This was just posted today:
http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsi...41396&rfi=6

Anglers question hatchery plans

Concerned anglers and community members spoke up to oppose the possible closure of the Tokul Creek Fish Hatchery at a packed meeting held last Thursday, Sept. 11 in Issaquah.
The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife is considering closing the century-old facility, which releases about 190,000 steelhead trout into the Snoqualmie River every year. Under the proposed changes, steelhead production would be cut by about 40,000, and the remaining fish would be produced elsewhere and released into the Skyhomish River system. All or part of the Snoqualmie watershed could be designated as a wild steelhead management zone. The agency's goals, said Annette Hoffman, regional fish program manager, are to "restore and maintain abundant, diverse, well-distributed wild steelhead populations." There's also a need to trim agency costs. Some anglers, including Stan Stanforgh, are worried that removing the hatchery fish from the Snoqualmie River will effectively end fishing in the system. "We don't see any wild fish. They're all hatchery fish. Take them away, there's no fish in the river, no fishing," he said.

Sound science?
Early in the meeting, Fifth District State Representative Glenn Anderson received loud applause after questioning the "conflicting science and opinions of that science" on whether hatchery steelhead are detrimental to wild fish. His concerns were echoed by anglers in attendance.
"We haven't done the scientific research, and we can't make a decision on the educated guess," said Andrew Moravec, a Snoqualmie sport fisherman. He said solid facts about the Snoqualmie River system are hard to come by.

"The public hasn't gotten information in a format that's easy to understand and find," he said, calling for a more open planning process.

Hoffman said there was enough scientific evidence to support the changes.
"We have quite a few years of work. We look at the science we have, and it gives us an indication of risks" to wild steelhead, she said. "They're not risks we can ignore."

Economic concerns
The abundance of hatchery fish in the Snoqualmie River lures anglers to the area, providing a financial boost to the Valley. Anderson said that stopping production at Tokul Creek would take prosperity away from an already-underserved rural area. "People invest around the hatchery," he said.

Moravec, who works in a tackle shop, agreed. "This is a huge magnitude. People come from all over to spend money on food, gas, lodging and guides. It's going to affect a lot of people in the Snoqualmie Valley," he said.

He added that releasing more steelhead into the Skyhomish would crowd that fishing area while taking away the sport in the Valley. "The Snoqualmie River is such a large watershed that fishing pressure gets spread out. We don't have to cram together to fish. Doubling the amount of fish in Skyhomish makes the experience less enjoyable, and we lose opportunities for people who live around here," he said.

Murky funding?
Another point of contention for Anderson was the agency's 2007-09 budget item for almost half a million dollars to ensure that the Tokul Creek Hatchery complies with state and federal fish passage laws. The legislature granted state bonds to the project, but Anderson isn't so sure the money would have been appropriated if lawmakers had known about the possible closure. He said it was his understanding that the money would go to "refurbish" the hatchery.
"It was not evident from documents made available to the legislature that any of the $435,000 would be used to dismantle the operation of the existing Tokul Creek Fish Hatchery," Anderson wrote in a letter to Fish and Wildlife commissioners.

"I am doubtful the funding for this project would have been so readily provided had legislators been made aware of the department's current proposal," he continued.

Hoffman said the agency didn't mislead anyone about the purpose of the funding.
"That $400,000 was to help us design a passage for chinook. Regardless of what happens to the facility, that is something that we would pursue," she said.

Tribe talks
Steven Mullen, who works in the environmental and natural resources department of the Snoqualmie Tribe, was surprised to hear at the meeting that the state had consulted with the Tulalip Indian Tribe. He said that Fish and Wildlife still hadn't responded to a letter he sent the department on Aug. 6, when he read about the possible closure.

"The Tulalip base of operations is up north, and ours is next to the hatchery. We're a little dumbfounded that we haven't been brought into the equation," he said. "They say they're working with 'tribes,' and that gives a false impression of what they're doing."

Mullen said that if the state's main objective in closing the hatchery is financial, the Snoqualmie Tribe is interested in either taking over the hatchery or helping the department to maintain it.
"We would be willing to go in as co-managers to try to keep it in production," he said. "We can find ways to bolster the wild population without removing the hatchery population."
But he's gotten "mixed answers" about reasons for the closure. "We'd like to get a concrete answer and work together on some sort of positive resolution," he said.

Hoffman said her agency was legally required to consult with the Tulalip, but not the Snoqualmie tribe. She added, however, that her department planned to meet with the Snoqualmie Tribe.
"We owe them the courtesy of letting them know what we're doing," she said.

Next steps
The Tokul Creek facility also raises about 30,000 exotic fish that are transported by volunteers and released into high elevation waters each year. Hoffman said the agency was trying to iron out the logistics of continuing that program. She said the fish might be produced elsewhere, and the Tokul facility could be used as a pick-up point for the volunteers. "We think that program is really important, and we're going to do everything we can to continue it," she said.

Once details about all the proposed changes are solidified, Hoffman's team will advise Olympia about the fate of Tokul Creek.

"I imagine that in the next month or two we'll come up with a recommendation for our director to make a call," she said, adding that public input will be factored into the equation.
"The public demonstrated that they're well informed. They had good questions, good input that we'll consider."

what is the Tulalip Indian Tribe veiw on this matter??

They could probably care less...almost all of the Tokul facility's production would be shifted to the Wallace, so about the same amount of hatchery fish would be swimming through their fishing areas...

Fish on...

Todd

Oh I think the Tualip Tribe cares Todd, in fact Terry Williams of the Tualip Tribe is the current Chair of the Snohomish Basin Salmon Recovery Forum. I think they are well aware of the fish passage problem at the Tokul Creek facility and now that Puget Sound Steelhead are listed I am sure that they care about hatchery vs wild steelhead interactions. I don't know what their views are but I am sure that they are involved from a conservation standpoint. Contrary to popular believe the Tualips are not "all about harvest".

Beezer

if they do close it down this year will we still beable to fish it this winter?? so we can reid the snoq of the eveil hatchery fish.