New Drought Monitoring Tools Support Salmon Stewardship in the Upper Fraser
Climate change is causing lower stream flows and higher water temperatures during salmon migration and spawning, particularly in smaller streams that are often under-monitored. However, timely tools to track drought conditions and communicate changes in these smaller streams remain limited.
Developing an Automated Drought Reporting System
The Upper Fraser Fisheries Conservation Alliance (UFFCA) manages 32 active hydrometric stations with up to 10 years of monitoring data. Building on this dataset, UFFCA is developing a semi-automated drought reporting system using Python (a programming language that enables computers to process and analyze data) to monitor streamflow and water temperature across five key salmon-bearing streams, with potential to expand coverage to additional monitoring stations throughout the Upper Fraser watershed. The system will use these data to establish drought and temperature stress thresholds and generate clear visual reports comparing current stream conditions with these thresholds, helping translate complex environmental data into accessible information.
The drought reporting system is now delivering weekly interactive reports on streamflow and water temperature across five key salmon-bearing streams.
- A description of each stream and why it was included as an indicator.
- Four tabs for each stream which show:
- The annual records for streamflow
- The annual records for water temperature
- The last two weeks of streamflow
- The last two weeks of water temperature
- You can select and deselect all the legend components
- The thick black line represents the data to date this year
- The thick red line shows the lowest flow and highest temperatures on record. These were recorded during years of extreme drought and high temperatures in the Nechako Watershed.
Supporting Salmon Management
The system will produce reports that can be shared regularly with Upper Fraser First Nations during salmon migration and spawning periods, helping inform regional drought response and salmon management decisions.
By transforming environmental data into practical reporting tools, this project strengthens Indigenous-led monitoring and supports more informed stewardship of salmon habitats. ISF is proud to support this initiative, which combines First Nations knowledge and advanced data tools to respond to growing environmental pressures on salmon and freshwater ecosystems.
Learn more about the Upper Fraser Fisheries Conservation Alliance (UFFCA)
The Indigenous Stewardship Fund (ISF) works in close partnership with the First Nations Fisheries Council (FNFC), which serves as a frontline organization for collaboration with First Nations across British Columbia. FNFC leads relationship-building and engagement with more than 200 First Nations across the province, listening to and identifying Nations’ interests, priorities and perspectives. ISF complements this work by serving as the funding mechanism that helps turn those relationships and priorities into action. Together, FNFC and ISF ensure that the leadership, needs and priorities of BC First Nations are met with flexible and accessible resources that support Indigenous-led stewardship, habitat protection and long-term environmental resilience.
