BPA Fish and Wildlife FY 1997 Proposal

Section 1. Administrative
Section 2. Narrative
Section 3. Budget

see CBFWA and BPA funding recommendations

Section 1. Administrative

Title of project
Hanford K-Basin Fall Chinook Acclimation and Master Plan Development

BPA project number   9603201

Business name of agency, institution or organization requesting funding
Yakama Indian Nation

Sponsor type   WA-Tribe

Proposal contact person or principal investigator

BPA technical contact   , EWN

Biological opinion ID   

NWPPC Program number   7.3B, 7.4J.2, 7.4J.3, 7.4J.4, 7.4J.5

Short description
Acclimate fall chinook above McNary Dam to increase natural production in the Hanford Reach and to provide in-place/in-kind mitigation for John Day Dam. Develop a master plan to utilize the Hanford K-Basins to implement restoration and mitigation objectives in the mid- and upper-Columbia basin.

Project start year   1996    End year   

Start of operation and/or maintenance   0

Project development phase   Planning/Implementation

Section 2. Narrative

Related projects

Project history

Biological results achieved

Annual reports and technical papers

Management implications
The John Day fall chinook are 100% CWT as required by NMFS for ESA conditions to monitor straying. Survival at all life stages can therefore be determined with statistical methods using data from dam sampling, dam counts, and ocean and river harvests. White sturgeon enhancement (provided for in Master Plan Development) via supplementation will be evaluated through mark/recapture programs.

Specific measureable objectives
Increase natural production of fall chinook in the Hanford Reach and allow in-place/in-kind mitigation for the construction of John Day Dam. The project goal is to return as adults 0.5 to 1.0 percent of fall chinook acclimated and released from net pens in the K-basins. White sturgeon have also been impacted in the mid-Columbia and will be a central focus of the master plan to use the K-basins to implement restoration. At this time no enhancement of white sturgeon has been implemented in the area above McNary Dam.

Testable hypothesis

Underlying assumptions or critical constraints

Methods
700,000 to 1,000,000 fall chinook (John Day Mitigation fish) will be acclimated annually in net pens in the Hanford K-Basin ponds. This project supports the regional goal of reprogramming John Day fall chinook above McNary Dam. The long-term goal is to have these fall chinook return as adults to the Hanford Reach to supplement natural production of fall chinook and to increase tribal harvest opportunity in Zone 6. The Department of Energy has offered the use of the K-Basin facilities to the Yakama Indian Nation and BPA. The YIN agreement with DOE provides opportunity to evaluate the K-Basin by development of a master plan for achieving artificial propagation and enhancement goals for salmon, white sturgeon, and other appropriate species.

Brief schedule of activities

Biological need
Fall chinook in the mid-Columbia are not in danger of extirpation, but the K-Basin acclimation proposal provides John Day mitigation reprogramming from the lower river to �in-place, in-kind� mitigation. White sturgeon are badly depressed in this region. The master plan developed under this project would seek to begin rebuilding white sturgeon populations using the established broodstock at Hanford.

Critical uncertainties
John Day fall chinook will be acclimated to increase survival. Data from coho in the Yakima River indicate survival can be substantially increased with acclimation versus direct stream release. As part of the master plan, the YIN intends to utilize the 350 white sturgeon broodstock presently on hand at Hanford to implement supplementation of the depressed mid-Columbia stocks.

Summary of expected outcome
Costs for this program will be jointly shared by BPA, Department of Energy, Westinghouse Hanford, and the Yakama Indian nation. Benefits to fall chinook and white sturgeon are expected to occur within a few years. Full funding has not been defined and long term funding needs are yet to be determined and will be based on master plan development.

Dependencies/opportunities for cooperation
The DOE is funding maintenance of the K-Basin facilities and encourages their use in the Fish and Wildlife Program (J. Wagoner letter to R. Hardy, May 1, 1995). DOE has offered use of the K-Basin facilities to the YIN and BPA.

Risks

Monitoring activity
The John Day mitigation fall chinook will be 100% marked so that juvenile survival can be monitored at McNary and Bonneville Dams. Adults are counted at all mainstem Columbia River dams. CWT recoveries from fisheries also allow evaluation of the relative contribution of different programs to the fisheries.

Section 3. Budget

* For most projects, Authorized is the amount recommended by CBFWA and the Council. Planned is amount currently allocated. Contracted is the amount obligated to date of printout.

Funding recommendations

CBFWA funding review group   Bonneville Dam - Priest Rapids Dam

Recommendation    Tier 1 - fund

Recommended funding level   $358,400

BPA 1997 authorized budget (approved start-of-year budget)   $358,400