions. And they don't own the rivers or fish!

Your correct Scaly. While I don't know about Indian owned land, Federal, State, and Private lands all have strict regulations on logging to the edge of any fish bearing stream. Even private landowners have to be permitted through the state to log. Someone here (landowner or logger ) has violated the law, and should pay, either in fines or restoration work or both. If this land is private or state, where is this regions forester?????

I hope this helps:

RCW 90.58.150 Selective commercial timber cutting, when.
With respect to timber situated within two hundred feet abutting landward of the ordinary high water mark within shorelines of state-wide significance (any creek or stream with a mean annual flow of over 20cfs or any lake over 20 acres in size), the department (state) or local government (county) shall allow only selective commercial timber cutting, so that no more than thirty percent of the merchantable trees may be harvested in any ten year period of time: PROVIDED, That other timber harvesting methods may be permitted in those limited instances where the topography, soil conditions or silviculture practices necessary for regeneration render selective logging ecologically detrimental: PROVIDED FURTHER, That clear cutting of timber which is solely incidental to the preperation of land for other uses authorized by this chapter may be permitted.

Complaints for possible logging violations should be forwarded to the County Rep. who is in charge of reviewing forestry practices applications. If they give you the run around threaten to open a code violation on the cutting that has occured. In King County, logging isn't allowed within 200-feet of the Ordinary High Water Mark (OHWM) of a shoreline of the state unless the land owner applies for a shoreline conditional use permit first. The buffer can be reduced to 100-feet if the cutting occurs in a forestry zone. Good luck.... Save those salmonids!

Scaly, what I mean is who do you go to to complain. Depends if it's federal, state or private land.

If I remember correctly, the upper Hoko is owned by a private company called Cavenham Timber with the office based in Port Angeles. I too fish the Hoko and have noticed water clarity down in the past 12 years. If a petition needs signing or some other kind of help, call me.

If the logging occurred on state or private land, it comes under the Washington State Forest Practices Act. The Department of Natural Resources is responsible for regulation and enforcement. Given DNR's pro-logging penchant, they have often been lax on enforcement, so I wouldn't count on the regional forester. However, both WDFW and the Makah Indian Tribe (I'm pretty sure) have Timber-Fish-Wildlife representatives whose job is to monitor state forest practices. Call the nearest offices for each and try to get hold of their respective biologist or forester and make sure they are informed. They should already know of such blatent violations, but it's best to verify.

WDFW, and the tribe - if it wishes - can cause DNR a tremendous amount of misery for poor regulation. And tribes that participate in TFW have tremendous influence in forcing a sometimes reluctant DNR to do its enforcement job.

Best wishes and good luck!

Salmo g.