Watch this spaceAs a result of The Chehalis Basin Fishery Resources Study and Restoration Act of 1990 (Public Law 101-452) the Fish and Wildlife Service conducted a comprehensive study of Chehalis River Basin fishery resources and developed recommendations for Chehalis fishery resources restoration, in cooperation with the State, concerned tribes, and the public. In an initial report to Congress (Hiss and Knudsen 1992), The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service presented the following goal for Chehalis Basin salmon and steelhead restoration:
"to optimize natural salmon and steelhead production while maintaining the existing genetic adaptation of wild spawners and allowing the highest compatible level of hatchery production."
These projects have been made possible through cooperative efforts with local landowners, county governments and conservation districts, local tribes, state and federal agencies, area colleges, non-profit organizations and private consultants.
For more information, including fisheries restoration opportunities, please call Mike Kelly at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service at 360-753-9460.
NEXT MONTH: HOW THE CFRP MEASURES SUCCESS
Western Washington Fishery Resource Office
2625A Parkmont Lane
Olympia, WA 98502 wwfro@netcom.com
As a reminder, the goal of the CFRP is as follows: "to optimize natural salmon and steelhead production while maintaining the existing genetic adaptation of wild spawners and allowing the highest compatible level of hatchery production."
If we are ultimately to claim success, we must achieve our goal. Therefore, we have to see salmon and steelhead numbers return to historic levels, and then prove that our program played a direct role. As you might imagine, this is no small task. We are in the fourth year of a proposed 20-year program, and are monitoring our project streams to demonstrate our projects' effectiveness. Along the way we will use this monitoring information to determine which types of projects are the best, and make adjustments as needed. Twenty years of monitoring information will determine our actual overall success.
I don't know about you, but I need to feel like I'm having some success in my work more often than once every 20 years. Fortunately, we do a lot of individual projects (95 to date), and each holds chances for small successes. Some examples:
A cooperator (perhaps your local conservation district) comes to us with a sound project proposal. We collaborate to work out technical details and come up with a worthy project. A small success.
The landowner likes the final design and wants to proceed. Cooperative agreements are drawn up and funding is secured. So far, so good.
The required permits are obtained, all the materials are purchased and crews are ready to work. The project is completed and it looks just like we had imagined it would. That feels like a success.
Let's say that this project is an off-channel pond designed to provide habitat for overwintering juvenile wild coho salmon and lots of other critters. We monitor a trap and it shows us that good numbers of salmon are using the pond, survival rates are good and the coho smolts are healthy and ready to go to sea in the spring. We are beginning to feel pretty good at this point, but the tricky part is yet to come.
If our new rearing habitat was indeed the thing that this particular stream needed in order to regain its health and produce more fish, then we have addressed a "limiting factor." If our limiting factor analysis was incorrect, and the real problem is water quality downstream, all of our fish may die anyway. Well, lets say that 3-4 years later more wild coho return to this stream than anyone can remember. At this point, we'd like to call it a success.
Hold on! Maybe ocean conditions were particularly favorable for our coho during their time at sea. We might have had good returns of fish regardless of our project. Okay, we see similar returns to our stream for several years and are able to account for things like ocean conditions. Now we are be able to claim some success!
For more information, including fisheries restoration opportunities, please call Mike Kelly at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service at 360-753-9460.
Protection of streambanks is an important activity. High use of streambanks by livestock can damage the streambank, totally free access to streams and creeks can cause more erosion. Animal waste discharged into the stream impacts the habitat.
A number of rural land ownders, working with various organizations, have together installed miles of fencing along basin streams. At the same time a number of out of work timber workers have been provided transitional work and education in environmental issues.
Here is a report of local activity:
These are United States Fish and Wildlife Service figures reporting fencing activities within the Chehalis River Basin which have funds allocated from the Chehalis Fisheries Restoration Act. Projects listed here are just those which identified streambank fencing as one of the outcomes. Numerous other projects have been funded by this Act,. but were not listed only because they had no fencing activity.
Back to CRC page.
Watch this space