Project GOAL

The Manchester Oregon Spring Chinook Salmon Captive Broodstock Project's primary goal is to provide a marine reared safety net population that can be used to sustain ESA-listed stocks of spring/summer Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) in years when no fish return from the sea.  The Project's secondary goal is to provide maturing fish to the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW), the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR), and the Nez Perce Tribe (NPT) for use in their collaborative supplementation efforts to rebuild these ESA-listed populations in the Snake River Basin.  The specific project goal for FY 2009 is produce up to 140 maturing adults for use in Grande Ronde River recovery efforts

BACKGROUND

In spring 1995, the ODFW initiated captive broodstocks as part of their conservation efforts for ESA-listed stocks of Snake River spring/summer Chinook salmon.  Oregon's Snake River spring/summer Chinook salmon captive broodstock program currently focuses on three stocks captured as juveniles from the Grande Ronde River Basin.  ODFW requested that a portion of each group be reared by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA Fisheries) in protective culture in seawater.  In August 1996, NOAA Fisheries began a Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) funded project (Project 199606700).  A new project number of 2007-404-00 was assigned in FY 2007 to consolidate the Oregon Spring Chinook Safety Net efforts to rear Snake River spring/summer Chinook salmon captive broodstocks in seawater at the Manchester Research Station.  State and Federal involvement in these programs is coordinated through the BPA chaired Chinook Salmon Captive Propagation Technical Oversight Committee (CSCPTOC).

The use of captive broodstocks as an artificial propagation tool to aid in the recovery of anadromous runs of Snake River Chinook salmon is an action called for by many objectives and goals of the NPPC’s Salmon Basin Summary (NPPC 2000a), Grande Ronde Subbasin Summary (NPPC 2000b), Grande Ronde Subbasin Plan (NPCC 2004b), Artificial Propagation Summary for the Mainstem/Systemwide Province (NPPC 2002), and the 2000 Columbia Basin Fish and Wildlife Program.  The creation and maintenance of these captive broodstocks for ESA listed stocks is a required Reasonable and Prudent Alternative (RPA 175, 176, 177) action called for by the 2000 NMFS Biological Opinion.  It is also an Updated Proposed Action (Hatchery Action pg. 66) that the 2004 Biological Opinion on Remand concurs with.  The NMFS Draft Recovery Plan for Snake River Salmon also called for the use of captive broodstocks as a tool to restore ESA listed Chinook salmon stocks (Schmitten et al. 1995, 4.1a and 4.1b).  The Oregon (199604400), Idaho (199700100), and the NOAA Fisheries Manchester (199606700) have been reauthorized by the NPCC in the September draft of the 2007-2009 Prioritization Process.  Continuation of the marine rearing component at Manchester is vital to the overall success of these cooperative projects.

Between 1996 and 2008, NOAA Fisheries has provided seawater captive-rearing for more than 12 groups of Snake River spring/summer Chinook salmon sent to Manchester as smolts from Oregon.  Maturity of these fish in captivity between fall 1996 and 2008 has resulted in more than 3,690 prespawning adults provided to ODFW.

EXPECTED RESULTS

It is expected that the continued marine rearing of Snake River spring/summer Chinook salmon at Manchester will continue to provide a safety net for these ESA listed stocks while habitat improvements are underway.  The continued operation of geographically separate captive brood populations at Manchester, Washington; and Bonneville, Oregon will continue to reduce the risk of catastrophic loss of these gene pools from mechanical failure, human error, or disease.  In FY 2009 the Manchester Spring Chinook Salmon Captive Broodstock Project expects to produce up to 140 Grande Ronde spring/summer Chinook salmon adults for use in Oregon' restoration actions.