Little Butte Creek drains approximately 373 square miles (970 km2) of southern Oregon. Farmland accounts for about 32 percent of the total area of the watershed, while 65 percent is forested. The remaining three percent is within the Eagle Point city limits. Elevations range from 1,204 feet (367 m) at the mouth of the creek to 9,495 feet (2,894 m) at the summit of Mount McLoughlin, with an average of 3,496 feet (1,066 m).[3] Forty-eight percent of the watershed is federally owned, 50 percent is privately owned, and Eagle Point accounts for the remaining two percent.[6] Over 10,000 people live within the watershed's boundaries.[3]
Temperatures average from 90 °F (32 °C) in the summer to 20 °F (−7 °C) in the winter. The climate in the region is Mediterranean.[3] The average precipitation in the area ranges from 19 inches (480 mm) in the lower regions to over 50 inches (1,270 mm) in the upper reaches. July through October are the driest months, while December through April are the wettest. Thirty-four percent of the surface runoff in the watershed is collected from rain, 31 percent from rain on snow, and 35 percent from snowmelt.[3]
As of 2003, there were 581 water rights recorded in the watershed, 394 of them for various types of irrigation. 466 water diversions were also recorded. These factors have led to frequent water shortages along the lower portion of the creek. In the summer, many streams in the watershed have more rights to water than there is water in the stream.[3][24]
The two main geologic regions in the Little Butte Creek watershed are the High Cascades and the western Cascades. The western Cascades make up the western two thirds of the watershed, generally below 4,800 feet (1,500 m) in elevation. Steep, rugged canyons are common in this region. The lower stretches of the watershed contain soils such as decomposed lavas, clay, and gravel.[3][25] The High Cascades are located in the eastern third of the watershed, including volcanoes such as Brown Mountain and Mount McLoughlin, and plateaus made of lava. In some places, streams descend over 300 feet per mile (56.9 m/km).[3] Nearby watersheds include two Rogue River tributaries—Big Butte Creek to the north and Bear Creek to the south—and small Klamath River tributaries to the east.[3]superfood legal hgh
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