Public meetings planned October 16 and 17
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today released a draft Assessments and Recommendations Report for the Leavenworth National Fish Hatchery Complex, which includes the Leavenworth, Entiat and Winthrop National Fish Hatcheries, in eastern Washington.
The draft report was prepared by a Hatchery Review Team that began an analysis of the Complexs operations in March. The team, comprised of scientists from the Fish and Wildlife Service and other federal agencies, was convened by the Services Pacific Region Fisheries Program. The draft report includes the teams analysis, recommendations and initial co-manager comments.
The Service will accept public comments on the draft report for 30 days beginning October 13, 2006. The report and the hatchery review project information can be found on the USFWS Columbia River Basin Hatchery Review Project website at: http://www.fws.gov/pacific/Fisheries/Hatcheryreview
This draft report provides benefit-risk assessments and recommendations for propagation programs at the Bureau of Reclamation-funded Leavenworth NFH Complex, which is responsible for maintaining populations of anadromous salmonids as mitigation for habitat and fish losses associated with the construction of Grand Coulee Dam. During its review, the team considered four characteristics of each salmonid population/stock within the watersheds affected by the hatcheries programs. Those characteristics were biological significance, population viability, habitat conditions and harvest goals.The teams recommendations at the individual hatcheries in the Leavenworth NFH Complex include:
- Leavenworth National Fish Hatchery - The spring Chinook program at the Leavenworth NFH is the only program of the four programs reviewed here that is presently providing significant fishery benefits in the mid-Columbia region. Preservation of those fishery benefits to the Yakama Nation and recreational fishers in Icicle Creek should be a very high priority. The Review Team further recommends transitioning to a native Wenatchee River broodstock broodstock
The reproductively mature adults in a population that breed (or spawn) and produce more individuals (offspring or progeny).
Learn more about broodstock at the Leavenworth NFH as a long-term goal to reduce risks to spring Chinook protected under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA), but this transitioning should not occur until after the failing water intake delivery system at the Leavenworth NFH is replaced. - Entiat National Fish Hatchery - In contrast to the Leavenworth NFH, the spring Chinook program at the Entiat NFH provides little or no measurable benefits, and the Review Team recommends its termination. The Review Team concluded that an integrated summer Chinook hatchery program at the Entiat NFH offered the greatest opportunity to provide direct fishery benefits in the Entiat River and mid-Columbia region consistent with co-manager goals. In the long-term, the Review Team concluded that the Entiat NFH in collaboration with the Winthrop NFH could play an important role assisting with restoration and recovery of Winthrops native spring Chinook program and with other imperiled species (i.e. coho) in the mid- and upper-Columbia River regions.
- Winthrop National Fish Hatchery - The Review Team concluded that the Winthrop NFH offers significant potential to achieve both conservation and fishery objectives for ESA-listed spring Chinook and steelhead in the Methow River and upper Columbia region, but those roles need to be redefined with explicit goals and objectives, including development of a steelhead broodstock program at Winthrop. The Review Team further concluded that the current spring Chinook programs at the Methow state hatchery and Winthrop NFH will not achieve their intended goals unless capabilities are developed to trap natural-origin adults for broodstock and monitor the escapement of hatchery-origin adults in the Methow River. The Service and the Winthrop NFH should also work with the Colville Confederated Tribes to implement the Tribes Master Plan for spring Chinook in the Okanogan River and the upper Columbia River immediately downstream from Chief Joseph Dam.
The Review Team was impressed with the Coho Restoration Master Plan of the Yakama Nation and the early successes of that program. Because of those early successes, the Review Team recommends that the Service continue to assist - to the greatest extent possible - the Yakama Nation with its efforts to restore coho salmon to the mid-Columbia region. If those efforts are successful, they could potentially benefit other species of anadromous salmonids (e.g. steelhead, spring Chinook) by providing substantial inputs of carcass nutrients and increased ecological stability and complexity of the respective salmonid ecosystems.
The Service will host two public meetings on the Hatchery Review Teams draft report. Please RSVP Amy Gaskill, 503.231.6874 or by e-mail amy_gaskill@fws.gov.
The workshops are scheduled for:
Monday, October 16, 2006, 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.
Coast Wenatchee Center Hotel in the Blossom Harvest Room,
Wenatchee, Washington
http://www.wenatcheecenter.com/
(509) 662-1234
An evening workshop from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. will be added if requests are received.
Tuesday, October 17, 2006, 10 a.m. to noon
Amys Manor, Hwy 153, Pateros, WA
Conference room is located in the living room area/conference room
http://www.amysmanor.com/
(509) 923-2334
The purpose of these workshops is for the Hatchery Review Team to present an overview of the Hatchery Review Process and the details of the Leavenworth NFH Complex review. These meetings provide the public with an opportunity to have an open dialog with members of the Hatchery Review Team about the recommendations contained in the draft report. Written comments will also be accepted and can be sent to: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, ATTN: Pacific Region Fishery Resources, Science and Hatchery Reform, 911 NE 11th Avenue Portland, OR 97232
The review of the Leavenworth NFH Complex is part of a two-year review process that began in October 2005 with the goal of improving salmon and steelhead hatcheries owned or operated by the Service in the Columbia River Basin to ensure that those facilities are best meeting conservation goals, trust responsibilities and mitigation harvest goals. The review will include 12 National Fish Hatcheries and is coordinated with NOAA Fisheries Services National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review of all salmon and steelhead hatcheries (federal, state, tribal) in the Columbia River Basin.
The Services review process is modeled after the recent Puget Sound and Coastal Washington Hatchery Reform Project http://www.hatcheryreform.org and includes facilitation by Long Live the Kings (LLTK), a non-profit organization devoted to restoring wild salmon to the waters of the Pacific Northwest. The Service plans to complete its reviews of those 12 NFHs by the end of 2007.
"Our goal is to ensure that all National Fish Hatcheries are operated in accordance with the best scientific principles and contribute to sustainable fisheries and the conservation of naturally-spawning populations of salmon, steelhead and other aquatic species," said Dan Diggs, Assistant Regional Director of the regional fisheries program.
A Hatchery Review Team, comprised of Service and other federal scientists, reviewed briefing materials, conducted field tours and met with hatchery managers, co-managers and stakeholders to get a clear understanding of the goals for and status of each wild and hatchery stock, its associated habitat and management strategies. The Review Team then applied the scientific framework and hatchery review tools developed during the western Washington review to create reform recommendations for each hatchery program.
The Hatchery Review Team adopted the principles and goals statements from the western Washington reform process, with slight modifications. Principles: (1) Every hatchery stock and program must have well-defined goals in terms of desired benefits and purpose; (2) Hatchery programs must be scientifically defensible; (3) Hatchery programs must respond adaptively to new information. Goals: (1) Establish the scientific foundations for National Fish Hatcheries and cooperative programs; (2) Conserve genetic resources for salmonid species; (3) Assist with the recovery of naturally spawning populations; (4) Provide for sustainable fisheries; (5) Conduct scientific research; (6) Improve quality and cost effectiveness of hatchery programs.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 545 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resources offices and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign and Native American tribal governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars.
