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 full-term rear coho at Willard NFH and Winthrop NFH while also providing spawning, incubation and 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.  This will be the 2nd season that Leavenworth NFH will be utilized as the primary adult holding/spawning location for the Wenatchee program.  Leavenworth will be contracted directly through BPA to provide adult holding and spawning space for the Wenatchee coho program.  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 as well as utilizing Yakama Nation drivers to supplement ODFW transports.  

This SOW includes includes work elements for tasks that will be completed prior to January 31st, 2012.  This 12-month contract is being put in place through Accord funding that will include fall activities for the 2011CY and extend through the early winter 2012CY.  Cost-share funding through Chelan County PUD and Grant County PUD play a critical role in assisting with meeting project costs/goals.  For example, Chelan PUD funds will pay entirely for dredging and expansion of Rohlfing's Pond, which are NOT part of this contract.  CWT'ing will be paid through a subcontract between USFWS and YN (BPA funding) for marking of the 2010BY.  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.   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 2011 calendar year as well as the winter 2012.  These activities include overwinter acclimation, spring acclimation and all related data collection and analysis, and a repeat of the above listed fall activities for 2011.  Reporting period extends into the next years contract and will be addressed in the SOW.  The program will also take this opportunity to develop a comprehensive brood report to try and identify trends and standards established within the program recent successes.