Rich is pretty much correct. Cook Creek is a national fish hatchery funded through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The other Tribal fish programs are most likely funded with federal funds from the rights protection program, either thruough The Bureau of Indian Affairs or via direct appropriation. This is neither good nor bad, but your appreciation may be different if you understand that you're paying the operating expenses of the program through your taxes rather than the Tribe using its own funds.

The Quinaults run an impressive program, but a large return of fish is NOT indicative of a good program. The measure of the Quinault hatchery program is the smolt quality and smolt to adult survival rate they achieve. People often think the Cowlitz is an example of a good hatchery program, not realizing that it is the second largest hatchery system in the world. Based on the survival of its production, the Cowlitz is one of the worst programs. I have no idea how the Quinault programs rates, but given its location and the people involved, I'd speculate that it's one of the better. It would be interesting to know the smolt to adult steelhead survival rate of the Quinault compared to, say, Bogachiel. That would be a meaningful comparison, both being located on the coast a short distance above tide water.

Sincerely,

Salmo g.