Goal: to provide for the preservation of wild salmonids in the mid and lower columbia basin while providing both harvest opportunity and quality fishing opportunity in the Washington state tributaries. Also to maintain a tribal fishery.

Section 1.. Mouth of the columbia to Longview.

Grays river: Cease all hatchery plants and close the Grays river salmon hatchery. Move salmon production to the Elochoman hatchery and the Abernathy fish technology center.
Allow catch and release angling for Winter steelhead December 1- March 15th with selective gear regulations. All other species cloed.

Justification: the grays river has a reasoably healthy wild winter steelhead population but unhealthy fall salmon populations ( particularly chum and coho) as well as sea run cutthroat. This would allow some sport angling opportunity in the lower columbia for winter steelhead while not eliminating harvest opportunity.

Elochoman river:
Opperate this river as a supplement to the Cowlitz as primarily a harvest fishery. Open for the retention of all unclipped fish of any species year around with no restrictions on gear types. A late winter steelhead run should also be established either from wild broodstock or from late cowlitz stock winter steelhead to extend the normal winter run season

Mill creek: closed to all angling no hatchery plants.
justification: very little angling pressure on this tiny stream anyway...

Abernathy creek: Allow harvest of coho and chinook but the main purpose is to support commercial harvest

All other columbia tribs closed to angling no hatchery plants.

Cowlitz river: Maintain entire system as it presently exsists with the exception of the South toutle In which we suspend summer steelhead plants and set regs as catch and release of all unclipped fish and selective gear regulations.. Move hatchery plants to the Cowlitz main stem.

Justification: maintain a healthy waterched within the Cowlitz basin while providing opportunities for sport fishers and the harvest of strays: closed March 15- June first

Kalama river. maintain as it presently is with a transition from out of basin hatchery stocks to wild brood stocks. eliminate the lower seasonal fly only water but maintain the upper fly only water.. From Kalama falls hatchery to fly only boundary will be selective gear regs.

North Lewis: maintain as it presently is

East lewis: end plants of summer and winter steelhead and coho. This river is to be a wild fish sanctuary. Open with catch and release regs except for clipped hatchery strays. selective gear regs closed to all fishing march 15- june1. Move hatchery plants to the North Lewis. Closed year around if CnR is determined to be a problem for restoration efforts.

justification.. this river represents the best opportunity to restore wild salmonids in the lower columbia and every opportunity should be taken to see it restored.

Washougal river:

Maintain as it is with the ecxeption of the creation of a rearing pond/ adult collection facility on the lower river. This will give anglers more opportunity to harvest the quickly moving hatchry fish and keep the upper river reletively clear of hatchery fish.
Also a rearing pond/ adult collection facility is to be established on the main stem columbia for fall chinook and coho these will benefit commercial fisheries and sport fisheries in the Columbia while eliminating the huge snagging problem on the Washougal. ( ok so i am grinfing an axe here)

Wind River.. eliminate the spring chinook fishery and close it to all angling. In addition dismantlle the fish ladder at Shipherd falls to eliminate hatchery strays and create a wild steelhead sanctuatry. if in time the run rebounds a catch and release selective fishery may be considered.
Also spring chinook production moved to Drano lake and the Big white salmon river. so as not to impact harvest opportunity.

Little white salmon ( drano lake) keep as it is but with increased production from the wind river.
White salmon river plant the river below condit dam with Summer steelhead , coho and fall chinook from the Klickitat river

Klickitat river:
eliminate hatchrery plants of coho summer steelhead and fall chinook. All of which are non-native to the syetem, moving their production and planting to other facilities.
Maintain hatchry plants of spring chinook but keep them Low in the system via rearing pond and adult capture facilities.. Also dismantle the fish ladder near fisher hill bridge. Allow only the harvest of stray hatchery summer steelhead Above the fish ladder. selective gear regulations

Justification: the Klickitat has one of the ONLY wild summer steelhead runs that is in good shape. everything should be done to maintain this as a high quality experience as well as a good fishery. The only species native to the system are summer and winter steelhead and spring chinook.

Anyway here is my cheezy idea of a plan. it'll never happen I know that but i think such a plan would be fair to all and effective in maintaining and restoring wild runs