Todd,

Thank you for the well thought out, and information filled response. That is what I had hoped for.

Couple questions come to mind (and then I'm off to a meeting til tonight). I'll post a few more question tonight, if that's OK.

You said: (italics)

"Steelhead harvest fisheries pretty much wouldn't exist on all PS rivers, at least not in the winter, or any steelhead fishing in eastern Washington...they would only exist on the few streams that are open for wild steelhead harvest, and my opinion is that those aren't going to last for long, anyway, regardless of any moratoriums or statewide WSR...they'll all be managed by closure unless something drastic changes, because the very few streams that have "harvestable" numbers of wild fish are not going to maintain their recently higher levels unless there are significant, and unforseen, changes in the environment, their habitats, water quality, and harvest regimes.

So, in essence, ALL steelhead fishing would cease for a number of years, with no guarantee of the return of any steelhead fishery?

My thoughts are that, assuming all of the data you provide is accurate, then what are going to be the "downstream" effects of these changes?

Has anyone looked at the impact the closures would have on the local economies where the sportsmen currently spend millions of dollars annually in search of these fish?

One of the things you repeat several times in your post is the issue of HABITAT. In what way will the closure of the hatcheries help habitat restoration?

Off to work...still gotta make a living.


Thanks, in advance, for the replies.

Mike