
CURRENT PROJECTS

Mono Basin Fisheries Project
Since 1997, Mr. Taylor has participated in annual population surveys of trout in Mono Lake tributaries as part of Los Angeles Department of Water and Power’s long-term settlement agreement to restore the Mono Lake Basin. In 2009 Mr. Taylor was appointed by the State Water Resources Control Board as the program's lead fisheries scientist. LADWP's licenses were amended in 2021, and monitoring shall continue for an additional 10 years.

Monitoring of Trout Unlimited Projects
RTA is currently monitoring several fish passage and habitat enhancement projects managed by Trout Unlimited in Mendocino coastal watersheds. These projects include a culvert replacement and an off-channel alcove installation in Dry Dock Gulch (Big River) and a dam removal and channel enhancement in Neefus Gulch (Navarro River). These projects benefit juvenile coho salmon and steelhead, and numerous other native fish and amphibian species.

Fish Passage Design Workshops - 2025
In 2025, RTA is partnering with Michael Love and Associates and the Salmonid Restoration Federation to conduct two, three-day fish passage design and engineering workshops. These workshops will include two days of classroom instruction and group exercises, and one field tour day. The first workshop will be held in Santa Barbara on February 19-21, 2025. The second workshop's location and dates are still to be determined..

Lower Elk River Enhancement Project
RTA is contracted with the City of Eureka to assist in a large-scale estuary habitat enhancement project on the lower Elk River in the Humboldt Bay watershed. RTA provided fish relocation services during two construction seasons and has conducted two years of post-project biological monitoring. Focal species include juvenile coho salmon, tidewater goby, and longfin smelt. Twenty-one fish species have been documented during the post-project monitoring.

Assistance on California Trout Projects
RTA is currently providing fisheries biology services to California Trout and other project partners on habitat enhancement projects on Prairie Creek and the lower Elk River. RTA is providing fish relocation services on both projects, as well as assistance with pre-project fisheries sampling and input on project designs for the lower Elk River habitat enhancement project. Prairie Creek project partners include the Yurok Tribe, California State Parks, Redwood National Park, CDFW and NOAA Fisheries.