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2.7.07 Backwater Habitat Project Completed in Cass County A project to create new habitat for fish and other aquatic life near the confluence of the Platte and Missouri rivers recently was completed, according to the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. The Randall Schilling Wildlife Management Area Backwater Habitat Project included the construction of an approximately 9,300-foot long, 150-foot wide, 18-foot deep backwater channel northeast of Plattsmouth in Cass County. The project is expected to offset anticipated adverse impacts resulting from the Metropolitan Utilities District (M.U.D.) Platte West Project -- a 100 million-gallon per day (peak use) well field under construction near the Platte River west of Omaha. Because the new well field will result in a lower streamflow in the Platte, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and the Commission determined that the resulting loss of habitat for pallid sturgeon, a federally and state-listed endangered species, should be mitigated by improving the riverine habitat for the fish. The USFWS has indicated that any further, unmitigated depletion of flow in the Platte is likely to jeopardize the species' existence, so M.U.D. agreed to assist the Commission and fund the project. "The recently completed backwater project at Randall Schilling WMA will greatly diversify the fish and wildlife habitat and increase the recreational opportunities for the public," said project coordinator Frank Albrecht, assistant administrator for the Commission's Realty and Environmental Services division. "It's a tremendous resource for the area." Many fish species are expected to benefit from the new habitat, including bottom-dwelling species, which serve as a food source for pallid sturgeon. Juvenile fish of prey species will move from the backwater into the Missouri, where they will become available to pallid sturgeon. This backwater channel is expected to be used by many popular game fish, including walleye, sauger, largemouth bass and smallmouth bass. The backwater channel is connected to the Missouri by the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers' Plattsmouth Chute Restoration Project channel. As water levels in the chute fluctuate with the flow of the Missouri, the backwater intermittently will be connected to the river. This will mimic the way backwater regions historically were linked to the river, depending on the Missouri's water levels. Excavated material from the backwater channel was placed in adjacent spoil piles to provide additional wildlife habitat. It also was used to construct a berm around the channel. "What makes this area so unique are the recreation options, including the Platte River, Missouri River, a chute off the main channel of the Missouri and a backwater channel, all within one wildlife management area," Albrecht said. Aside from the combined efforts of the Commission, M.U.D. and USFWS, the Flatwater Group, a Lincoln consulting firm, oversaw the construction of the project. The Wildlife Division's Neal VanWinkle, Engineering Division's Jim Sheffield and Fisheries Division's Gerald Mestl, along with other Commission staff, contributed to the effort. |
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