The long term vision of this restoration project is to restore coho salmon to the Wenatchee and Methow river basins at biologically sustainable levels that will support harvest in most years. The project works toward development of locally adapted, naturally spawning coho populations in the Wenatchee and Methow subbasins by increasing the fitness of reintroduced coho salmon by reducing domestication and emphasizing local adaptation. The program will use strict broodstock collection protocols, which ultimately will place a limit on the proportion of natural origin adults in the hatchery program and place a limit on the proportion of hatchery origin adults on the spawning ground. Hatchery smolt production work is covered under BPA contracts with other agencies.  The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is contracted to rear coho at Willard NFH and Winthrop NFH while also providing incubation space at Entiat NFH and Winthrop NFH as well as acclimation space at Leavenworth NFH and Winthrop NFH.  Willard NFH is partially funded through Mitchell Act while all of the rearing costs associated with Cascade FH are Mitchell Act.  Winthrop fall activities and subsequent full-term rearing of these juveniles is funded through BoR.  Entiat NFH is also contracted directly through BPA to provide adult holding and spawning space for the Wenatchee coho program.  BoR funding is utilized for a cost-share on a portion of fall activities (primarily USFWS staff salaries) as well as providing funding for the subsequent full term rearing of juveniles for the Wenatchee brood reared at Entiat (to include fish pathology).  Transportation of smolts from lower river facilities to acclimation ponds in the Wenatchee and Methow rivers is done through a direct contract between Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and BPA.  A contract with Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife will provide acclimation space at Wells FH for the 2009 calendar year.

This SOW includes includes work elements for tasks that will be completed prior to January 31st, 2010.  This 17-month contract is being put in place through MOA funding that will include fall activities for the 2008CY and extend through the early winter 2010CY.  This new end date was decided upon by Yakama Nation staff to coincide with ongoing, cost-share funding through Chelan County PUD and Grant County PUD (CCPUD, GCPUD; contract period 2/1-1/31 annually).  These cost-shares play a critical role in assisting with meeting project costs/goals.  CWT'ing will be paid through a subcontract between USFWS and YN (BPA funding) for marking of the 2008BY.  O&M and M&E activities; to include broodstock collection, spawning, egg incubation and transportation to the lower Columbia River rearing facilities, spawning ground surveys, and subsequent data collection and CWT extraction for both the Wenatchee and Methow basins will be approximately 50% covered by the cost-sharing through the PUD's.  Concurrent project management, data analysis, and database management will also be approximately 50% covered by the PUD cost-share.  While these cost-share % have change from the previous contract, due to the coinciding of PUD contracts beginning in Feb. 2009, the total dollar amounts remain the same for the cost-shares.  The first 5-months of cost-share in already in place within the current CCPUD and GCPUD 2008FY contracts.  BPA will be responsible for partial funding of all O&M and M&E activities in the winter, spring, and summer, and fall for the 2009 calendar year as well as the winter 2010.  These activities include overwinter acclimation, spring acclimation and all related data collection and analysis, and a repeat of the above listed fall activities for 2009.