After 1996 floods, the St. Regis River eroded a portion of a county road near Haugan. Watershed Consulting was hired to design and oversee construction of bank/road revetment that would work with existing tendencies of the river. This work adjusted the river's pattern and width/depth ratio that was out of balance due to past transportation construction in the flood prone area. A full hydrologic analysis and total station survey were used to calculate appropriate channel pattern and hydraulic geometry. The design incorporated needs for bank structural integrity and for better fish habitat. The record 1997 floods validated both the design and the construction. No new banks eroded, and large scour pools with overhead cover were maintained along installed rootwads. Based on the successful design and construction method, three more meanders were restored and revegetated in fall 1997, and the flood prone area revegetated with appropriate woody species. Overbank flows during 1998 runoff again validated the stability and dimensions of the reconstructed channel.
Personnel involved: Igor Suchomel - project management, hydrology, restoration design Steve Buckley - fluvial geomorphology, restoration design Mark Vander Meer - revegetation design and implementation
Contact: Dennis Workman (retired), MT Fish, Wildlife & Parks, Missoula, MT (406) 542-5507 or Glenn Phillips, MTDFWP Habitat Bureau Chief, Helena, MT (406) 444-5334