| | | | | | | | | |
|---|
| A | 157626 | 165 | Produce Environmental Compliance Documentation | Produce environmental compliance | Obtain Federal, Tribal, State, and Local permits necessary to complete the project work elements. Inform BPA environmental compliance officer of all permits.
Washington Fish Transport Permit - issued by WDFW - Necessary to transport larvae from WDFW Columbia Basin Hatchery to Lake Roosevelt for release (WE O).
Investigative New Animal Drug (INAD) Permit - issued by USFWS - Necessary to mark larvae with SE-Mark (Calcein) and release them into Lake Roosevelt (WE P). | $8,105 | 1.07% | 12/01/2015 | 11/30/2016 |
| B | 157627 | 119 | Manage and Administer Projects | Manage and administer the White Sturgeon Enhancement Project | Manage on the ground white sturgeon recovery work for the Colville Confederated Tribes to ensure project work elements and milestones are completed. Prepare scope of work, equipment inventories, and budget for fiscal year 2014 White Sturgeon Enhancement Project work. Prepare September accrual estimates as requested by Bonneville Power Administration. | $28,732 | 3.80% | 12/01/2015 | 11/30/2016 |
| C | 157628 | 157 | Collect/Generate/Validate Field and Lab Data | Conduct Stock Assessment (setline) | In collaboration with the Spokane Tribe of Indians (STOI) Lake Roosevelt Sturgeon Recovery Project (LRSRP; 1995-027-00) and BC Hydro, the CCT will participate in the spring and summer/fall sessions of the annual Lake Roosevelt Coordinated Sturgeon Stock Assessment. The stock assessment is intended to estimate the abundance, survival, growth, condition, distribution, and reproductive potential of white sturgeon in the Transboundary Reach. The surveys will be standardized, coordinated, and conducted simultaneously in both the Keenleyside and Roosevelt reaches. Stock assessments will be coordinated through the UCWSRI Technical Working Group. The CCT, under this project, provides field staff, research vessels, equipment, and technical advice for the study. CCT participation increases overall sampling effort and sample sizes leading to improved precision in 1) capture-recapture abundance and survival estimates, and 2) estimates of growth and condition indices. Stock assessment study design, analysis, and implementation will be led by the STOI in Washington and by BC Hydro in British Columbia.
Surveys will employ a spatially balanced, stratified random sampling strategy (general random tessellation stratified [GRTS] design) and standardized setline gear. There will be two capture-recapture occasions: one in the spring and one in the fall. During each survey occasion, approximately 160 overnight setline sets will be completed. All sturgeon will be weighed (kg), measured for fork length (cm), and scute marks and PIT tags will be applied if not already present. PIT tags will be supplied by the Spokane Tribe. | $170,083 | 22.49% | 12/01/2015 | 11/30/2016 |
| D | 157629 | 157 | Collect/Generate/Validate Field and Lab Data | Conduct sub-yearling (juvenile) monitoring (gill netting) | The CCT WSEP will conduct sampling to capture sub-yearling white sturgeon. The purpose of the sampling is twofold: 1) to empirically test the larval transport hypothesis by capturing and evaluating the relative catch rates of the paired larval white sturgeon release groups (see WE's M, P, Q & R); and 2) assist the Spokane Tribe of Indians' (STOI) Lake Roosevelt Sturgeon Recovery Project (1995-027-00) with annual subyearling (recruitment) indexing to estimate recruitment of white sturgeon in the Transboundary Reach to subyearling and yearling juvenile stages. The surveys will be standardized, coordinated, and conducted simultaneously in both the Keenleyside (by BC Hydro) and Roosevelt reaches (CCT and STOI) and coordinated through the UCWSRI Technical Working Group. The CCT will utilize two boats and crews to accomplish the sub-yearling sampling. All data resulting from the catch of hatchery white sturgeon from juvenile releases (PIT tagged and scute marked) will be provided to the STOI for analysis. All unmarked juvenile white sturgeon < 30 cm FL will be euthanized and provided for evaluation of chemical marks (SE-Mark [Calcein]) or OTC.
The subyearling gill netting will employ a spatially balanced, stratified random sampling strategy (general random tessellation stratified [GRTS] design) and standardized gill net gear (benthic gill nets comprised of multifilament nylon web 3.8 cm stretch measure, 91.5 m long [30.5 m panels], 3.7 m deep). | $47,871 | 6.33% | 12/01/2015 | 11/30/2016 |
| E | 157630 | 157 | Collect/Generate/Validate Field and Lab Data | Collect river velocity data in Lake Roosevelt (habitat assessment) | Colville Confederated Tribes staff will collect water velocity data in the upper Roosevelt Reach of the Columbia River in Washington (Kettle Falls to the International border) under various combinations of river discharge and reservoir elevation. Data will be used to calibrate and validate multi-dimensional hydrodynamic models planned for development in the future as part of investigations into drift dynamics and habitat interactions of post-hatch white sturgeon in the Roosevelt Reach. Data collection will consist of 1) water velocity measurement using boat-based and stationary acoustic doppler current profiler (ADCP) technology and 2) measuring water elevation using data loggers throughout the region of interest. A study plan detailing the exact number and locations of sample sites is currently under development by a sub-contracted hydrography firm and will be completed by the end of November 2015. | $102,213 | 13.52% | 12/01/2015 | 11/30/2016 |
| F | 157631 | 162 | Analyze/Interpret Data | Conduct preliminary modeling of larval White Sturgeon drift dynamics (habitat assessment) | The CCT will contract with a qualified hydrographer to configure and test a 1-dimensional (1D) hydrodynamic model of the Columbia River between Grand Coulee Dam in WA and HLK Dam in BC, as well as develop a preliminary Individual Based Model (IBM) for early-life-stage white sturgeon. The 1D hydrodynamic modeling will use the best currently available bathymetric data. 1D model simulations will be conducted for two historical water-years when recruitment occurred and two years when it did not occur. The 1D model outputs will be used to drive water particle tracking code that will act as the basis for the sturgeon Individual Based Model (IBM). IBM rules will be very basic and may include simple bioenergetics functions to drive growth of model individuals as well as simple movement rules. Development of basic functional relationships needed to describe the early life phases of sturgeon from hatch through the larval stage will be integrated into the water particle tracking code using data sources in the primary and gray literature. Qualitative validation of the modeling effort will occur to assess model outputs against empirical data of free embryo and larval sturgeon capture data collected in Lake Roosevelt to date. Modeling of sturgeon early life history will occur for the four years of hydrological data mentioned previously. Results from this preliminary modeling effort will be used to refine hypotheses relating sturgeon larval sturgeon drift to recruitment failure in Lake Roosevelt, and will act as the basis for the development of more complex multi-dimensional models in the future. | $193,700 | 25.61% | 12/01/2015 | 11/30/2016 |
| G | 157632 | 157 | Collect/Generate/Validate Field and Lab Data | Conduct sediment facies mapping in upper Lake Roosevelt (habitat assessment) | Colville Confederated Tribes staff will conduct video-drop surveys to characterize river bottom substrates in the upper Roosevelt Reach of the Columbia River in Washington (Kettle Falls to the International border). These substrate classifications will be used to ground truth acoustic classes identified during analysis of MBES backscatter data collected in the region of interest in 2015.
The results of the backscatter analysis will guide the planning of the video drop surveys - see WE H. Video-drop sites will be selected such that all river bottom types identified by backscatter analysis are examined. Video images will be saved for subsequent analysis. If necessary, supplemental MBES survey work will be conducted to fill in gaps identified during the data processing phase. | $25,000 | 3.31% | 12/01/2015 | 11/30/2016 |
| H | 157633 | 162 | Analyze/Interpret Data | Produce sediment facies map of upper Lake Roosevelt (habitat assessment) | CCT biologists will use QPS Fledermaus software to analyze MBES backscatter data and produce a 2D mosaic of acoustic classes representing various bottom types in the study area. Video images will be analyzed with image analysis software to characterize primary and secondary substrates. The acoustic and videographic data will then be synthesized using QPS Fledermaus to produce a sediment facies map which will be exported to GIS compatible format for use in habitat modeling. If necessary, supplemental MBES survey work will be conducted to fill in gaps identified during the data processing phase - see WE G. The product of this work will be a sediment facies map which will be used in future habitat modeling efforts intended to assess larval drift dynamics and habitat interactions as part of investigations in to mechanisms contributing to recruitment failure in the Transboundary Reach of the Columbia River. | $10,000 | 1.32% | 12/01/2015 | 11/30/2016 |
| I | 157634 | 162 | Analyze/Interpret Data | Produce digital terrain model of upper Lake Roosevelt (habitat assessment) | Colville Confederated Tribes (CCT) staff will produce a digital terrain model (DTM) of the upper Roosevelt Reach of the Columbia River (Kettle Falls to international border). The DTM will be used for multi-dimensional hydrodynamic modeling planned in future work intended to characterize the drift dynamics of post-hatch white sturgeon. The DTM will be developed using hydroacoustic data collected by CCT staff during multibeam echosounder (MBES) surveys of the region of interest in 2015. Work will entail post-processing of MBES bathymetric data using QPS QINSy/Fledermaus and exporting the resulting 3D grids to GIS compatible formats for use in hydraulic modeling. If necessary, supplemental MBES survey work will be conducted to fill in gaps identified during the data processing phase. | $75,000 | 9.92% | 12/01/2015 | 11/30/2016 |
| J | 157635 | 162 | Analyze/Interpret Data | Validation of visual fin ray section aging methods for white sturgeon juveniles | Annual fall white sturgeon recruitment surveys using small mesh gill nets have been conducted in the Roosevelt Reach of the Columbia River since 2001. These surveys have consistently failed to document evidence for White Sturgeon recruitment to the sub-yearling or yearling juvenile stages during this time frame. However, small numbers of older wild juveniles have been captured during periodic set line stock assessment surveys. Preliminary age estimates derived from visual counts of annuli in fin ray thin sections indicate that many of these fish recruited during the high flow year of 1997. Because definitive ageing of wild juveniles collected in Lake Roosevelt is crucial to understanding processes contributing to recruitment failure, there is a need to validate age estimates obtained from visual counts of annuli.
Validation will be conducted using fin ray sections taken from hatchery-origin white sturgeon of known age (N = 15) and of sizes comparable to wild juveniles captured in Lake Roosevelt (approximately 50-120 cm FL). Fin rays will be imbedded in epoxy, sectioned with a diamond blade saw, then polished to reveal annuli with transmitted light. Annuli will be counted directly by two readers, and also using imaging software to detect local minima and maxima of transmitted light indicative of seasonal growth patterns. The resulting age estimates will be compared to the known ages of these fish to determine the accuracy and precision of the light microscopy technique. Age determinations made by light microscopy will then be verified by scanning tunneling electron microscopy (STEM) on a sub-sample of pectoral fin rays (N = 5). STEM can resolve physical features in the nm range and provide semi-quantitative measurement of elements such as calcium (Ca) and phosphorous (P) that are major components of mineralized bone. Boundary transitions of Ca and P associated with visible annuli may provide a means to detect annuli in outer sections of fin rays from older fish where annulus formation is more compressed. | $6,166 | 0.82% | 12/01/2015 | 11/30/2016 |
| K | 157636 | 162 | Analyze/Interpret Data | Assess white sturgeon habitat use during early life history using fin ray laser ablation techniques | Work conducted on Lake Roosevelt White Sturgeon to date indicates a major survival bottleneck contributing to recruitment failure occurs at some point between the larval and sub-yearling stages of the life cycle (Howell and McLellan 2014). The reasons for poor survival at this stage are unclear but may be related to flow conditions during the summer and fall when young fish are actively dispersing in search of suitable rearing habitat. Characterizing the extent of dispersal and movement during early life history would help managers determine if hydropower operations are, in fact, a major limitation for survival and recruitment.
Movements and habitat use by wild white sturgeon during their early life history will be determined by measuring element: Ca and 87Sr/86Sr ratios in pectoral fin rays using laser ablation-high resolution and laser ablation-multicollector inductively coupled mass spectrometry. Elemental signatures have been found in White (Venoitt and Evans 1999; Venoitt et al. 1999), Green (Allen et al. 2009) and Atlantic sturgeon (Balazik et al. 2012) and we hypothesize that 87Sr/86Sr are likely to be detected in Lake Roosevelt white sturgeon as well. Moreover, results from studies to identify spawning ground locations of kokanee in Lake Roosevelt indicate substantial variation in element: Ca and 87Sr/86Sr ratios in the water among tributary rivers in Lake Roosevelt, as well as a latitudinal gradient in the reservoir itself. This suggests that the microchemical signatures present in pectoral fin rays may provide an effective representation of habitat use in Lake Roosevelt by sturgeon during their early life history. Element: Ca and 87Sr/86Sr ratios will be measured in N = 30 archived pectoral fin rays taken from wild White Sturgeon juveniles collected during various survey efforts in Lake Roosevelt since 2003. | $19,270 | 2.55% | 12/01/2015 | 11/30/2016 |
| L | 157637 | 162 | Analyze/Interpret Data | Evaluate survival of larval sturgeon release groups | The bulk of Transboundary Reach sturgeon larvae produced during any given year emerge from the substrate to begin feeding in the river-reservoir transition zone of the Roosevelt Reach during July. Sampling efforts to date indicate we have not found larvae downstream of the river-reservoir transition zone. Together with the observed persistent recruitment failure to age-0 juvenile in the fall, this suggests that rearing conditions in the river-reservoir transition zone are not conducive to survival of the larval life stage. The peak of larval emergence generally coincides with rapidly declining river discharge and reservoir refill. In combination, these factors act to reduce water velocities in the river-reservoir transition zone which, in turn, may limit the ability of larvae to disperse in to suitable rearing habitats. Indeed, detectable recruitment does occur rarely - most recently in 1997 - when very high river discharge (>5,663 m3 s-1) coincides with emergence of first feeding larvae. Therefore we hypothesize that post-hatch dispersal may be a primary mechanism influencing early life stage survival and recruitment in Transboundary Reach White Sturgeon.
CCT biologists will investigate the larval transport/habitat mis-match hypothesis empirically by conducting paired larval release experiments (see WE's E, P, Q & R). We will compare the relative survival of larvae released at two locations to the fall subyearling and fall yearling stages between two release locations: 1) the upper reaches of the river-reservoir transition zone (most likely the China Bend area) where naturally produced fish are known to be present each year (China Bend) and 2) in the upper reservoir (Kettle Falls area) where sampling efforts to date have indicated larvae are absent, exposed contaminants (e.g. granulated industrial slag) are also absent, and where concentrations of potential predators (e.g. walleye and adult sculpin) are thought to be more limited than areas where White Sturgeon larvae are regularly encountered. The relative survival of release groups to the subyearling and yearling juvenile stages will be evaluated from catch (catch rate [CPUE] and proportion positive catch [Ep]) in fall gill net surveys.
This work is contingent on the STOI completing the Step 1 Master Plan (i.e., receive ISRP and Council approval) for sturgeon aquaculture in Lake Roosevelt. | $0 | 0.00% | 12/01/2015 | 11/30/2016 |
| M | 157638 | 160 | Create/Manage/Maintain Database | Manage and Maintain UCWSRI Data Management System | The historical, current, and future work related to Transboundary Reach white sturgeon has generated a substantial amount of data. Management of this data is identified as a core component of the UCWSRI. In response to the need for an integrated UCWSRI relational database management system that encompasses data collected by all of the UCWSRI partners to assist with research, monitoring, and management activities, the CCT under the WSEP initiated development of the UCWSRI White Sturgeon Relational Data Management System in 2013. The data management system, to be completed in Fall 2015, will include capture data from stock assessment surveys (setline, gill netting), early life history data (egg substrates, plankton netting, trawling), as well as aquaculture releases, broodstock spawning matrices, telemetry data (detections), environmental conditions from monitoring, macroinvertebrates, and habitat. It will also have a web-based interface for data upload, query, and download, QA/QC features, customized reporting tools, and tiered levels of access. The database management system will have the flexibility to be linked or provide customized exports to other database efforts in the Columbia Basin, such as the Colville Tribes Resident Fish Database (1995-011-00), PTAGIS (1990-080-00), the Upper Columbia Resident Fish Stock Status Above Chief Joseph and Grand Coulee Dams Database (1997-004-00), and Hydra. It will also have a component that facilitates public access to some data, such as standardized reports of stock assessment results.
The UCWSRI database could form the framework for a Columbia Basin White Sturgeon Data Management System. A model basinwide data management system has been developed for pallid and shovelnose S. platorynchus sturgeon research, monitoring, evaluation, and aquaculture activities in the Missouri River system – the Sturgeon Information Management System (SIMS) (DeLonay et al. 2010). The SIMS provides “a robust platform for data collection, integration, maintenance, analysis, visualization, and distribution.” A similar data management system would benefit efforts to manage and conserve white sturgeon in the Columbia Basin. We propose to utilize the development of the UCWSRI database as the initial step in development of a Columbia Basin SIMS. We will work with the USGS, BPA Fish and Wildlife staff, and within the White Sturgeon Comprehensive Plan (Columbia Basinwide Management Framework) process to acquire input and participation from other researchers and managers working with white sturgeon, in an attempt to create a system that will meet the needs of users Basinwide.
The database will require constant hosting, maintenance, and enhanced features, such as field data collection interfaces. The CCT will organize and fund (under the WSEP) data management system hosting on an independent cloud server, as well as contract and oversee data management system routine maintenance. | $28,290 | 3.74% | 12/01/2015 | 11/30/2016 |
| N | 157639 | 122 | Provide Technical Review and Recommendation | Provide Technical Review for other UCWSRI projects and reports | Review project proposals and reports through the Upper Columbia White Sturgeon Recovery Initiative (UCWSRI) Technical Working Group (TWG). | $5,900 | 0.78% | 12/01/2015 | 11/30/2016 |
| O | 157640 | 132 | Produce Progress (Annual) Report | Submit Progress Report for the period Dec 2014 to Nov 2015 | The progress report summarizes the project goal, objectives, hypotheses, completed and uncompleted deliverables, problems encountered, lessons learned, and long-term planning. Examples of long-term planning include future improvements, new directions, or level of effort for contract implementation, including any ramping up or ramping down of contract components or of the project as a whole.
Progress reports must conform to BPA guidelines. See the ''formatting guidelines'' link at the Technical Reports and Publications page: https://www.cbfish.org/Help.mvc/GuidanceDocuments.
If producing a technical report for this contract, a discrete experiment, or a peer-reviewed publication, use work element 183: Produce Journal Article. | $25,323 | 3.35% | 12/01/2015 | 03/15/2016 |
| P | 157641 | 174 | Produce Plan | Produce an Annual Operation Plan for fish culture | WDFW will be subcontracted to produce 200,000 first-feeding white sturgeon larvae (see WE Q). As part of the subcontract, they will produce the required Annual Operation Plan. | $0 | 0.00% | 12/01/2015 | 11/30/2016 |
| Q | 157642 | 176 | Produce Hatchery Fish | Produce 200,000 white sturgeon first-feeding larvae for paired release experiment | Initiation of any fish collection/sampling or culture activities under this Work Element is contingent upon STOI receiving a positive NPCC recommendation and BPA approval of the Lake Roosevelt White Sturgeon Aquaculture Master Plan, per NPCC requirements under the Step-3 process requirements, as require under the CCT Fish Accord, and BPA environmental clearance to proceed (i.e., this Work Element's EC milestone marked complete, or written permission to proceed with a subset of the milestones).
The expected completion date of the first draft of the Master Plan is late 2015 or early 2016.
The bulk of sturgeon larvae produced in the Transboundary Reach during any given year emerge from the substrate to begin feeding in the upper Roosevelt Reach (river-reservoir transition zone) during July. The timing of emergence generally coincides with rapidly declining river discharge and reservoir refill - factors that collectively may limit downstream dispersal. Sampling efforts to date confirm larvae are not found downstream of the river-reservoir transition zone. Conditions in the transition zone are apparently not conducive to survival as evidenced by lack of subyearling or yearling captures during fall gill net surveys. However, detectable recruitment does occur in some years - most recently 1997 - when very high river discharge (>5,663 m3 s-1) coincides with emergence of first feeding larvae. This suggests dispersal may be a primary mechanism influencing survival and recruitment. This also indicates that suitable rearing habitat may exist in areas downstream from the river-reservoir interface.
We will investigate the larval transport/habitat mis-match hypothesis empirically by conducting paired larval release experiments (also see WE's E, M & R). We will compare the relative survival of larvae released at two locations to the fall subyearling and fall yearling stages between two release locations: 1) the upper reaches of the river-reservoir transition zone (most likely the China Bend area) where naturally produced fish are known to be present each year (China Bend) and 2) in the upper reservoir (Kettle Falls area) where sampling efforts to date have indicated larvae are absent.
White sturgeon larvae utilized for the experiment will be produced from wild broodstock(up to 6 females and 6 males) that will be captured on setline and angling gear by the CCT from the upper Columbia River near Northport, WA. Candidate broodstock will be transported to the WDFW Sherman Creek Hatchery where they will be held until spawning. CCT and WDFW staff will conduct the spawning activities. Maturation assays, spawning, and fertilization procedures will follow those described in Conte et al. (1988) and Van Eenennaam et al. (2001). Oocytes collected from female broodstock candidates at time of capture will be examined for diameter and position of the germinal vesicle (polarity index; PI). Generally, only females with PI’s less than 0.10 are selected for spawning induction and females with oocyte PI’s of 0.06–0.08 preferred. Ovulation and spermiation will be induced by injection of luteinizing releasing hormone (LHRHa). Hand stripping will be used to collect gametes from females. Sperm will be collected from males via insertion of a tygon tube attached to a syringe into the uro-genital pore. Fertilization and de-adhesion procedures will follow those described by Conte et al. (1988) and Van Eenennaam et al. (2001). Following fertilization and de-adhesion, embryos will be placed in 1 gallon plastic bags filled with water and pure oxygen and transported to WDFW Columbia Basin Hatchery (travel time approximately three hours) for incubation and early rearing. The collection goal is 250,000 eggs.
Upon arrival at CBH, the embryos (eggs) will be treated with an iodine solution and then placed in McDonald (upwell) jars (~25,000 embryos/jar) and incubated for approximately 7 days at 14 degrees C. Hatchlings (yolk-sac larvae) will be held in troughs for approximately 10 days to the stage of first-feeding. At this time, CCT biologists and technicians will apportion larvae among transport vessels, divide them into two release groups, and apply the appropriate marking solution (see WE N). Marking will occur en route to the respective release locations. Larvae will then be transported to boat ramps located nearby to the intended release sites and loaded onto waiting project boats (approximate travel time 2 h). The boats will then motor to the intended release sites and ride at anchor until larvae have been exposed to marking solutions for the required 6 hours. At this time, larvae will be removed from the marking solutions, rinsed and immediately released into the river. The marking/transport process will be timed so that releases will occur after dark to reduce light exposure causing mark degradation and reduce the risk of predation. The proposed Roosevelt Reach release sites are channel areas at Marble (rkm 1,175) and Kettle Falls Marina (rkm 1,132). The Marble site is located just upstream from China Bend where large numbers of naturally produced larvae are regularly captured during collection efforts for the LRSRP conservation aquaculture program. The Kettle Falls Marina site is located downstream from all known accumulations of exposed contaminants and high predator densities, and where no larval sturgeon have been captured during trawl surveys to date. The release goal is 100,000 first-feeding larvae at each location (200,000 total). | $0 | 0.00% | 12/01/2015 | 11/30/2016 |
| | | | | | | | | |
Help
Mitigation work
Reporting
Funding
Search
Log in
SOW Report
