[5] Action Agencies Reverse Course On Hatchery Spill Decision

Action agencies announced Mar. 6 they would provide spill at Bonneville Dam for a 7.6-million fish hatchery release after all.

In recent weeks, through two forums of Columbia Basin technical folks and policymakers, the Corps of Engineers said it would not spill for the Spring Creek Hatchery fall chinook this year because the new corner collector would be operating at the dam.

The Corps said the collector is the best way for fish to pass the dam, with nearly 100-percent survival for juvenile spring chinook. The feds weren't swayed by fish managers who touted an analysis that purported to show benefits from spill versus the collector route. The analysis even admitted its results weren't "statistically significant."

But Oregon requested the Corps' decision be elevated to the federal agency executive level for a final call. That meeting never took place because tribes and agencies had been talking about the issue "on the side," and a deal was struck by the afternoon or Mar. 5.

Details were announced the following morning at the Implementation Team meeting in Portland. Spill at Bonneville was slated to begin March 6 at midnight and run continuously for 78 hours at 36 kcfs, while turbines would be operated at the low end of the highest 1 percent efficiency range to reduce possible mortality.

According to the agreement, this will be the last year the spill will occur, since agencies have committed to moving the hatchery production below the dam by 2010, or 2012 at the latest. Sources say the details are part of larger MOAs between Action Agencies and tribes that spell out future actions to improve fish numbers in return for the lower Columbia tribes' support of the next hydro BiOp.

The tribes want more hatchery production of upriver bright fall chinook above Bonneville Dam to make up for the tules that will no longer swim through their fishing zone, but no mention was made of any final action on that score.

The spill decision still had some parties frustrated.

"We're aware an agreement has been reached," said Terry Flores, executive director of Northwest RiverPartners. "But we still don't see any scientific rationale for the hatchery fish spill at Bonneville Dam if we've got the $55-million corner collector in use."

The 35-kcfs spill level is only about one-third of what fish managers wanted. It was expected to cost BPA about $860,000. -B. R.

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