The ISRP requested a summary of the kokanee production at Ford Hatchery for release into Banks Lake, including eggs received, fish hatched, reared, transferred, and released, along with post-release survival and harvest for each year since the last ISRP review. The sponsor provided a detailed, well-organized response to ISRP questions. Their fish production effort is sound, but the kokanee fishery is not successful.

The Ford Hatchery project producing kokanee salmon for release into Banks Lake to provide resident fish substitution for lost anadromous production above Chief Joseph and Grand Coulee dams have established metrics for performance in culture (hatchery and net-pens) including egg collections, egg-to-fry survival, fry-to-release survival, fish health maintenance as well as post-release goals for harvest, and for kokanee broodstock and egg production. The Banks Lake Fishery Evaluation Project (BLFEP, BPA #200102800) is responsible for collecting the appropriate post-release information and summarizing both the artificial culture and harvest information.

ISRP Retrospective Evaluation of Results

Ford Hatchery provides 700,000 kokanee for release into Banks Lake to support a put-grow-and-take salmonid fishery. Ford Hatchery receives 850,000 eyed kokanee eggs from the Lake Whatcom Hatchery; hatch rates of the eggs are anticipated to be 95%, hatch to first feeding survival 95%, from first feeding to release 86%. There have been reported incidents of fish health problems, but overall the hatchery has produced 88% of the anticipated production since 2002. Only in 2008 was production substantially reduced (35% of anticipated production).

In contrast to the hatchery performance, post-release survival and harvest of kokanee salmon has been substantially below the program goals. The harvest goal is 10,000 fish, with a catch rate of 0.5 fish/rod/hour and a kokanee density of 20 to 30 adults per hectare.In 2004, 3500 kokanee were harvested, but numbers have declined subsequently. The catch of kokanee in Banks Lake is not large enough to provide data to calculate mortality or expand creel census data to total harvest for the years 2007 to 2011. The Banks Lake Fishery Evaluation Project estimated that survival from fry to mature adult is less than 1%. The working hypothesis is that direct predation by walleye and competition with whitefish for Daphnia limit kokanee survival and abundance.

===========QUALIFICATIONS FOLLOW================

The harvest of kokanee salmon has been substantially below the program goals. The harvest goal is 10,000 fish, with a catch rate of 0.5 fish/rod/hour and a kokanee density of 20 to 30 adults per hectare. In 2004, 3500 kokanee were harvested, but numbers have declined subsequently. The catch of kokanee in Banks Lake is not large enough to provide data to calculate mortality or expand creel census data to total harvest for the years 2007 to 2011. The Banks Lake Fishery Evaluation Project estimated that survival from fry to mature adult is less than 1%. The working hypothesis is that direct predation by walleye and competition with lake whitefish for Daphnia limit kokanee survival and abundance.

The sponsor notes that harvests of kokanee in recent years have been too small to quantify via the creel survey. The monitoring and evaluation program (Banks Lake Fishery Evaluation Project BPA #200102800) should improve the creel methodology so that the harvest goals can be adequately evaluated.

The ISRP's qualifications are to state that the sponsors need to improve the creel methodology and to highlight the ISRP's conclusion that the likelihood this project will meet its kokanee objectives is highly uncertain. Although factors limiting the survival of kokanee have been investigated, it is highly uncertain that the proposed actions will be sufficient to enhance kokanee survival so that harvests might exceed 10,000 kokanee per year.

A table and narrative that summarizes the production including eggs received, fish hatched, fish reared, fish transferred, and fish released along with post release survival and harvest for kokanee each year since the last ISRP review should be provided in a response to complete evaluation and provide retrospective reporting to Council.

The response should also include the harvest goal for kokanee in Banks Lake, the Banks Lake Kokanee Decision Tree and a summary of the information gained from the Banks Lake Fishery Evaluation project (200102800). The ISRP is concerned that few hatchery kokanee survive and contribute to the sport fishery in Banks Lake.

The ISRP understands and appreciates that the Ford Hatchery proposal to propagate kokanee uses monitoring data collected and then analyzed by the Banks Lake Fishery Evaluation project to complete evaluation. Even if much of the data and analysis is presented in the monitoring project, these items should have been incorporated into the accomplishments section, and perhaps adaptive management section of this project’s proposal. A more complete description of the interaction of this project with BPA projects 200204700, 200300500, and 200205100 is requested. At this point in time this information should be provided in the response.

The Council’s 1999 Artificial Production Review (NWPCC 1999-15) established that evaluating hatcheries based on numbers or pounds of fish produced and released was inadequate and that goals and objectives were required for post-release performance. The ISRP looks for clear metrics for performance in the hatchery including broodstock or egg collection goals, egg to fry survival, fry to sub-catchable or catchable survival, disease or other health inspections, and food conversion as well as post-release performance including survival for stated intervals, harvest, and fish condition. In addition facility related metrics for discharge water quality should be included in the response. This information should be reported for the time period since the last ISRP review.

See the programmatic comments on fish stocking.

1. Purpose: Significance to Regional Programs, Technical Background, and Objectives

The sole objective of the Ford Hatchery Kokanee Production Kokanee Production Program is to provide hatchery origin juvenile kokanee for release into Banks Lake. Artificial production was believed to be a feasible method for sustaining viable fisheries in Banks Lake. Fry produced at Ford Hatchery are to support a put, grow, and take kokanee fishery on Banks Lake. Annually, 800,000 eyed eggs will be received from Lake Whatcom Hatchery in January and February to produce 700,000 fall fingerlings at 60 fpp (BPA funded component). Of these, 572,000 will be directly planted into Banks Lake and 128,000 will be transferred to net pens, raised through the winter and released the following spring at a larger size of 15 fpp. All fish rearing will take place at the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) Fish Hatchery in Stevens County Washington. All work will be performed by department hatchery staff. Monitoring will be done by the Banks Lake Evaluation Project, (BPA project 2001-028-00). Release strategies are subject to change based on data acquired by the evaluation project.

Significance to Regional Programs: The history of the Ford Hatchery as a component of the Grand Coulee Mitigation project was informative and the linkage to resident fish substitution for anadromous fish losses in the blocked area is adequate.

Technical Background: The information presented in the proposal is not adequate. While the Fish and Wildlife Program Ford Hatchery O&M project has the limited task of producing 700,000 kokanee for stocking either directly into Banks Lake or transfer to Electric City net-pens, there is a larger goal to provide harvest yield in Banks Lake. The Council APR (1999-15) clearly directs artificial production programs to establish biological objectives for post-release survival and contributions to fisheries. These are absent from this technical background. In addition, the technical background needs to include a reasonable description of the lake, fish community, fishing, and all of the activities at the lake that interact with this project. For example, the annual report indicates that Ford Hatchery produces 400,000 kokanee for release into Banks Lake in the spring using state funding rather than BPA. The technical background needs to include the rationale and justification for spring fry release, fall fingerling release, and spring yearling or post net pen reared activities and the associated numbers of individuals released. If the carrying capacity of Banks Lake is not sufficiently known, the release program needs to be conducted in an experimental framework and monitored so the capacity and fishery yields can be defined over time.

Project Objectives: The information presented in the proposal is not adequate. The project objective as specified in proposal form instructions should reflect the ultimate ecological objectives of the project. For this project it seems the primary objective is to increase harvest. The project biological objective needs to include a harvest yield or fishery metric that can be monitored to establish the project effectiveness. Appropriate metrics could include fish caught, angler days, and/or angler satisfaction but fish released is not sufficient. There should be objectives and metrics for hatchery rearing including ability to obtain eggs, hatch rates, disease inspections, fish condition factor, and achieving release goals which should be reported in the accomplishments section.

2. History: Accomplishments, Results, and Adaptive Management (ISRP Review of Results)

Accomplishments and Results: The information provided in the proposal is not adequate. No information is provided regarding the hatchery's success in releasing the target of 700K fish annually. Is that target being met? The proposal refers the reviewers to the M&E proposal for Banks Lake. A succinct presentation of the production history and the post release performance needs to be included with this proposal. The production history from the 2010 annual report needs to be summarized in the accomplishments and results, with an explanation for years where production fell below the goals. Inspection of table 3 in the annual report indicates that in 2003, 2004, and 2005 production was about 75% of the goal and in 2008 less than 20% of the goal. These short-falls need to be discussed. Electric City net-pen releases indicate that survival in the pens is typically larger than 90 - 95%. How is the net-pen release number established? What is the variance of the release number?

Reference is made to the fact that M&E is being done under the Banks Lake Fish Evaluation Project (2001-028-00) and that stocking is done in Banks Lake because that M&E has in the past shown evidence that such stocking provides adequate return to creel. Discussion of the most recent results of this M&E component is needed here to indicate the stocking is continuing to bring tangible success.

From the current BLFEP proposal: Walleye are an apex predator in Banks Lake and past results and field observations have indicated that they have a high predatory impact on kokanee immediately following release and throughout the year. Past modeling scenarios indicate that annual consumption by walleye accounts for 90% of the total kokanee fry releases.

Adaptive Management: Very limited information is provided on adaptive management. More information should be provided on the fishery goals; timing and size of release to achieve fishery goals; and disease history of kokanee at Ford Hatchery. The project has shown some ability to adaptively change its practices. Fry releases produced few fish for harvest, therefore the hatchery increased production of fall fingerlings. The proposal states that it will be responsive to the findings and recommendations of the Banks lake Fishery Evaluation Project. 

ISRP Retrospective Evaluation of Results

Insufficient information is available to provide retrospective evaluation of results.

3. Project Relationships, Emerging Limiting Factors, and Tailored Questions for Type of Work (hatchery, RME, tagging)

Project Relationships: Discussion of relationship to other Lake Roosevelt and Banks Lake BPA funded Fish and Wildlife Program projects is adequate. Discussion of relationships to similar work executed through the Fish and Wildlife Program is absent. Participation and collaboration with APR reform measures are identified. The ISRP considers it important that a more complete description of the interaction with BPA 200204700, 200300500, and 200205100 be provided.

Emerging Limiting Factors: The information learned through 200102800 needs to be incorporated into this proposal.

Tailored Questions: 

Opportunities to restore or reintroduce. The sponsors should include discussion of alternative sources of kokanee that may be more appropriate for Banks Lake than the coastal Lake Whatcom source. Are eggs from the Lake Whatcom kokanee going to be available in the future? The ISRP is under the impression that this source is going to lose disease certification.

Use of non-native fish species. Lake Whatcom kokanee would be considered "non-native" using a conservative definition and restrictive guidance on inter-basin transfers of fish. What are the policy guidelines in the State of Washington for stock transfers? How do these compare with adjacent states?

4. Deliverables, Work Elements, Metrics, and Methods

One deliverable, rearing and releasing kokanee, is identified. Metrics need to be provided for hatchery production, however. At a minimum this should include life-stage survival, growth, condition factor, and disease history.

4a. Specific comments on protocols and methods described in MonitoringMethods.org

None.

Modified by Dal Marsters on 4/16/2012 10:35:33 PM.

The efforts to produce a viable hatchery-based kokanee program in Lake Roosevelt have not been successful so the ISRP recommends "Not Fundable" for projects or project elements directed to rearing and stocking for kokanee salmon in communities including walleye, bass (smallmouth or largemouth), northern pike, or lake trout unless populations of these predators can be reduced to and maintained at levels so low that they cannot control the abundance of kokanee salmon. Existing evidence, including results of Fish and Wildlife Program projects, does not show that kokanee populations can be successful under heavy predation.

Ford Hatchery production of kokanee for introduction into Banks Lake for use by the Banks Lake Fishery Evaluation Project is supported by reviewers as Fundable.

The continued redband and triploid rainbow production is also Fundable. The ISRP recommends that only female triploids be stocked, because male triploids (in mixed sex production lots) will engage in courtship behavior with native trout, possibly leading to gamete waste (from the native trout). The ISRP notes that standardized Quality Assurance/Quality Control protocols are not yet established for using sterile female triploids to provide recreational angling in waters inhabited by native trout. Large-scale production of triploid female rainbow trout is not 100% effective. Sponsors should have the production lots they stock evaluated for the percentage of triploids, and report this as part of the project monitoring. The efficacy of avoiding hybridization between stocked and native trout is unknown when less than 100% of the stocked fish are triploids. Ongoing evaluation of hybridization in contemporaneous native trout populations will be needed in the future. Stocking triploid females to provide recreational angling in regions with highly sensitive native populations is not yet justified. See Kozfkay, J. R., J. C. Dillon, and D. J. Schill. 2006. Routine use of sterile fish in salmonid sport fisheries: are we there yet? Fisheries 31(8):392 - 401.