A CASE STUDY

LOOKINGGLASS HATCHERY AND

KILLING THE WILD CHINOOK OF THE GRANDE RONDE RIVER

 

By Bill M. Bakke

 

ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ The spring chinook of the Grande Ronde River in Northeast Oregon was listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) in 1992.Ê The Grande Ronde spring chinook are classified as a separate Evolutionary Significant Unit (ESU) by the National Marine Fisheries Service, the federal agency of authority over anadromous fish species listed under the ESA.Ê

ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ The Lookingglass Hatchery on Lookingglass Creek, a tributary to the Grande Ronde River, is a Lower Snake River Compensation Act (1976) hatchery operated by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, but funded by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.Ê The purpose of this hatchery is to mitigate for the salmonid losses associated with the construction of four federal dams on the lower Snake River from 1961 to 1975.

ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ In 1974, the Army Corps of Engineers hired Ernest Salo to analyze the agency draft fish compensation plans.Ê Dr. Salo stated that "maintenance of stock integrity (genetic fitness) was necessary, the hatchery must fit in with the environment, and managers should strive for 48% hatchery and 52% wild fish returning to the basin.Ê A guiding principle incorporated in the 1975 report is "...integrity of individual stocks of fish native to a particular watershed should be preserved as much as possible." (Snake River Hatchery Review April, 1991)

Ê The operation of Lookingglass Hatchery began in 1982 to produce 1.4 million spring chinook smolts.Ê The return goal for the hatchery is 9,070 spring chinook adults (Lower Snake River Compensation Plan Program Annual Report FY 1991).Ê This hatchery has released spring chinook from native Lookingglass stock (now extinct), Carson Hatchery stock (no longer released), Rapid River stock, and Imnaha stock.Ê The Rapid River stock is the primary spring chinook production stock for the hatchery now.

ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ The Rapid River stock originally came from spring chinook trapped at Hells Canyon Dam from 1964-1969.Ê This stock is reared at Rapid River Hatchery in the Salmon River Basin.Ê Adult returns have fluctuated dramatically but have shown a general trend of declining smolt to adult survival rates.Ê Poor smolt survival to Lower Granite Pool is a major concern.Ê Also fish health problems related to BKD and EIBS are an increasing problem (Snake River Hatchery Review Workshop Summary 1990)Ê This stock, because it is of upriver origin, is the preferred stock now at Lookingglass Hatchery.Ê The cost per Rapid River spring chinook adult is $873 (ODFW Sept. 1992).

ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ In the NMFS 1993 Biological Opinion, the Rapid River spring chinook are defined as a non-native salmon in the Grande Ronde River.Ê Straying of non-native broodstock represents a serious threat to the genetic integrity of the Snake River spring/summer chinook salmon population in the Grande Ronde River Basin. Therefore, NMFS, required the 1993 Lookingglass Hatchery release of chinook to be fin marked.Ê This will allow returning adults in succeeding years to be identified and, subsequently, trapped and removed at Lower Granite Dam.Ê This will result in a significant reduction in the number of hatchery adults straying into natural production areas where listed native salmon reproduce (National Marine Fisheries Service April 2, 1993).

ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ However, the trap at Lower Granite Dam is only 80% efficient so potentially 20% of the non-native Rapid River spring chinook could still stray into the Grande Ronde natural production areas and interbreed with native spring chinook (Robin Waples personal communication).Ê The NMFSÊ believes this potential stray rate is too high and was prepared to call jeopardy on a 6-10% stray rate in their 1994 Biological Opinion.Ê The NMFS proposed reducing releases from 850,000 spring chinook to 350,000 to control the stray rate. The NMFS's goal is to keep the stray rate to 3%/year.Ê The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the NMFS would like to phase the Rapid River spring chinook stock out of the Grande Ronde River over the next five years.Ê The ODFW, USFWS, and NMFS were in agreement on reducing the Rapid River spring chinook release in 1994, but the tribes were opposed.Ê

ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ The tribes were successful in their opposition.Ê They claimed that it cannot be demonstrated introgression from straying actually happens, however, the tribes also argue that because Carson and Rapid River spring chinook have been released into the Grande Ronde River and stray rates have been as high as 40 % in some streams, that no native spring chinook exist in the Grande Ronde Basin to protect.Ê Its not clear why the agencies didn't bring this apparent contradiction in the tribes' argument to their attention.

ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ The tribes threatened to take this issue to the U.S. v. Oregon, Columbia River Fishery Management Plan dispute resolution process.Ê But the state and federal agencies capitulated before it got that far.Ê By taking it to dispute resolution the court would be asked to decide the matter.Ê NMFS could defend their position on a theoretical basis but there is not enough empirical evidence, they believed, to support their position in court.Ê A USFWS spokesman (Dan Diggs) said it was NMFS call and in the absence of empirical evidence, NMFS could take the worst case scenario, the most conservative action.Ê But NMFS caved into the tribe during a meeting of the agencies and accepted a 700,000 release and a 5% stray rate.Ê

ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ According to a USFWS spokesman, the tribes are willing to pit the U.S. v. Oregon court ordered agreement against the ESA.Ê The NMFS, ODFW, and USFWS are not willing to push this case at this time, but it seems inevitable that the role of hatcheries, especially those releasing non-native stock for fishery enhancement purposes in a basin with listed salmon, will come before the court. ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ The original intent of the Lower Snake River Compensation Hatcheries as stated in the 1975 report was to preserve the integrity of individual stocks of fish native to a particular watershed.Ê The purpose of the ESA is to recover listed native salmon stocks so they are healthy enough to be delisted.Ê But the use of non-native Rapid River spring chinook in the Grande Ronde River accomplishes neither the goal of the hatchery program nor the mandate of the ESA.Ê The fish management agencies, in particular the NMFS, lack the conviction to implement their policies under the ESA.Ê This problem will continue to be unresolved unless the NMFS is forced to take action.

 

ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ The tribes have sought increased hatchery funding through federal appropriations and in 1994 they got a $9 million budget enhancement for the Army Corps of Engineers to increase hatchery facilities in the Grande Ronde.Ê This new money will be used to improve water quality at Lookingglass Hatchery and to construct acclimation ponds in the basin.Ê The stock of fish to be used in this effort is unclear in the appropriations language, but it will probably be the Rapid River spring chinook.Ê If this is the case, the original intent of the Lower Snake River Compensation Plan will be further subverted and the recovery of ESA listed native chinook will be further jeopardized.Ê Since there is no federal policy on the use of hatcheries in the recovery of ESA listed salmon, this kind of end-run of the ESA will continue as the tribes and states try to lock in their enhancement hatchery programs at the expense of native salmon recovery.

 

ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ In June 1995, the National Marine Fisheries Service held a scientific conference on the genetic effects of straying of non-native hatchery fish into natural populations.Ê Ed Crateau, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, said, "Using imported chinook in the Grande Ronde River, in hindsight, was a mistake."Ê However, this mistake was not an issue until the Snake River chinook were listed as endangered species under the federal ESA.Ê The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service had to change their lower Snake River Compensation Plan hatchery policy to be consistent with federal law.

 

ÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊÊ It was the policy of the Lower Snake River Compensation Plan hatcheries to ignore the wild chinook.Ê As a result of studies following the listing of the Snake River spring and summer chinook as endangered species, 40 subpopulations have been identified.Ê In the Grande Ronde six subpopulations of wild chinook have been documented.Ê But the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife ignored the advice of Dr. Salo and used non-native chinook in the hatchery program.Ê Even though 35 to 100% of the spawners in the Grande Ronde spawning areas were stray Rapid River chinook, the release of non-native chinook continued until the NMFS tried to change the practice.Ê Today, Rapid River spring chinook are still being released into Lookingglass Creek as a tribal experiment.