The Mid-Columbia Fish & Wildlife Conservation Office provides technical fisheries assistance and cooperates with Service programs; other federal, state, and local agencies; tribes, and various entities to conserve aquatic species and their habitats in the mid- and upper-Columbia River Basin.

About Us

Our office meets U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service goals and responsibilities in the Columbia River basin from McNary Dam in the south to the Canadian border, including the Yakima, Wenatchee, Entiat, Chelan, Methow, and Okanogan basins and the areas above Chief Joseph Dam.

What We Do

Services
woman holding survey equipment

The National Fish Passage Program provides financial and technical assistance for projects that improve the ability of fish or other aquatic species to migrate by reconnecting habitat that has been fragmented by a barrier such as a dam or culvert. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologists...

Dozens of silver fish swim over a rocky stream bed.

The National Fish Habitat Partnership is a national investment strategy designed to maximize the impact of conservation dollars on the ground. Funds are leveraged through regional partnerships to address the nation’s biggest fish habitat challenges and projects are identified and completed...

Our Species

Pacific Salmon

Chinook Oncorhynchus tshawytcha

Coho Oncorhynchus kisutch  

Steelhead

Oncorhynchus mykiss

Char

Bull Trout Salvelinus confluentus

Brook Trout (non-native/invasive to Pacific Northwest U.S.)  Salvelinus fontinalis

Lamprey

Pacific Lamprey  Entosphenus tridentatus

Projects and Research

We have four programs:

  • Yakima Basin Program: We focus on monitoring and evaluation, bull trout trapping and hauling at Bureau of Reclamation dams, mussel monitoring, improving instream flows, restoration, protecting existing high-quality habitat, and providing fish access to headwaters.
  • Native Fish Conservation Program: We evaluate and monitor bull trout, Pacific lamprey, and other understudied aquatic species to evaluate the status of populations and assist with conservation efforts. 
  • Hatchery Evaluation Program: We look for ways to optimize the performance and contribution of the fish we raise in our hatcheries.
  • Habitat Restoration Program: We work cooperatively with our partners to enhance and restore aquatic habitats through innovative techniques and best available science for the benefit of our native species in the Mid- and Upper Columbia.

Visit Us

Please call before your visit. Our biologists are often out doing fieldwork or meeting with colleagues. (509) 548-7573

To find our building, following Icicle Road south from Leavenworth. At two miles, you will pass the Leavenworth National Fish Hatchery on your left. Continue on Icicle Road another half mile. Where the road makes a sharp turn to the right, you will go straight onto CYO Road. Just past O'Grady's Restaurant, turn left. The office is past a gate.

Location and Contact Information