it's kinda funny in a way....try to rear hatchery fish in a 'natural enviroment'...which is exactly how many of the hatcheries are doing things now(nature ponds,underwater feeding,lower densities,predators allowed in ponds etc..) but for all the effort and extra space,money and labor needed to do that you hafta ask... is it worth more to devote that effort and energy into getting fish spawning in the river that will do well rather than getting wild smolts that survive in a hatchery?
there's one rub it seems....
or is this the 'wise use' movement trying to deter the issue from dealing with habitat issues instead(like dams maybe)....it's all about getting hatchery fish counted as part of the ESA fish and the ongoing lawsuit....