I'm not saying this is the case, and I have no data at hand to demonstrate this for the HC streams. Just that it might provide an explanation for populations with what appears to be good habitat not faring well. There have been millions of smolts dumped in the majority of steelhead streams over the years, most coming from fairly unique brood stocks with unusual run timings. PS and HC rivers are or were among the most heavily planted for a very long time. I don't think anyone can say what the magnitude of the influence of the practice has been, or how long it would take to be ameliorated though time on any given stream. However, I think it would be unwise to ignore the potential impact an allow for it in our recovery planning.

I also think humans have done enough damage with well-meaning attempts to bolster populations that we should be extremely cautious about rushing in to "save" the fish with injections of multiple brood stock lines or other heroic intervention. It took a century to bring the runs to their current crisis. If watersheds can be maintined sufficient to allow for natural processes to maintain and recover functioning habitat, populations will fill the available habitat in time. Can we mantain watershed functions, and can we be patient enough to allow fish populations to recover on their own? I am skeptical that we can do that in many PS basins.