>>If you eliminate the general commercial fishery, how do you keep congress from defunding the columbia river hatcheries? The main motivation for creating them in the first place was to provide mitigation for the dams, in support of the commercial fisheries.<<

Would it seem unreasonable to have Congress simply re-channel those funds into the net-pens?

Again, selling both Congress and the netters on the mutual benefits of the concept would be the key, IMO.

Mike