The second-tier database and World Wide Web services described in this scope of work are collectively known as DART (Data Access in Real Time).  DART provides integrated and direct public access to Columbia Basin environmental, operational, fishery, administrative, and other information essential to sound operational and resource management decisions by the Federal Government. As such, this project has been identified by BPA as a "non-discretionary" work element within the Northwest Power Act's Fish and Wildlife Program (FWP). This work was originally incorporated in Project 8610800 but was separated in 1999 for clarity and potential transfer.  The principle period of service is March through November during the downstream juvenile and upstream adult salmon migrations; however, data services, analysis, preparation, and follow-up activities occur throughout the calendar year.

This work does not duplicate services provided by other federal, state, and private services in the region; rather it integrates public data for more effective access, consideration, analysis, and application.  These services are critical to BPA's implementation of its fish and wildlife responsibilities under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).  The services are available to FWP participants needing integration of data and can be used to implement effective planning, monitoring and evaluation as part of adaptive management practices.

Relevance to Federal Biological Opinions and Regulatory Programs

This contract implements Reasonable and Prudent Actions (RPAs) of the 2000 NOAA Fisheries and USFWS Biological Opinions governing operations of the Federal Columbia River Power System (FCRPS):

1. RPA 180: Develop and implement a basinwide hierarchical monitoring program …
To determine population and environmental status (including assessment of performance measures and standards) and allow ground-truthing of regional databases.

2. RPA 198: Common data management system…
for fish populations, water quality, and habitat data.

This contract also provides data integration and Internet-based information access for monitoring, evaluation, and decision support to systemwide and mainstem-specific strategies of the Northwest Power Conservation Council's Fish and Wildlife Program (FWP), including 2004 mainstem amendments.  These basinwide strategies pertain principally to (1) the  "naturalization" of the mainstem environment, (2) improving juvenile and adult mainstem passage, and (3) dissemination of data and information for research, monitoring, evaluation, decision support, and program oversight.  

Finally, this contract provides (1) Internet-based data integration, management, and presentation services as well as (2) juvenile and adult mainstem passage modeling supporting federal decisions affecting the operation of the FCRPS.  These services compliment but do not replace services provided by the Fish Passage Center, StreamNet, PTAGIS, etc. which, along with services provided by this contract, provide a regional information service to all interested parties.

The DART project provides the region web-based access to specialized fish analysis tools developed at Columbia Basin Research by the research groups of Drs. Anderson and Skalski.  Analysis capabilities provided by these web integrated tools include:

· Analysis of the real-time movement of juvenile salmon and steelhead through the hydrosystem use smolt migrating timing predictions (Realtime) developed by Dr. Skalski and a juvenile passage predictions (CRiSP) developed by Dr. Anderson

· Prediction of adult salmon upstream passage timing and run size uses models developed by Dr. Anderson  

· Web available analysis of smolt-to-adult ratios and flexible querying and analyses of juvenile fish survival identified by stock and release groups uses statistical software (SURPH) developed by Dr. Skalski

· Detailed analysis of adult PIT tag returns including Age Structure, Travel time, Conversion rates of PIT-tagged adult migrants from Bonneville to upstream projects

· Detail and summary statistics of PIT-tagged ESU stocks

These features and others provided by the DART website are not available at other regional facilities such as the Fish Passage Center or PSMFC. Thus, DART provides unique and valuable analysis services for hydrosystem operations planning, real-time monitoring, and post-season analysis of passage conditions.  In providing specialized analysis, DART compliments the Fish Passage Center responsibilities for housing passage data and providing technical assistance to the agencies and tribes.  While the Fish Passage Center is charged with assisting agencies and tribes in developing requests for flow and spill and programs, DART compliments this function by providing regional groups an independent source of integrated information and additional analysis capabilities for evaluating water and fishery actions.

This scope may be modified in the future subject to requirements of Action Agency implementation of the 2000 NOAA Fisheries and USFWS Biological Opinions, Federal court-directed remand of one or more biological opinions, and the regional review of Information requirements and services.