North Newell Creek Stream Restoration

Over one mile of fish habitat is restored to a degraded reach of Abernethy Creek, a tributary to the Willamette River.

Metro is the regional government for the Oregon portion of the Portland metropolitan area. In an effort to restore habitat for native fish, improve water quality in Abernethy and Newell Creeks, and restore floodplain connectivity, Metro initiated a 5,800- linear-foot stream restoration.

Biohabitats implemented construction of the restoration, which was designed by Inter-Fluve. The restoration involved the placement of more than 100 logs in Newell Creek and 60 logs in Abernathy Creek. Newell Creek’s location in a ravine required that all logs, rootwads, and slash be lifted, transported, and placed via helicopter.

Working closely with Columbia Helicopter and Inter-Fluve, Biohabitats helped coordinate helicopter lifting, transport, and placement of material to build the habitat structures. Biohabitats also led pre-construction efforts to tip and salvage trees from the site, rescue fish, isolate the in-water work area, and move more than 800 cubic yards of soil to create deep pools at the log jams. The newly installed structures are designed to provide complex habitat for a variety of species, including coho salmon (protected), Pacific lamprey (endangered), cutthroat trout, and winter steelhead trout (threatened).