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Lake Van Norden Dam Truckee Donner Land Trust Public Meeting
David Shaw, Brian Hastings,
Ted Beedy, Barry Anderson
July 29, 2013
photo
Acknowledgements
• Chuck Kull, Holdrege and Kull
• Randy Westmoreland, USFS
• Gateway Mountain Center
• Norm Sayler
• Susan Lindstrom, PhD
• UC Davis Center for Watershed Science
• Aspet Ordoubigian, DSOD
• George Lamson
Overview
• Planning and regulatory framework• Approach• Sierra meadows overview• Historical context• Summary of preliminary findings
– Channel and meadow conditions– Plants– Wildlife– Bathymetry
• Description of alternatives• Next steps
Regulatory Framework
1. < 50 acre feet
-OR-
2. < 6 feet high
Regulatory Framework
Plants
USFS Manual 7500: Dam Planning, Investigation and Design
• Alternative 1: Full Breach
• Alternative 2: “Non-jurisdictional” dam with determination of hazard
Regulatory Framework
Plants
USFS Manual 7500: Dam Planning, Investigation and Design
• Alternative 3 (?): Existing dam with acceptable level of risk with dam failure
Investigation Approach
Goal:
Document existing conditions so that impacts associated with various alternatives can be evaluated and monitored
Investigation Approach
Study Elements:
• Historical and Cultural Resources Assessment• Channel and Meadow Assessment• Biological Resources Assessment• Bathymetric Survey
Next steps:
• Complete Channel and Meadow Assessment• Hydrology and Hydraulics Hazards• Monitor surface-groundwater interactions• Evaluation of Alternatives
Sierra Meadows Overview
HydroGeomorphic Meadow Types
(after Weixelman and others 2011)
• Peatland
• Depressional
• Lacustrine
• Dry
• Discharge Slope
• Riparian
• Subsurface
HydroGeomorphic Wetland Types
(after USACE 1993, NRCS, 2008)
• Depressional
• Slope
• Mineral Soil Flats
• Organic Soil Flats
• Riverine
• Lacustrine Fringe
Historical and Culture Events Lake Van Norden and Meadow
Date Event
9,000 yrs ago to historic contact Prehistory and Washoe/Maidu history
1844-1852 Emigrant Trail
1864 Dutch Flat Donner Lake Wagon Road
1868-69 Transcontinental Railroad
1870s-1880s Initial dam construction by S. Yuba Canal Co.
ca. 1908 Dam construction by PG&E
1913-1925 Lincoln Highway
1921-1927 Victory Highway
1956-present Old County Road
late 1970s Draw-down of Lake Van Norden
2012 Land acquired by Truckee Donner Land Trust
2013 Lake Van Norden and Meadow Assessment
Van Norden Meadow
HGM Map (UCD)
Van Norden Meadow
Review of Historical Aerial Photography: 6-11-20118-21-20058-7-19929-6-19838-31-19777-24-19738-2-19727-15-19666-27-1939
Review of Historical Maps: GLO 1866County Maps 1887, 1890, 1913USGS 1889, 1940, 1955 (photo revised 1979)TNF 1911
Channel Conditions Van Norden Watershed and Meadow
Watershed Area: 10.4 sq. mi.
Headwaters of:
• South Fork Yuba River
Tributaries:
• Upper Castle Creek
• “Lytton Creek”
Geology:
• Cretaceous crystalline rocks
• Tertiary extrusive volcanics
• Glaciated
Current Land Uses:
Interstate I-80, Ski Areas, UPRR
Channel Conditions Upper Castle Creek
Channel Conditions South Fork Yuba River
Habitat Lake Van Norden and Meadow
Special Status Species:Bog and Fen species, Botrychium and Sphagnum
VegetationVan Norden Meadow
Bird Species Present Lake Van Norden and Meadow
Bird Species Present Lake Van Norden and Meadow
Bird Species Present Lake Van Norden and Meadow
Bird Species Present Lake Van Norden and Meadow
Bird Species Present Lake Van Norden and Meadow
Bird Species Present Lake Van Norden and Meadow
Bird Species Present Lake Van Norden and Meadow
Bird Species Present Lake Van Norden and Meadow
Other WildlifeInvertebrates, Reptiles, Amphibians, Mammals
BathymetryExisting Conditions
50 acre-foot lake mapStorage volume = 190 ac-ft
Surface area = 86.7 ac
Bathymetry50 ac-ft Lake Volume Footprint
4-foot notch lake mapReq’d notch depth = 2.2 feet
Surface area = 30.8 acres
Bathymetry4-ft Notched Lake Volume Footprint
4-foot notch lake mapStorage volume = 13.2 ac-ft
Surface area = 11.8 ac
Evaluation of alternatives
Evaluation of alternativesAerial photography evaluation and interpretation
1966
Evaluation of alternativesAerial photography evaluation and interpretation
1977
Evaluation of alternativesAerial photography evaluation and interpretation
2011
Discussion