East Twin Creek, is a second order tributary to the lower Blackfoot River with base flows of approximately 6 cfs. A perched 8' x 64' culvert on Champion International property limited fish passage to base flow periods for approximately 25 years. Flow velocities were recorded in excess of 10 feet/second in June 1997. The culvert was removed in the fall of 1997.

Undersized and perched culvert prior to restoration.

After the culvert was removed and banks sloped back.

In order to prioritize restoration resources, we developed a fisheries-based restoration priority scorecard, based on biological, social and financial considerations, for 83 impaired tributaries of the Blackfoot River. East Twin Creek is ranked 31 of 83 streams surveyed. Fish populations were sampled above the culvert crossing before and after removal of the culvert. In the 1998 survey, a single bull trout was collected in the sample upstream of the old culvert. Four samples in 1996 in East Twin Creek recorded no bull trout presence. The fish is thought to be a juvenile fish from the Blackfoot River using this stream for rearing and thermal refuge.

A temperature data logger (hobo) was placed near the mouth of East Twin Creek the second week of May and pulled the second week of October 1998. The mean summer temperature for the four-month period of June through September was 51.3 degrees Fahrenheit. Maximum monthly summer temperatures remained cool ranging from 53.6 in June to 58.4 in September. Maximum summer temperatures were 10 degrees below Blackfoot River temperatures at Wished Bridge (56.2 vs. 66.7), indicating that this stream provides significant cool-water input during high temperature periods in the lower Blackfoot River.