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#1013390 - 09/03/19 04:13 PM Hot off the press
eswan Offline
Juvenile at Sea

Registered: 01/19/14
Posts: 171
WDFW NEWS RELEASE
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
600 Capitol Way North, Olympia, WA 98501-1091
http://wdfw.wa.gov/

September 3, 2019
Contact: Larry Phillips, 360-870-1889
Media: Michelle Dunlop, 360-902-2255

Agreement reached to benefit coho salmon, steelhead in Wynoochee River basin

OLYMPIA – State and tribal leaders have agreed to a plan that will enhance coho salmon and steelhead populations diminished by the Wynoochee Dam in Grays Harbor County.

A public meeting on the plan is scheduled at 6 p.m., Sept. 24, at the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife's (WDFW) regional office, located at 48 Devonshire Road in Montesano.

Under the agreement between WDFW and the Quinault Indian Nation, roughly 500,000 coho salmon and 60,000 winter steelhead will be released annually as mitigation for the Wynoochee dam.

"This historic agreement benefits both wild fish populations as well as state and tribal fishers," said Ron Warren, fish policy lead for WDFW. "Despite some obstacles along the way, the state and tribe have worked collaboratively over the years to find a path forward for fish in the Wynoochee basin."

Under the agreement, WDFW annually will release:

100,000 coho into the Wynoochee River; 400,000 coho into the Satsop River; 60,000 winter steelhead into the Wynoochee River.

The 60,000 winter steelhead to be released in the Wynoochee and the 400,000 coho bound for the Satsop River will all be marked with clipped adipose fins, making them available for anglers to retain during years when sufficient numbers of fish are forecast to return.

The 100,000 coho released into the Wynoochee River will be tagged with a coded wire but will not be marked (with clipped adipose fins) for the first five years of the plan. As unmarked fish, these coho have a better chance of making it back to the spawning grounds in the Wynoochee River since the retention of unmarked coho is prohibited except in years when high numbers of wild fish are expected to return, Warren said.

"The intent of this plan is to re-establish a healthy coho population in the Wynoochee River while providing coho and steelhead fishing opportunities within the basin," Warren said.

The first release of these fish into the basin could take place as early as 2021. Anglers could then expect to see coho and steelhead returning as soon as the fall of 2022.

The steelhead and coho slated for release into the Wynoochee will be raised at WDFW's Lake Aberdeen Hatchery while the coho planned for release into the Satsop will be raised at the Bingham Creek facility.

The most recent licensing agreement with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in 1991 required mitigation for damage to fish populations as result of the Wynoochee Dam, owned by the city of Aberdeen. A new hatchery was planned but not constructed, due to site location difficulties. Funds intended for the new hatchery were put into a trust now held by Tacoma Power, which operates a powerhouse near the dam.

Without a new facility on the Wynoochee, there is limited capacity to raise more fish for release into the Wynoochee River, said Larry Phillips, WDFW regional director.

"Releasing more coho into the Wynoochee will help offset years when natural production is low and could ultimately lead to more opportunities for anglers," Phillips said. "In the meantime, anglers can look forward to what's sure to be improved coho and steelhead fishing within the entire basin in the next few years."

The state and tribe have sent the signed draft agreement to Tacoma Power for review before the utility forwards it to FERC for consideration. If approved by FERC, the mitigation plan will run through 2037, when the dam's federal license is up for renewal.

WDFW estimates the cost of implementing the plan over the next 18 years (until 2037) is about $2.6 million, which is the amount in the trust fund.

 

Persons with disabilities who need to receive this information in an alternative format or who need reasonable accommodations to participate in WDFW-sponsored public meetings or other activities may contact Dolores Noyes by phone (360-902-2349), TTY (360-902-2207), or email (dolores.noyes@dfw.wa.gov). For more information, see http://wdfw.wa.gov/accessibility/reasonable_request.html.

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#1013391 - 09/03/19 04:21 PM Re: Hot off the press [Re: eswan]
SpoonFed Offline
Three Time Spawner

Registered: 01/29/19
Posts: 1519
Well alright, alright.
Fish on..

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#1013396 - 09/03/19 07:55 PM Re: Hot off the press [Re: eswan]
large edward Offline
Returning Adult

Registered: 12/17/10
Posts: 276
Loc: Brier, WA
Sounds good. I hope the silvers the same players raise and plant for the Wynoochee and the Satsop bite better than the silvers raised for and planted in the Cowlitz....

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#1013405 - 09/04/19 06:58 AM Re: Hot off the press [Re: eswan]
Carcassman Online   content
River Nutrients

Registered: 11/21/07
Posts: 7410
Loc: Olema,California,Planet Earth
Something to consider about hatchery salmon. They are normally harvested at 90%+, meaning 1 in 10 is used for spawning. What do they spawn? What gets back to the hatchery after not being caught.

Wild coho are fished at significantly lower rates. While the spawners are still those that don't get caught, aggression is not penalized as highly.

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#1013406 - 09/04/19 08:07 AM Re: Hot off the press [Re: Carcassman]
Bay wolf Offline
Repeat Spawner

Registered: 10/26/12
Posts: 1075
Loc: Graham, WA
Originally Posted By: Ron Warren
The 100,000 coho released into the Wynoochee River will be tagged with a coded wire but will not be marked (with clipped adipose fins) for the first five years of the plan. As unmarked fish, these coho have a better chance of making it back to the spawning grounds in the Wynoochee River since the retention of unmarked coho is prohibited except in years when high numbers of wild fish are expected to return, Warren said.


Raises a couple of interesting points:

1. This statement appears to suggest that "hatchery raised fish are going to be let onto the gravel to spawn as wild fish, simply because they did not have their adipose fin clipped...at least five years worth.

2. Harvest of these "non-clipped" fish will be determined by return, but it does not mention for who? If a coho fishery IS allowed for marked selective fish, and the tribal fisheries are using non-selective nets, isn't this the same thing as giving the tribes a huge amount of fish that are NOT available to sportsmen?


This sounds like a great plan to increase fish, but it smells like a good way to keep fish away from sports harvest and increase incidental catch in nets... just saying.

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#1013412 - 09/04/19 10:57 AM Re: Hot off the press [Re: eswan]
jgreen Offline
Returning Adult

Registered: 04/18/12
Posts: 315
Loc: Elma, WA
So is that an additional 400,000 coho on top of the roughly 300,00 already planted on the satsop? So 700,000 total? Are they going to be the early or late fish? This stuff would be nice to know.

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#1013414 - 09/04/19 11:46 AM Re: Hot off the press [Re: eswan]
bobrr
Unregistered


After speaking to Larry Phillips I found out that the 60,000 Wynoochee winter run steelhead are derived from wild fish from the river and will be clipped. The 100,000 coho will not be clipped. The fish are on top of already established releases. The Satsop fish are going to be clipped. I don't know if they are early or late but Larry will always answer your questions if asked politely. His number is on the release above. Bob R

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#1013427 - 09/04/19 05:58 PM Re: Hot off the press [Re: ]
DrifterWA Offline
River Nutrients

Registered: 04/25/00
Posts: 5074
Loc: East of Aberdeen, West of Mont...
Originally Posted By: bobrr
The fish are on top of already established releases. Bob R


Just so everyone understands.....hatchery steelhead, both winter and summer, are placed in the Wynoochee River...

No hatchery Coho have been placed in the Wynoochee River since the Dam was built, early 70's. Now I don't know if any hatchery Coho were used before the dam was built.

Re-build the "wild Coho run"????? It'll be interesting to see WDFW approach to this, and how it will be monitored.

There is a fish trap, below the dam.....there were 700+ Coho removed from the trap, during 10/01/18 - 06/01/19, all these Coho were "trucked" above the dam and released. Over the years, many have questioned, the "trucking procedure".....why not just close the trap, force these Coho to spawn below the trap....seems a better use of "wild Coho".





Edited by DrifterWA (09/04/19 05:59 PM)
_________________________
"Worse day sport fishing, still better than the best day working"

"I thought growing older, would take longer"

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#1013438 - 09/04/19 06:59 PM Re: Hot off the press [Re: jgreen]
eyeFISH Offline
Ornamental Rice Bowl

Registered: 11/24/03
Posts: 12766
Originally Posted By: jgreen
So is that an additional 400,000 coho on top of the roughly 300,00 already planted on the satsop? So 700,000 total? Are they going to be the early or late fish? This stuff would be nice to know.


That's to help feed the extra future exploitation wrought upon those Satsop coho for the Skok's.
_________________________
"Let every angler who loves to fish think what it would mean to him to find the fish were gone." (Zane Grey)

"If you don't kill them, they will spawn." (Carcassman)


The Keen Eye MD
Long Live the Kings!

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#1013440 - 09/04/19 07:16 PM Re: Hot off the press [Re: eswan]
Moravec Offline


Registered: 03/27/08
Posts: 1045
Loc: Snoqualmie WA/Cordova AK
I don't understand the Wynoochee coho strategy. So the river has a certain spawning capacity for wild coho, I'm pretty sure they spawn in small tribs primarily. None are available for retention, and salmon fishing pressure isn't crazy like it is on the Hump or Satsop because there isn't a directed recreational harvest opportunity. But they're going to dump in a bunch more that can't be kept by the rod & reel guys but can be kept by the netters... sounds good on paper but I don't get it.
_________________________
God Bless America!
riptidefish.com

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#1013446 - 09/04/19 08:13 PM Re: Hot off the press [Re: Moravec]
Rivrguy Offline
River Nutrients

Registered: 03/03/09
Posts: 4393
Loc: Somewhere on the planet,I hope
Well a number of questions raised are good but this is the simple fact. ALH is maxed out as to space. To get 60K more Winter Steelhead and 100k Coho to net pens you would have to get rid of something and the only something available is the Rainbow Trout and Summerrun Steelhead. Do that and you have room.

Lake Aberdeen Net Pens performed poorly in the past predators from birds to Otter just plain everything including storms breaking them loose to hang up on the bottom. The staff was as good as it gets but it is a mission impossible. If they do the dams lake substantial difficulties exist with cold water retarding growth and location.

Then this the Coho reared at the facility are really vulnerable to Columnaris. Aberdeen lake Hatchery is just not a Coho facility and over the years the Pathologist has fought this fight over and over. If they rear them at say Bingham one would be lucky to get back 50% of the adults to the Wynoochee as Coho imprint on the rearing home water source at the front of their life cycle not the final freshwater time as Steelhead do. Net pens would help but only help get some of the returning adults to the Wynoochee.

So until Region 6 decides to be forthright and define just what they are going to do everything is conjecture. Except this, the numbers put forth in the press release and Larry Philips do not fit in the current Aberdeen Lake Hatchery facilities capabilities unless you move something out.


Edited by Rivrguy (09/04/19 08:16 PM)
_________________________
Dazed and confused.............the fog is closing in

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#1013453 - 09/04/19 08:58 PM Re: Hot off the press [Re: eyeFISH]
jgreen Offline
Returning Adult

Registered: 04/18/12
Posts: 315
Loc: Elma, WA
Originally Posted By: eyeFISH
Originally Posted By: jgreen
So is that an additional 400,000 coho on top of the roughly 300,00 already planted on the satsop? So 700,000 total? Are they going to be the early or late fish? This stuff would be nice to know.


That's to help feed the extra future exploitation wrought upon those Satsop coho for the Skok's.



Yeah....I figured. I still can’t believe it will come to fruition. Surely, something would have to make the state grow a backbone and say enough is enough and (seriously) challenge them on something like this. Then I’ll wake up, have my first drink and say goodbye to my beloved river. Shame.

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#1013455 - 09/04/19 09:06 PM Re: Hot off the press [Re: eswan]
eswan Offline
Juvenile at Sea

Registered: 01/19/14
Posts: 171
I surely hope they wouldn't discontinue or reduce the summer plant. we found where they were staging heavy this weekend and came back with a buddies kids ages 9 and 5. They killed their first 3 steelhead and lost several more. with not another soul in sight and plenty of fish about it was a fantastic experience for these boys. This is what this fishery is routinely is for us.

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#1013456 - 09/04/19 10:08 PM Re: Hot off the press [Re: eswan]
Moravec Offline


Registered: 03/27/08
Posts: 1045
Loc: Snoqualmie WA/Cordova AK
Is it confirmed that these fish will be raised at Lake Aberdeen? They might be planning on using an underutilized facility for these fish (Stevens Creek?)
_________________________
God Bless America!
riptidefish.com

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#1013461 - 09/05/19 06:38 AM Re: Hot off the press [Re: Moravec]
Rivrguy Offline
River Nutrients

Registered: 03/03/09
Posts: 4393
Loc: Somewhere on the planet,I hope
From the press release posted above.

The steelhead and coho slated for release into the Wynoochee will be raised at WDFW's Lake Aberdeen Hatchery while the coho planned for release into the Satsop will be raised at the Bingham Creek facility.
_________________________
Dazed and confused.............the fog is closing in

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#1013465 - 09/05/19 07:29 AM Re: Hot off the press [Re: eswan]
Chinook 1 Offline
Fry

Registered: 03/14/18
Posts: 37
Funny how everyone wants to beat up on WDFW, but there no one holding the dam owners responsible. They've got away with murder for years on the Cowlitz.

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#1013466 - 09/05/19 08:24 AM Re: Hot off the press [Re: Chinook 1]
Rivrguy Offline
River Nutrients

Registered: 03/03/09
Posts: 4393
Loc: Somewhere on the planet,I hope
The dam was federal flood control with mitigation for Steelhead of 170k a year. Then the power generation was added and funding for additional mitigation was added for Coho and additional Steelhead with Tacoma City Light putting the funding into an account that they did not have any control over. To put it simply the power company met the obligations of funding with WDFW being the entity that was charged with the responsibility of producing the required additional mitigation production.

TCL has zip zero just plain nothing to do with the failure to produce the mitigation fish, 100% WDFW for all these years. Comparing Wynoochee Mitigation to the Cowlitz is a bit miss guided to say the least.


Edited by Rivrguy (09/05/19 11:21 AM)
_________________________
Dazed and confused.............the fog is closing in

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#1013493 - 09/06/19 06:28 AM Re: Hot off the press [Re: eswan]
DrifterWA Offline
River Nutrients

Registered: 04/25/00
Posts: 5074
Loc: East of Aberdeen, West of Mont...

Here I go.…...The Wynoochee salmon and steelhead suffer because the current hatchery is and has been to small, has warm water problems, this hatchery should be moved closer to the base of the Wynoochee Dam.

During the late 70's and early 80's, there was lots of talk about a hatchery below the Wynoochee Dam, there was even talk of a double water exit from the dam itself....1 pipe able to draw water from the lower part of the dam and another pipe higher up to draw warmer water that could be used to "speed of the growth of smolt to larger size".

Currently, Native steelhead, have to go to the trap below the Dam, then trucked to Lake Aberdeen hatchery to be used for brood stock, then as smolt they are trucked to different areas and released.....wouldn't it be better, to have returning fish actually go right to a "new hatchery", processed, raise to smolt size, then released right from the hatchery.

I've been told, over and over, that salmon don't take well to "trucking", either as adults or as smolt but this continues to be done, Again, how nice to not have to try and brood stock fish, let fish do what fish do...move up a river, go to a hatchery, have good water to be raised in, then just release the smolt, right from the raceways.

Heaven forbid, with good clean water, at the proper temperature, disease problems reduced, minimum human handling there might be salmon and steelhead at increased levels......QIN has it right, Wynoochee needs a hatchery, closer to the Dam,,,,WDFW shame on you for sitting on your hands for all these years, doing BS fish handling on the Wynoochee River. Current WDFW fish management has problems....change is needed!!!!!
_________________________
"Worse day sport fishing, still better than the best day working"

"I thought growing older, would take longer"

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#1013494 - 09/06/19 06:45 AM Re: Hot off the press [Re: eswan]
Carcassman Online   content
River Nutrients

Registered: 11/21/07
Posts: 7410
Loc: Olema,California,Planet Earth
There was more than just talk about a hatchery near the dam. There was a design for it as I was designing part of the wastewater treatment. Don't know why it was quashed, though.

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#1013495 - 09/06/19 07:04 AM Re: Hot off the press [Re: Carcassman]
DrifterWA Offline
River Nutrients

Registered: 04/25/00
Posts: 5074
Loc: East of Aberdeen, West of Mont...
Originally Posted By: Carcassman
There was more than just talk about a hatchery near the dam. There was a design for it as I was designing part of the wastewater treatment. Don't know why it was quashed, though.


You are correct......I remember the design phase, people like Tom Pentt, Jerry Paveltich and many others spent 100's of hours working on the proposed hatchery....Grays Harbor Chapter Trout Unlimited was very active on the hatchery.....just to many negative things, WDFW moves so slow, when quickness was needed.

"Coulda, shoulda", just didn't get it done!!!!! Now we are paying for it, 40 years after the hatchery should've been built.
_________________________
"Worse day sport fishing, still better than the best day working"

"I thought growing older, would take longer"

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