WDFW coastal hatcheries out of compliance?

[JS]

Their work in Washington, especially the OP (I have had plenty of direct conversations with the ED on this) isn't as far along as it is in OR and Norcal but it's easy to find examples of good work that might not have happened without them if you bother to look.



The work they have done on the Eel is another good example that's easy to find on their site.

I love the goals of their River Steward Program and its objective of gathering a diverse set of local stakeholders to represent community interests in service of the rivers and fish and was the primary funder of the program here in WA for a number of years. I disagree with some specifics and priorities of their policy positions (ex. hatcheries) and how they are implemented.

I would like to see more presumption of best intent and understanding of diverse perspectives because I'm convinced that reducing information asymmetry leads to better solutions. That requires trust which is something we don't have right now and never will unless we reduce in-fighting, including with WDFW as CS points out. Model the change you want to see.

Some of the discussions here really bum me out.

That’s fair, and I completely understand the “getting bummed out” with discussions here. It’s often reduced to a binary discussion. I wouldn’t want to be a person in charge of relating scientific facts in this day and age, and I teach for a living lol. I absolutely agree that unifying scientific fact and making it digestible is crucial to improving ecological issues.

I may have said something that triggered Charles to defend Chris, but all I was pointing at is that there are many things that NFS, and to a much greater degree, WFC ignores in order to advance their particular agendas. I guess “drinking the cool-aid” is a heavy dis these days. Again, cry your pardon, esteemed sirs.

I’ve got zero interest in “in-fighting”, although, I think that at very least WFC has created their own problems (many resulting from afore mentioned issues that you yourselves have highlighted) there.

 

[skyrise]

Plant fish. Let us go fishing. do brood stock program.
Hatchery Wild CoExist !

 

[Rob Allen]

Plant fish. Let us go fishing. do brood stock program.
Hatchery Wild CoExist !

Plant with no more that 10 % HOS.

Also spawning survey crews should lethally remove hatchery origin fish when they encounter them.

 

[Capt Insano Emeritis]

This is actually a very valid point that, I admit, I hadn't really thought of.

Sounds like what my dad talked about in the 90’s when it was obvious there was a downturn. A time similar to a burst of energy and upturn before a death. A rally before a crushing defeat. I have not fished for steelhead in over a decade. It got so i felt in some sense guilty for doing so or perhaps it just wasn’t fun anymore.

 

[Chris Johnson]

Come on man. Chris is a great guy. He is my friend. You may have read into something there that was not said. CJ is one of the most inquisitive people that I know. Pretty sure that he was actually asking.
I can disagree with Chris and hopefully not be disagreeable.

Thanks Charles, I appreciate that sentiment, and yes I was actually asking what you meant.

 

[Chris Johnson]

The reason I posted this was because WDFW was again out of compliance, not following the rules, taking short cuts, what ever you want to call it and it pisses me off. I gotta follow the rules or I get punished. No one is suing anyone over this, it was just an article pointing out that the department released a paper admitting they have been out of compliance. If it was the DMV no one would give a shit.

That said if the Statewide Steelhead Management Plan (SSMP) is to be the guidelines for management decisions then the whole of the 2008 plan needs to be followed. The agency has unequally applied the principles and directives laid out in the plan. The plan has been to used to limit hatchery programs and to limit fishery but ignore other aspects of the plan that might be helpful with the steelhead fix they find themselves.

Thanks Curt, I could not agree more with this statement, it is something I have been advocating for a long time.

 

[charles sullivan]

The reason I posted this was because WDFW was again out of compliance, not following the rules, taking short cuts, what ever you want to call it and it pisses me off. I gotta follow the rules or I get punished. No one is suing anyone over this, it was just an article pointing out that the department released a paper admitting they have been out of compliance. If it was the DMV no one would give a shit.

Thanks Curt, I could not agree more with this statement, it is something I have been advocating for a long time.

Here is the thing. When I read the paper, I see that he work is recently completed in 2022. Additionally, most of the systems are in compliance or very close. Here is an exact quote:

Going forward if the agency were to only rely on reductions as their sole tool to manage hatchery production, there would need to be a reduction coast-wide of 262,000 fish released or about a 30% decrease in production. While this sounds extreme, 80% of the potential reductions are in two watersheds (the Wynoochee and Naselle rivers). Most other coastal hatchery programs would only require small reductions to align with the SSMP.

A large part of the reason cited for the recent exceedances of uncollected/ unharvested hatchery fish is closures of the rivers to protect wild fish because run sizes appeared to be coming in below projections. It seems to me the department is in a no win situation. They could have not closed the rivers and the same groups would have complained that they did not take action. So, what do you do now?

The only way to assure that the goals are met is to close the hatcheries . That is the only way. Any number of things can happen to lead to an exceedance if all hatcheries are not closed. Changes in weather, hatchery collection issues, tribal netting, ocean survival changes etc. There is actually no way to assure compliance and have a hatchery program.

Meanwhile, they still may exceed the goal in the next few years since the smolts were released already for 2020/ 2021. Will there be another article about the exceedances then? No hatchery fish means what in 2024? Will the tribes sue? Will anyone get to fish?