1993-060-00: Proposals

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Proposals

A Proposal is an application to continue existing work or start new work. While historically the Program solicited for all types of projects at once, starting in fiscal year 2009, the Northwest Power and Conservation Council and BPA are reviewing and soliciting for projects that are similar in nature and intent. These "categorical" reviews started with Wildlife projects and continue with Research, Monitoring, & Evaluation (RME) and Artificial Production (Hatchery) projects.

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Project 1993-060-00 - Select Area Fisheries Enhancement

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	Proposal Number	Proposal Version	Type	State	Project	Title	Description	Creator	Percent Complete	Proposal Budget Limit	Create Date	Last Updated	Primary Contact	Proponent	Purpose	Emphasis	Solicitation	Portfolio	Biop Fish Accord
		Proposal Version 1	Existing Project	Pending BPA Response				Toni Miethe (Inactive)


	RMECAT-1993-060-00	Proposal Version 1	Existing Project	Pending BPA Response	1993-060-00	Select Area Fisheries Enhancement	Following the listing of various Evolutionarily Significant Unit (ESUs) under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA) in 1991, complicating harvest management and severely limiting execution of mixed-stock fisheries in the mainstem Columbia River, the Select Area Fisheries Evaluation (SAFE) Project was initiated by Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) in 1993. SAFE was funded to mitigate for lost harvest by providing the opportunity to harvest locally-produced salmon stocks in off-channel areas of the Columbia River. This concept was part of the 1993 Strategy for Salmon, wherein the Northwest Power Planning Council (NPPC, currently Northwest Power and Conservation Council, NPCC) recommended development of terminal-fishing sites to allow harvest of known hatchery production while minimizing incidental harvest of weak stocks. In 2007 SAFE became Select Area Fisheries Enhancement to reflect its progression from a research to production program. SAFE releases occur in the lower Columbia estuary from the Deep River net-pen site in Washington; the Blind Slough, Tongue Point, and Youngs Bay net-pen sites in Oregon; and the Klaskanine and South Fork Klaskanine Hatcheries on the Klaskanine River in Oregon. Hatcheries providing production for these sites are South Fork Klaskanine (Clatsop County); Big Creek, Cascade, Gnat Creek, Klaskanine, McKenzie, Oxbow, Sandy, Willamette (ODFW); Cowlitz, Elochoman, Grays River, and Lewis River (WDFW). The BPA-SAFE project fully funds Gnat Creek, Grays River, and Klaskanine hatcheries; other hatcheries are funded by a blend of state, Mitchell Act (NOAA), and other funds. The primary goals of this project are mitigation of lost harvest opportunity, protection of endangered species, minimizing negative impact of SAFE fisheries and production on environment, and minimizing the incidence of hatchery fish on spawning grounds by maximizing harvest of hatchery stocks. These goals will be accomplished by the following: * Harvest mitigation is accomplished by producing salmon for harvest in the lower Columbia River commercial and sports fisheries locally, and regionally for commercial and sports fisheries in the Pacific Northwest coastal zones. These fisheries have expanded substantially due to improved rearing strategies, modest release increases when possible, and adaptive management of the fisheries. Approximately 1.5 million coho, 1.2 million spring Chinook, and 750,000 SAB fall Chinook hatchery smolts (BPA-funded) are currently reared and released from SAFE net pens and associated hatcheries annually. These existing SAFE rearing sites also allow for the additional annual production of 2.1 million coho, 250,000 spring Chinook and 700,000 SAB fall Chinook smolts (funded with state and/or Mitchell Act funds). * Protection of endangered species is being met by fish produced at Select Area sites. Select Area Bright fall Chinook, spring Chinook and lower Columbia River early stock hatchery coho provide fish for harvest when fishing is curtailed to protect endangered stocks of fish and in Select Areas where the incidence of endangered fish is minimal and closely monitored. Active in-season management of the commercial fisheries, fishing periods, gear restrictions, and area boundaries have been refined over time to minimize impacts to listed species. The fish produced from this program are able to be identified separate from the naturally-produced stocks through mass marking and coded-wire tags. * Negative impact of SAFE production on the environment is avoided by development of successful net-pen rearing strategies that facilitate rapid out-migration, and reduce incidence of disease. Monitoring the accumulative results of rearing operations in the estuary is accomplished through benthic invertebrate and sediment sampling that is analyzed and reported to the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality through water quality permits. All associated hatcheries operate under the required permits and are monitored extensively. * Minimizing incidence of hatchery fish on spawning grounds is being addressed through average harvest rates in the Select Areas of 91% for spring Chinook, 99% for coho, and 97% for SAB fall Chinook produced by the SAFE project. These rates far exceed those for production from other regional hatcheries, which typically have high escapement rates due to complexities associated with harvest in mixed-stock fisheries of the mainstem Columbia River. Extensive sampling of local hatchery returns, recreational fisheries in the Select Areas, and spawning grounds in local tributaries provides additional coded-wire tag recovery data that is used to monitor survival, straying, and fishery contributions. This project will continue the development of the SAFE sites to maximize harvest of returning adults and minimize catch of non-SAFE stocks at existing sites; coordinate activities with Washington and Oregon Departments of Fish and Wildlife, Clatsop County, Bonneville Power Administration, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; and compile project results and information.	Toni Miethe (Inactive)			04/22/2010	07/07/2011	Toni Miethe (Inactive)	Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, Clatsop County Fisheries, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW)	Harvest	None	RME / AP Category Review	RM&E Cat. Review - RM&E	BiOp