NUMBER 29 DECEMBER 1996
TABLE OF CONTENTS
While conservationists will best remember the 104th
Congress for the battle surrounding the salvage logging rider,
several bills affecting fish habitat were signed into law. Legislation
passed included the Safe Drinking Water Act, the Farm Bill's (Food
Security Act) Conservation Title (Title III), the Coastal Zone
Management Act, Trinity River Basin Fish and Wildlife Management
Act of 1995, and the Magnuson Act (see below).
Heading the list of environmental legislation to
be addressed by the 105th Congress will be the Clean Water Act
and the Superfund program. Federal lands policies regarding mining,
grazing, and logging will certainly be debated. Private property
issues will likely surface again. Reports are that Senators
Larry Craig (R-Idaho) and Dirk Kempthorne (R-Idaho)
are currently working on a rewrite of the Endangered Species Act.
On October 11, 1996, President William Clinton signed
the reauthorization of the Magnuson Fishery Management and Conservation
Act, now known as the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Management
and Conservation Act.
According to the Marine Fish Conservation Network,
an environmental-fisheries coalition which worked on the Magnuson
reauthorization, it was "the most important environmental
achievement of the 104th Congress."
The legislation's fish habitat language is excerpted
below:
Essential Fish Habitat (EFH):
Fishery Management Plans:
The Secretary of Commerce:
Regional Fishery Management Councils:
Other Federal Agencies:
NOW WHAT: The National Marine Fisheries Service is now in the process of implementing the Magnuson-Stevens Act.
Habitat language in the new Magnuson-Stevens Act
could be an important tool in fish habitat protection. However,
whether NMFS will have the funding and institutional momentum
to become a major player in habitat protection through the Magnuson-Stevens
Act, remains to be seen. Some argue that without regulatory authority,
the ability of the regional fishery management councils and the
National Marine Fisheries Service to significantly impact fishery
habitat decision making could be minimal.
WHAT YOU CAN DO: On November
8, 1996, the National Marine Fisheries Service issued an "Advanced
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking--Request for Comments on the Magnuson
Act Provisions--Essential Fish Habitat." The Summary of the
notice as it appeared in the Federal Register (Volume 61,
Number 218, Pages 57843-57844) is as follows:
NMFS is in the process of developing guidelines,
by regulation, to implement the requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens
Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act),
as mandated by the Sustainable Fisheries Act. These guidelines
would assist Fishery Management Councils in the description and
identification of essential fish habitat (EFH), including adverse
impacts on EFH, in fishery management plans (FMPs) and in the
consideration of actions to conserve and enhance EFH. NMFS invites
interested persons to submit written comments, information, and
suggestions on all aspects of the EFH mandate. Comments from Councils,
interstate fishery management commissions, state fishery management
agencies, commercial and recreational fishing interests, environmental
groups, and other interested parties are of particular interest.
For Further Information Contact:
Lee R. Crockett, National Marine Fisheries Service, (410)
267-5672.
StreamNet is a collaborative project among Pacific
Northwest agencies and tribes aimed at providing fish and wildlife
managers and policy-makers with critical information concerning
the region's aquatic resources. The project is a component of
the Northwest Power Planning Council's Fish and Wildlife Program
and is managed by the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission.
StreamNet announces release of a new version of its
home page. The major enhancement is a new online query system
that allows custom queries of the StreamNet database. Over 100,000
individual data items may be accessed through this feature. The
user may select any combination of fish species, geographic areas,
and data categories such as dams or hatcheries and the query system
will locate and display available information. Currently the system
centers on salmon and steelhead. Additional aquatic resource data
will be added during the next year.
Other enhancements include a library search feature
that allows online query of the StreamNet library using keywords,
as well as a map catalog query system that provides access to
computer-generated maps related to Pacific Northwest aquatic resources.
These maps can be viewed on the screen or downloaded. At present,
40 sample maps are available. Over the next several months a comprehensive
array of fish distribution maps will be offered. StreamNet is
also developing a "map builder" that will allow the
user to construct custom maps using StreamNet data.
On October 25, 1996, the National Marine Fisheries
Service listed the Central California Coho Salmon Evolutionary
Significant Unit (ESU) as "Threatened," under the Endangered
Species Act. The Central California listing includes all "naturally
reproducing" coho stocks from Punta Gorda in northern California,
south to the San Lorenzo River in Santa Cruz.
However, in a controversial decision, NMFS delayed
a listing decision on the Southern Oregon/Northern California
and the Oregon Coast coho ESUs. The reason for the delay was cited
as "scientific disagreement." A decision on whether
to list the Southern Oregon/Northern California and Oregon Coast
ESUs will now be issued on or before April 25, 1997.
For more detailed information on the status of coho
salmon stocks on the West Coast, please see page 11.
According to NMFS, fewer than 6,000 coho are returning
annually to their spawning streams in central California, only
a small fraction of the 50,000 to 125,000 that historically have
returned to the region to spawn. NMFS scientists linked the coho's
decline in California to a number of reasons, including habitat
degradation from logging, agricultural activities, flood control,
mining and urbanization; hatchery practices; and natural factors
such as drought and adverse ocean conditions over the past two
decades.
In issuing the announcement, Hilda Diaz-Soltero,
Southwest Regional Director for NMFS, said the fisheries service
and other federal agencies will continue to work closely with
federal, state and county officials, private landowners, fishermen
and environmental organizations on current and future conservation
measures aimed at restoring coho in the region.
Will Stelle, Northwest Regional Director for NMFS,
said the following regarding the decision to delay the
listing of the Southern Oregon/Northern California and Oregon
Coast ESUs:
We've reviewed comments and new information from
fishery scientists and other outside reviewers who have disputed
our assessment of the status of these two stocks and the natural
and man-made threats they face. This extension will give us time
to gather and analyze information aimed at resolving these disagreements.
REACTION TO LISTING DECISION
California Governor Pete Wilson (October
25, 1996):
The decision by NMFS to list the coho salmon as threatened
is indefensible in light of the serious issues that are in scientific
dispute. Instead, this listing is unlikely to improve the environmental
conditions that are necessary to restore the coho populations,
and places logging, mining, ranching, and other agricultural activities
over large parts of the State at serious risk. The listing of
the coho salmon will harshly impact landowners and communities
that are already suffering under severe economic pressure. This
listing makes off-limits to harvest half of the State and private
timber land base, resources valued at $4.6 billion.
Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations:
For the Fishing Industry coho salmon have been a
de Facto listed species under the Endangered Species Act
for the past four years. It's about time the fish were officially
listed so that those responsible for the near destruction of silver
salmon and their habitat are held responsible.
California Forestry Association:
Additional top-down regulations imposed on landowners
to facilitate recovery of salmon populations and improve habitat
can only have detrimental consequences for California's economy,
individual landowners, local communities and salmon. Like the
northern region, the Central California area in question is already
under severe economic hardship and have been working hard to improve
the aquatic and terrestrial environment through state and private
cooperative projects. To place draconian and unnecessary commands
and controls on these efforts would neither contribute to saving
the fish or the communities.
Significant new evidence points to increasing salmon
populations and the return of salmon stock in streams recently
unoccupied. We believe continuing, yet incomplete data gathered
over the past two years is revealing a dramatic improvement in
salmon populations due in part to the end of the prolonged drought
in California. In specific studies, those numbers are as high
as 100%.
According to Richard Gienger, a northern California
watershed restoration advocate:
We need a reversal of attitude of the resource agencies
in California. The California Board of Forestry has resisted sufficient
forest practice rules for salmon protection. Listing of coho salmon
is one of the only chances of getting the California Board of
Forestry, as well as the State of California and the forest industry
to implement adequate standards to recover these fish.
Bill Bakke of the Native
Fish Society in Portland, Oregon said that, "The unlisted
stocks need to be listed to get full protection under the law
to secure a recovery program driven by scientific objectives."
The States of California, Washington, and
Oregon have ongoing processes attempting to resuscitate dwindling
coho stocks. A discussion of each state's efforts are described
below.
California's Coastal Salmon Initiative (CSI) was
begun in January 1996 by the California State Resources Agency.
The CSI "is a voluntary cooperative effort between multiple
agencies and interest groups to develop and implement a feasible
stakeholder-based program for restoring and maintaining the viability
of the biological community associated with coastal salmonid watersheds."
Unfortunately, the CSI process has not been a smooth
one. According to Nat Bingham, Habitat Coordinator of the Pacific
Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations: "After
one meeting of the CSI steering committee [or policy committee],
the industrial timber owners walked out of the process, saying
that they could get a better deal [regarding forest practice regulations]
directly from the state."
In an October 3, 1996 letter to NMFS Southwest Regional
Director Hilda Diaz-Soltero, a coalition of fishing, restoration,
and environmental groups* (then participants in the CSI) said
the following:
We are deeply concerned that the State of California
has requested a delay in the listing of coho salmon under the
Federal Endangered Species Act. We are aware that tremendous pressure
to delay the listing is being put on you by the State of California
on behalf of the industrial forestry interests and by the Northwest
Region of NMFS. Apparently, a last minute package of information
purportedly justifying a delay in listing is in the process of
being sent to you. We must inform you that if you fail to list
coho in the two California ESUs, we cannot, in good conscience,
continue to attempt to develop a state conservation program under
the aegis of CSI beyond the October 25 deadline for your decision
on listing coho salmon.
When we agreed to serve as representatives of the
environmental, restoration, and fishing interests on the Coastal
Salmon Initiative Policy Committee, it was with the clear understanding
the purpose of the Coastal Salmon Initiative, based on statements
from the Resources Agency, was to develop a conservation program,
which would meet State and Federal legal obligations, for our
seriously threatened coastal salmonid ecosystem. As such, we view
the current political effort of the Resources Agency to prevent
the timely listing of coho as a serious act of bad faith that
may delay the availability of ESA incentives for listed species
that are so critical to the purposes of the Initiative.
All the scientific information that is publicly available
or that we are aware of leads us inescapably to the conclusion
that coho salmon are in jeopardy of extinction and that all legal
requirements of the listing have been met. To the best of our
knowledge, the information that is being provided by the timber
industry to the state to justify a delay has not been properly
peer reviewed.
We have continued to serve and attempt to work collaboratively
on the CSI Policy Committee because we hoped that it was being
guided by the clear direction that you provided in your March
10, 1996 statement indicating your intention to list coho under
any circumstances. There was no ambiguity in your statement. In
our opinion, the CSI process has failed to follow the direction
you provided in March and the need to list coho in California
is overwhelming.
Almost a year after is inception, it is evident
that the CSI is fundamentally flawed and nothing short of a listing
will correct these problems.
* Signatories to the letter were: The Pacific Coast
Federation of Fishermen's Associations, Salmonid Restoration Federation,
California Trout, Mattole Watershed Council, Environmental Protection
Information Center, Northcoast Environmental Center, and the Sierra
Club.
WALK OUT: Most recently,
as promised, the coalition of fishing, restoration, and environmental
groups walked out of the CSI policy committee process. According
to Nat Bingham:
Our participation in CSI was based on the understanding
that it was to be a joint state-federal effort to develop standards
for the 4d rule habitat conservation plan under the Federal Endangered
Species Act. When the State suddenly requested a delay in the
listing of coho salmon without consulting the CSI policy committee,
we felt that we could not, in good conscience, stay at the table.
The draft CSI plan as written to date is inequitable in that it
proposes very severe regulations for fishing and no change in
regulations for loggers.
NOW WHAT: John Amodio,
Assistant Secretary for Ecosystem Management for the California
Resources Agency, said on November 21 that even though he
is saddened that the policy committee portion of the CSI is at
an end, the process will still continue. Amodio said that the
policy committee's efforts can be used for future direction, and
the CSI process would now go through a broader public review.
For Further Information Contact:
the California Resources Agency at (916) 653-5656;
Nat Bingham of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's
Associations at (707) 937-4145.
On August 26, 1996 the State of Oregon released its
answer to coho recovery entitled "The Governor's Coastal
Salmon Restoration Initiative."
Below are some of the draft plan's habitat
elements:
The Coastal Salmon Restoration Initiative (CSRI)
Plan represents an effort to conduct natural resource management
in a new way. The Plan proposes many new management measures,
including participation in grassroots restoration efforts, funding
options, and changes in habitat, harvest and hatchery practices.
All of the measures are designed to achieve conservation and restoration
of Oregon's coastal salmon, steelhead and cutthroat trout populations.
Management measures are outlined in the plan in two
parts. Part I provides a list of measures proposed by each state
agency. Part II categorizes these same measures under management
issues important to the salmon life cycle. These include:
Management measures are also identified as Phase
I measures which can be implemented with existing resources and
budgets and Phase II measures which require additional resources,
budgets and/or legislation to implement. Examples of management
measures critical to salmon recovery include:
Habitat Management
Changes in habitat management that are expected as
a result of the measures in support of the CSRI Plan focus on
action that can be accomplished to assist conservation and restoration
of coastal salmon.
REACTION:
Governor John Kitzhaber
said:
The effort to produce this draft plan was unprecedented
in crossing traditional boundaries of private, public, and agency
management. And it resulted in an overwhelming response -- founded
on cooperation -- to maintain healthy salmon populations as an
ongoing part of life in Oregon...
Pacific Fishery Management Council:
We agree that voluntary approaches to solving the salmon crisis are preferable to additional regulatory burdens on Oregon's citizens and natural resources industries. However, in the past several years, the Council has imposed severe restrictions on ocean coho salmon fisheries along the entire West Coast. These closures have been at great cost to salmon dependent communities. The purpose of the closures has been to return more spawners to the streams. If adults return to natal streams that are of poor quality for spawning and rearing, then the inordinate sacrifice of our fishing community is diminished.
The Council believes that fisheries restrictions
which result in economic hardship on the recreational and commercial
fishing industries and dependent coastal communities must be accompanied
by concomitant measures which address the serious habitat
problems faced by anadromous fishes. In addition, the burdens
(and benefits) of natural resource management must be shared by
all the citizenry.
Therefore, the CSRI should emphasize enforcement
and monitoring of the existing habitat regulations on state and
private lands and recommend stronger rules where needed. Specifically,
forest practice regulations protecting small fish bearing streams
on state and private lands may be inadequate to ensure full protection
of anadromous resources. Also, management of Oregon's range and
crop lands needs to reflect a commitment to reducing negative
impacts on water quality.
Bill Bakke of the Native Fish Society thinks
that the CSRI draft is "woefully deficient."
Glen Spain of the Pacific Coast Federation of
Fishermen's Associations:
We fully support the Governor's effort in this direction,
even though we do not believe the CSRI is or can be legally sufficient
to prevent a listing under the ESA, nor even that such a listing
should be avoided. Ultimately it is further declines (not a listing)
which we have to prevent. A coastwide listing under the ESA combined
with the CSRI as the backbone of a recovery plan administered
within a state-federal partnership is, we believe, the best and
most equitable option. Ample flexibility already exists under
the ESA to make Oregon's CSRI Plan the centerpiece of a coho recovery
strategy as well as to create a comprehensive state-federal partnership
to work toward coastwide recovery of all salmon species.
A listing is currently pending only for coho salmon. The CSRI
should be, and is expressly intended by Governor Kitzhaber to
be, much more comprehensive.
National Marine Fisheries Service: Below are excerpts from a November 5, 1996 letter to Governor Kitzhaber from Will Stelle (Northwest Regional Director for NMFS):
Strengths
In the habitat arena, NMFS is encouraged by several
initiatives. The Oregon Department of Agriculture has proposed
many actions, including the use of Rapid Screening Assessment
and the Natural Resources Conservation Service's Field Office
Technical Guides for Confined Animal Feeding Operations.
Another strong feature of the Plan is the ambitious,
multi-scaled monitoring program proposed by the Science Team.
We strongly concur with the importance of funding and supporting
a coastwide monitoring director.
The ODFW proposes significant actions in its hatchery
programs that will contribute to the recovery of naturally-spawning
coho salmon.
Areas Needing Strengthening
At this point, despite the extensive materials laid
out in the draft Plan, it still falls short of what we believe
will be necessary to maximize its impact on NMFS' decision making
and planning. As noted above, the hatchery and harvest elements
are relatively strong, reflecting changes that will require ongoing,
major adjustments in both commercial and recreational fisheries.
By comparison, the habitat elements of the proposal appear to
work only around the edges of existing programs in a number of
respects. While the resource management and regulation agencies
have proposed some positive steps, we believe that several aspects
will require more fundamental changes in management and permitting
activities that affect important habitat parameters. Given the
serious (50-90%) decline in productive potential of Oregon's coho
habitat, it is clear that Oregon needs substantial additional
effort in the habitat arena.
NOW WHAT: Implementation
of parts of the plan is already underway. Comments on the draft
Coastal Salmon Restoration Initiative were accepted through
November 1. The CSRI is undergoing a scientific peer review through
the month of November. A new version of the CSRI is expected at
the end of February, 1997.
For Further Information Contact:
Office of Governor John Kitzhaber at (503) 378-3111.
Washington coho stocks are healthier than those in
California and Oregon. However, two coho ESUs are designated as
"Candidate" species under the ESA until further information
is collected ("Candidate" species status expires on
April 25, 1997).
The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife's "1992 Salmon and Steelhead Stock Status Inventory (SASSI)" found that:
Washington is addressing its wild salmon management
through their "21st Century Wild: Washington State's Fish
and Habitat Policy for Salmonid Protection and Recovery."
Some of the performance standards from an August 15, 1996 draft
from the Habitat Protection and Restoration Section include:
Basin Hydrology and Instream Flow:
Percent effective impervious surfaces will not exceed a threshold
of 10 percent including road surfaces, rooftops, and parking lots
Water and Sediment Quality and Sediment Transport:
Fine sediments in spawning or rearing habitat (<.85mm) will
not exceed 11%. If natural levels of fine sediment exceed 11%
in spawning or rearing habitat, then sediment concentrations shall
not exceed natural levels.
Stream Channel Complexity:
More than 90 percent of channel banks on streams will be stable,
relative to natural rates of erosion in the basin.
The quantity and quality of "large woody debris"
(LWD) in streams will not be impaired by human activities. The
number of key LWD pieces per "bank full width" (BFW)
will be greater than 0.3 pieces for streams less than 10 meters
BFW and greater than 0.5 pieces for streams 10-20 meters BFW.
Riparian Areas and Wetlands:
For Water Types 1-3...a buffer of 100-150 feet (measured horizontally)
or the height of a site potential tree in a mature conifer stand
(100 years), whichever is greater.
Buffers will be applied to all wetlands as provided
in the Ecology Model Wetlands Ordinance-September 1990. These
buffers, range from 300 feet for Category I-High Intensity down
to 25 feet for Category IV-low intensity.
Marine Areas: No net loss
of eelgrass habitat, herring spawning habitat areas or function,
upper intertidal forage fish spawning area function, and wetland
area or function will be ensured.
NOW WHAT:
In November, the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission
directed the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife to work
further with treaty tribes to develop another draft Environmental
Impact Statement (DEIS). State agencies will also be providing
comments. The next DEIS is expected on January 15, 1997 with public
comment on that document tentatively scheduled to last through
February. A Final EIS would then be produced in April 1997.
In contrast to Oregon's CSRI, the August draft of
the wild salmonid policy contained performance standards. As the
policy undergoes another revision by state agencies and treaty
tribes, it is unclear whether these performance standards will
be kept or replaced in favor of a more watershed-based approach.
In Related News, on September 27, 1996, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife announced that the American Fisheries Society will be asked to review the State's "21st Century Wild."
For Further Information Contact:
Loren Stern of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
at (360) 902-2204.
Editor's Note: Only the
Central California ESU has been listed as threatened under
the Endangered Species Act.
Besides the Central California, Southern Oregon/Northern
California, and Oregon Coast ESUs, three other coho ESUs have
been identified by the National Marine Fisheries Service: Columbia
River/S.W. Washington ESU, Olympic Peninsula ESU, and
the Puget Sound/Strait of Georgia ESU (see map on page
10). A graph showing declining numbers of coho for the Columbia
River can be seen below.
Coho adult counts at Bonneville Dam, 1961-1995
Source: StreamNet, 1996.
On July 25, 1995, the National Marine Fisheries Service
determined that these three ESUs did not warrant immediate action,
and said the following:
Columbia River/S.W. Washington ESU:
...historically, at least one ESU of coho salmon
probably occurred in the lower Columbia River basin, but the agency
was unable to identify any remaining natural populations that
warranted protection under ESA. However there is sufficient concern
regarding the overall health of this ESU (especially in light
of evidence that some native fish may exist.) Therefore NMFS is
adding...[this]...ESU to the Candidate List[*] until the distribution
and status of the native populations can be resolved.
Olympic Peninsula ESU:
...relative to other ESUs,
coho salmon abundance is moderate, but stable.
The Puget Sound/Strait of Georgia ESU:
Because of the lack of general information on the
identified risk factors, and because the number of naturally producing
fish within the ESU is fairly large and apparently stable, NMFS
concludes that a listing is not warranted...However, there is
sufficient concern regarding the overall health of this ESU, and
therefore, NMFS is adding...[this]...ESU to the Candidate List[*].
Idaho/Washington: Coho
have been declared extinct in the Snake River drainage.
Southeast Alaska: In the
October 1996 issue of Fisheries (Volume
21, Number 10), two papers document the risk of extinction for
coho spawning aggregates1 in Southeastern Alaska, and
British Columbia and Yukon streams as follows:
| Risk of
Extinction | SE Alaska2 | BC & Yukon Streams3 |
| High | 1 | 214 |
| Moderate | 1 | 22 |
| No or Low | 70 | N/A |
| Special Concern | 0 | 21 |
| Unknown | 2,229 | 1,284 |
| Unthreatened | N/A | 1,024 |
| Extinct | 0 | 29 |
1. Spawning aggregate denotes the escapement of a particular species at a spawning location.
2. Authors of the study are: T.T. Baker, A.C. Wertheimer, R.D. Burkett, R. Dunlap, D.M. Eggers, E.I. Fritz, A.J. Gharrett, R.A. Holmes, and R.L. Wilmot.
3. Authors of the study are: T.L. Slaney, K.D. Hyatt,
T.G. Northcote, and R.J. Fielden.
*Candidate List designation due to expire April 25,
1997.
On September 18, 1996, the Northwest Power Planning
Council (NPPC) released "Return of the River: Restoration
of Salmonid Fishes in the Columbia River Ecosystem." This
report reviews the "science underlying salmon and steelhead
recovery efforts and Columbia River Basin ecosystem health."
The report was written by the Independent Scientific Group (ISG).
The ISG is made up of university scientists and independent fisheries
consultants with backgrounds in statistics, fisheries ecology
and management, population dynamics, river ecology, juvenile bypass,
and genetics.
The Council's objective for the analysis "was
to provide the region, to the greatest extent possible, clear
and authoritative analysis conducted by impartial experts."
The report builds upon the National Research Council's report
"Upstream: Salmon and Society in the Pacific Northwest,"
which was released earlier this year.
The ISG report relies on the concept of a "normative
river." A brief discussion of which is provided below:
The complex, integrated set of phenotypic traits
that comprise a salmonid's life history pattern results from interaction
of an individual's genotype and its environment (Healey and Prince,
1995). An important element of the environment is the "pathway"
of habitats that the individual follows from birth to death. Life
history diversity, which is characteristic of salmonids in general
(Groot and Margolis, 1991; Rieman and McIntyre, 1993), arises
when individuals follow different habitat "pathways"
and consequently manifest different sets of phenotypic traits.
Healey and Prince (1995) argue that the population and its habitat
are the basic unit of conservation. They summarize a fundamental
premise of the normative river concept:
"Maintaining a rich diversity of Pacific
salmon genotypes and phenotypes depends on maintaining habitat
diversity and on maintaining the opportunity for the species to
take advantage of that diversity."
Thus, spatial and temporal habitat diversity are
critical for expression of life history diversity. Multiple life
histories in relation to habitat structure have been observed
in several populations of anadromous salmonids (Reimers, 1973;
Schluchter and Lichatowich, 1977; Carl and Healey, 1984; Gharrett
and Smoker, 1993; Lestelle and Gilbertson, 1993). In the salmon
bearing ecosystem of the Columbia River, life history diversity
should be substantial owing to the ecosystem's large size, its
complex riverine physiography and geomorphology, highly variable
flow regime, and complex oceanic circulation pattern. Enhancing
normative conditions and increasing salmonid production requires
restoration of habitat diversity which will enable reexpression
of life history diversity...
Management of the Columbia River Basin and its hydroelectric
projects have focused on the timing, amount, rate and velocity
of flow the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Bureau of Reclamation
allows through the system, and whether barging and trucking of
juvenile salmon should be continued. Some findings of the ISG
report on the key issues of spill, transportation, the John Day
Reservoir drawdown, include:
Transportation:
Transportation benefits are incompletely substantiated
and assumptions of benefits are based on surprisingly few complete
studies. Transportation involves the overt separation of salmon
from their ecosystem and can provide no substitute for normative
river conditions across the entire array of salmonid diversity
in the river. However, in the absence of normative river conditions
within the hydroelectric system, it may be able to delay the process
of extinction for some species and life history types such as
Snake River spring chinook.
Spill And Gas Bubble Disease:
Spilling water at dams is a way to improve survival
of migrating juvenile salmon as they pass, compared to turbine
passage or passage through conventional fish bypasses...Spill
is a route of passage at dams that most closely resembles the
natural migration route (a spillway can be viewed as analogous
to a natural waterfall). Survival of spilled fish has been measured
at 98-100% compared to about 85% for turbine passage. Thus, use
of spill has been recommended by state fisheries agencies, the
Tribes, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and the Council's
Program. A spill management program for benefit of juvenile salmon
has been in effect at non-federal dams in the mid-Columbia since
the mid 1980s and in 1994-95 in the federal hydropower system
in the Snake and lower Columbia rivers. A drawback to spill, however,
is that it can increase total dissolved gas levels in the river
downstream of the dams. High gas levels can cause serious injury
and mortality to the very salmon the spill is intended to protect.
Salmonid recovery efforts using spill, therefore, have been constrained
by gas saturation levels in the rivers and the best understanding
of their biological effects.
The ISG recommends that dams be modified structurally
to avoid or minimize gas supersaturation under conditions of both
managed and uncontrolled spill rather than expanding gas-bubble
disease research to adequately define the risk of gas bubble disease
in river fish. Unless data can be collected inexpensively in conjunction
with an integrated program of mainstem monitoring, much research
would be necessary, likely beyond our capacity. Spill has a demonstrated
lower level of fish mortality at dams than turbine passage and
it more closely approximates the normative river system to which
migrant behavior has evolved than either passage through turbines
or gatewell fish bypasses.
Drawdown:
Seasonal drawdown of lower Snake and Columbia River
reservoirs has been examined as a mitigation tool. Rationale for
temporary drawdown focuses primarily on the potential to increase
travel time for emigrants. However, this has not been clearly
demonstrated. Also ... concentration of salmonid juveniles with
predators and loss of shallow water habitats are potential problems
with drawdown scenarios.
However, permanent drawdown to expose and revitalize
drowned alluvial reaches to create riverine habitat for salmonids
similar to the Hanford Reach likely is warranted in view of our
normative river concept. The Hanford Reach is the only mainstem
area that consistently continues to produce salmonids and it is
one of only a few river reaches in the entire Columbia River system
that provides riverine habitat for a "healthy" salmon
stock. However, the Hanford fall chinook spawn only in the upper
two thirds of the reach, probably because interstitial flow pathways
are nonfunctional in the lower third of the reach due to the elevated
water table created by virtual continual maintenance of the full
pool elevation of McNary Reservoir. Lowering the McNary pool likely
would lower the water table in the alluvial reaches upstream,
significantly increasing the size of the river reach at Hanford
containing both surface and ground water habitat components. Similarly,
the flood plain functions of the Yakima River delta might also
be significantly restored.
Restoration of a historically productive and complex
riverine segment might also occur through drawdown of John Day
pool to spillway crest...The upper portion of John Day pool, which
lies immediately below the confluence of the Snake and Columbia
Rivers, contains what was formerly a large alluvial reach that
served as a highly productive area for mainstem spawning chinook
populations. Populations in this area, may have functioned as
a metapopulation, and served as a core to stabilize chinook salmon
production in the region. Restoration and revitalization of the
upper John Day pool as a free-flowing river segment might assist
in the re-establishment of chinook salmon production and metapopulation
structure through straying and dispersal from the adjacent Hanford
Reach chinook.
Surface Collectors:
A more promising approach applicable to some dams,
appears to be the use of surface collection devices for bypassing
migrating juvenile salmonids.
Habitat:
Freshwater habitat for all life history stages must
be protected and restored with a focus on key alluvial river reaches
and lakes. Restoring habitat and access to habitat that re-establishes
phenotypic diversity in salmonid populations should be a priority.
Other Habitat Recommendations in the Report Include:
REACTION
The group Save Our Wild Salmon, a coalition
of conservationists, sport and commercial fishers, and salmon-based
businesses, had this to say about the ISG report:
In 1997, the federal government and the region will
decide whether barging fish should remain our primary management
tool for moving fish through the hydrosystem. The Independent
Scientific Group says NO.
In 1997 the federal government and region will decide
whether John Day drawdown should be pursued. The Independent Scientific
Group says YES.
According to Rick Applegate, Director of the West
Coast Conservation Office of Trout Unlimited:
The Independent Scientific Group is an eminent committee
of scientists whose members have been involved in the science
of Columbia River salmon for eight years. Their report is a breath
of fresh air. It recognizes that we must use a more natural approach
to salmon restoration. They have given us a strong scientific
foundation for restoring natural riverine conditions in segments
of the Columbia River; for reduced reliance on hatcheries, barge
transportation and other engineering fixes that attempt to circumvent
rather than restore ecological processes; and for paying more
attention to the estuary and ocean conditions in the recovery
effort. The question is whether we will have the political will
to implement the obvious direction they are pointing to....Unless
we do, we will continue to be disappointed with the results of
the restoration program.
NOW WHAT: 1997 will be
(yet another) critical year for Columbia River Basin salmon.
Pat Ford, of the Save Our Wild Salmon Coalition, says
that:
In its first term, the Clinton Administration took
one real step forward to make the federal hydro system safer for
salmon -- a good spill program to pass fish over the dams is now
in place. It needs improvement, but we're on the road.
But the Administration is not on the road
to getting salmon out of the barges and back into the river, to
modifying the lower Snake and John Day dams, to restoring seasonality
of flow or spending salmon dollars on action not process. The
Administration's own Independent Scientific Group has recently
joined the Columbia River Tribes, state fishery agencies, fishermen
and conservationists in urging that these things be done. To obey
the law and restore Columbia Basin salmon, they must be done.
We hope and pray the administration will do them.
To Order A Copy of the ISG Report, Contact: Northwest
Power Planning Council at (800) 222-3355,
and request document 96-6. There is no charge for the report.
Internet: The ISG report
is also available by file transfer at the NPPC Internet site,
www.nwppc.org.
To Obtain a Copy of "Upstream:
Salmon and Society in the Pacific Northwest" call
the National Research Council at (800) 624-6242.
For Further Information Contact: Save Our Wild
Salmon Coalition at (206) 622-2904; Northwest
Power Planning Council at (800) 222-3355; Rick Applegate,
Trout Unlimited at (503) 650-5412.
In other Columbia River News, a study entitled "Salmon
Decision Analysis Lower Snake River Feasibility Study" prepared
by Harza Northwest, was released October 4, 1996. The report says
that: "dam removal is the biological option of choice if
salmon and ecosystem restoration is the primary goal. Removal
of four Snake River dams will increase salmon survival by about
72 percent above existing in-river levels. The best way to help
recover Snake River salmon is to remove the four federal dams."
The purpose of this study, which was funded by the
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, was to "lay out the options
for improving the hydropower system to help save salmon."
The report does not endorse seasonal full
pool or spillway crest drawdowns of the river.
For a Copy of the Harza Report Contact:
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Walla Walla Office at
(509) 527-7261;
For Further Information About the Report Contact:
Harza Northwest at (503) 244-6922.
A report released on October 18, 1996 documents the
cost of lost fishery benefits from "hydropower mismanagement
and salmon habitat destruction in the Columbia River basin."
The report entitled "The Cost of Doing Nothing: The Economic
Burden of Salmon Declines in the Columbia River Basin" was
prepared by the Institute for Fisheries Resources, a group
dedicated to the protection and restoration of marine and anadromous
resources. Hans Radke and Shannon Davis provided technical assistance
for the study. Among the main findings of the report are:
To Order a Copy of "The Cost of Doing Nothing":
Send a check or money order to: Institute for Fisheries Resources,
PO Box 11170, Eugene, OR 97440-3370. The cost for each report
is $10.00 (includes shipping). Ph: (541) 689-2000.
Established in May of 1995, the CALFED Bay Delta
Program is "a joint effort among state and federal agencies
with management and regulatory responsibilities" in the San
Francisco Bay-Delta System.
Management of California's Central Valley, including
the Bay-Delta has contributed to the decimation of once large
runs of salmon, as evidenced by the listing under the Endangered
Species Act of the Sacramento winter-run chinook salmon ("endangered")
and delta smelt ("threatened").
The CALFED's "Phase I Final Documentation Report"
was released in September 1996. In that document, four general
categories of "critical problems" facing the Bay-Delta
are defined. They are: "ecosystem quality," "water
quality," "water supply reliability," and "system
vulnerability." Also, the document contains three Phase
II Alternative Solutions to these problems.
NOW WHAT: CALFED recently
released its "Implementation Objectives and Targets"
for its Ecosystem Restoration Program. According to Rick Soehren,
with the CALFED program, this is a good time for input into the
restoration program process.
| Date | City | Location |
| 12/3/96 | Modesto | Red Lion Motel |
| 12/10/96 | Walnut Grove | Jean Harvie
Community Center |
| 12/17/96 | Red Bluff | Community Center/Auditorium |
| 1/3/97 | Sacramento | Sacramento Convention Center, Room 202 |
In addition, CALFED will hold an Ecosystem Restoration
Program Plan Workshop at the Sacramento Convention Center on January
28, 1997, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Comments on the draft "Implementation Objectives
and Targets" should be sent to:
To receive a copy of the CALFED "Phase
I Final Documentation Report" or the "Implementation
Objectives and Targets" contact: CALFED at the above
address or by phone at (916) 657-2666.
For Further Information Contact:
Dick Daniel, CALFED Bay Delta Program at (916) 657-2666.
On August 14, 1996 the California Department of Water
Resources (DWR) and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) released
their draft environmental impact report/environmental impact statement
(EIR/EIS) for the Interim South Delta Program (ISDP). According
to a DWR press release:
The ISDP predates the creation of CALFED, the coalition
of state and federal agencies now working to develop long-term
solutions to Delta water problems of supply and quality. The ISDP
seeks similar objectives to those of CALFED's Bay-Delta Program
but on a much more limited basis. Both the Bay-Delta Program and
the ISDP seek to improve the Delta environment and fish habitat
while ensuring that the Delta remains a productive source of high
quality water for California's population. Since both programs
address agriculture, fisheries, and water supply needs in the
Delta, the ISDP could complement a long-term Delta solution.
WHAT YOU CAN DO: Copies
of the Executive Summary or the entire DEIS/EIR are available
by contacting Judy Fong, Department of Water Resources
at (916) 653-3496, fax (9l6) 653-6077.
Public Hearing: An additional
public hearing has been scheduled for January 22, 1997 from 7:00
p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the Tracy Inn, 30 West 11th Street, Tracy,
California
For Further Information Contact: Stephen
Roberts, Department of Water Resources at (916) 653-2118;
or Al Candlish, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation at (916)
989-7255.
On October 10, 1996, the Bureau of Reclamation announced
that it would pump 130,000 acre feet of water from the Sacramento-San
Joaquin Delta in November and December 1996. The water will be
delivered to the Westlands Water District, a 600,000-acre agricultural
area.
This action has caused outrage in the environmental
community and salmon fishing industry, who say it violates the
1994 Bay-Delta accord. According to The Bay Institute:
These [Department of] Interior moves betray an agency
which appears eager to satisfy Westlands Water District, no matter
the impact on precious biological resources or the credibility
of Clinton administration's promises.
On October 12, the San Francisco Chronicle
reported that water users claimed that the increased pumping would
represent a "payback" for reduced pumping in the spring
aimed at preserving the San Joaquin fall-run salmon.
For Further Information Contact:
The Bay Institute at (415) 721-7680; The Bureau of Reclamation
at (961) 979-2180.
A ballot initiative to restrict livestock grazing
on state and private land in Oregon, the "Clean Streams Initiative,"
failed in the November election by a margin of 64-36 percent
(See Habitat Hotline Numbers 25
and 26).
The Clean Stream Initiative would have made it illegal to graze
livestock in water quality limited streams except as allowed by
an approved water quality management plan.
Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber,
who opposed the initiative, may have been a significant factor
contributing to the surprising margin of defeat. Prior to the
November 5 election, Kitzhaber had attempted to broker an agreement
with agricultural interests aimed at making agricultural practices
more water quality and fish habitat friendly.
On November 18, 1996, Kitzhaber's efforts finally
came to fruition with the signing of the "Healthy Streams
Partnership." The partnership brings environmentalists, ranchers,
farmers and government agencies together to work on water quality
problems in Oregon. The partnership "is designed to restore
streams suffering from pollution in rural areas, including the
effects of farming and grazing."
Said Kitzhaber at the signing:
I am very pleased to have been able to sit at the
table with all partners to this agreement and come to a workable
solution. Today, we are signing a document that will provide a
framework for restoring water quality in streams across the state.
Some elements of the agreement are exerpted below:
This agreement identifies the general approach and
limitations that all parties have discussed and agreed to in order
to address the non-point source water quality problems facing
Oregon.
Signers to the agreement included the Oregon Cattlemen's
Association, Oregon Dairy Farmers, Oregon Trout
and WaterWatch. These groups had been on opposite sides
of the Clean Stream Initiative.
NOW WHAT: The initiative
calls for an additional $20 to $35 million in spending for a watershed
improvement fund per biennium. This will be a challenge in the
1997 Oregon legislature because of the passage of Ballot Measure
47. Passed in the last election, Measure 47 limits property taxes
and ultimately will impact the State budget. Legislators will
be pressured for funding from all sides in the coming year, especially
by the education lobby. Hopefully the Governor, fisheries conservationists,
and agricultural interests will see that the needs of Oregon's
salmonids are addressed. The latest word is that the Governor
may look to fund salmon restoration activities through bottle
deposit or vehicle registration fees.
For Further Information Contact:
Bob Applegate, (503) 378-6496 or Leslie Carlson (503) 378-6307
of Governor Kitzhaber's Office.
In September 1996, a U.S. District Court Judge in
Portland ruled that the federal government must have state approval
before allowing cattle to graze along polluted streams in Oregon
on U.S. Forest Service land. The state will be able to exercise
its authority when cattle grazing permits are up for renewal.
The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality could restrict
grazing on those streams that are designated as "water quality
limited" under the Clean Water Act. The Clean Water Act's
section 303(d) requires each state to identify streams, rivers
and lakes that do not meet water quality standards. These waters
are referred to as "water quality limited" and states
are required to establish a list of these waters - referred to
as the 303(d) list.
Oregon's draft 303(d) list includes many anadromous
fish streams where the beneficial uses are not protected or only
partially supported for aquatic life. Water quality standards
for fecal coliform, pH, and/or dissolved oxygen are sometimes
exceeded in the Deschutes, Wallowa, Grande Ronde, John Day, Klamath,
Sandy, Willamette, Siuslaw, Yaquina, Clatskanie, Kilchis, Wilson,
Umpqua, Rogue, and Coquille rivers.
On November 1, 1996, DEQ closed the comment period
on its 303(d) list.
IN RELATED NEWS, On Oct.
24, 1996 the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission
sent a letter to Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber and the Clinton
Administration charging overgrazing of riparian areas on U.S.
Forest Service land in the Wallowa Whitman and Umatilla Forests.
According to the letter, photos were taken in the Wallowa Whitman
and Grande Ronde River Basins showing harm caused by livestock
to critical salmon habitat. Both streams contain listed stocks
of Snake River chinook salmon. According to the letter:
The photos speak for themselves and are representative
of examples throughout Oregon's National Forests. Such grazing
makes a mockery of ESA purposes and procedures, and undermines
court-ordered efforts to cure violations of state water quality
standards in the Grand Ronde River. It also subverts the ostensible
goals of the model watershed approach.
On November 1, 1996 The Oregonian reported
that the U.S. Forest Service had "sharply denied allegations
by Northwest Indian Tribes that the agency allowed cattle to damage
streams that are crucial to the restoration of threatened Snake
River salmon."
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing
to allow "submarine tailings disposal" (STD) for solid
waste for the "A-J" mine near Juneau, Alaska (See Habitat
Hotline Numbers 13 and 15 ).
Below is a summary of the proposed EPA rule:
This proposed rule would amend the applicability
of certain effluent limitations guidelines and new source performance
standards governing mines with froth-flotation mills to the Alaska-Juneau
(A-J) gold mine project near Juneau, Alaska. Specifically, EPA
is proposing to exempt denatured tailings produced by the proposed
A-J mine and mill from effluent guidelines based on best practicable
control technology (BPT) and best available control technology
economically achievable (BAT), and from new source performance
standards (NSPS)...EPA also is proposing that a definition of
"dewatered tailings" be added to...[the standards]...EPA
is issuing today's proposal because the use of a tailings impoundment
was part of the technology basis for the BPT, BAT, and NSPS requirements
of subpart J; however, it appears that extreme topographic and
climatic conditions at the A-J project site render it impractical
to treat and dispose of tailings in a tailings impoundment so
as to meet the requirements of subpart J. EPA would not take action
to finalize this proposal if a feasible alternative for tailings
treatment is identified that would obviate the need for the exemption.
EPA expects to make a final determination with respect to this
proposal by the end of 1996. Since this proposed rule is deregulatory
in nature, no costs are estimated. The benefit of this proposed
rule is the potential for increased flexibility in permitting
the disposal of tailing wastes from the gold mine and mill operations,
resulting in the mitigation of environmental impacts. Costs and
benefits resulting from this action will be determined as part
of the environmental assessment of feasible alternatives. During
the preparation of this proposed rule, the Agency held consultations
with State and local governments, industry, and public interest
group representatives.
REACTION:
The battle over whether to reopen the A-J mine has
been ongoing for years. Environmental groups charge that the mine
poses a hazard to aquatic resources (see below). In December 1994,
the owner of the mine, Echo Bay Alaska, agreed to a fine of $250,000
to pay for future monitoring expenses following investigation
into the death of 300 fish near the mine.
According to Gershon Cohen of the Alaska Clean
Water Alliance (ACWA):
These amendments to the NSPS have been proposed to
benefit a Canadian mining company that has earned one of the worst
environmental records in the industry. Submarine Tailings Disposal
would contradict a policy that has guided the agency for fourteen
years, subverting the goal of the Clean Water Act to eliminate
the discharge of wastes to the nation's waters by authorizing
a discharge that is now prohibited. The administration should
not change an industry wide standard for the benefit of one corporation
that cannot operate within the guidelines adopted cooperatively
between the industry and the federal government in 1982.
According to ACWA, a list of the negative
and highly unpredictable potential environmental impacts that
could result from the STD waste disposal process includes:
WHAT YOU CAN DO: The Alaska
Clean Water Alliance recently sent out an "Action Alert"
on the proposed rule and is looking for fishing and environmental
groups to sign onto another letter to President Clinton. The letter
will be sent to the President in early 1997.
For a Copy of the "Action Alert" and
For Further Information Contact: Alaska
Clean Water Alliance, Box 1441 Haines, Alaska, 99827 Ph: (907)
766-2296, Fax: (907) 766-2290, Email: acwa@igc.apc.org.
John Thomas, Washington State Advisor to the Pacific
States Marine Fisheries Commission, President and Founder of the
White Salmon Steelheaders, and Executive Marketing Director
of the Luhr Jensen company, passed away on August 13 at age 51.
John was active in the Condit Dam debate on Washington's White
Salmon River. In June of 1996, John received an award from the
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife for his "tremendous
contributions to the fisheries resources of Washington."
He will be missed.
In the September 1996 issue of the Habitat Hotline
we incorrectly listed the phone number to order the publication:
"The Northwest Salmon Crisis: A Documentary History."
The correct telephone number to order this publication is: (541)
737-3166.
To Order The Northwest Salmon Crisis: A Documentary
History, Call: Oregon State University Press. Cost:
$29.95 plus $2.50 shipping and handling for the first book (add
$.75 S&H for each additional copy). Make checks payable to
Oregon State University Press.
We apologize for any inconvenience this may have
caused.
In September 1996, the Pacific States Marine Fisheries
Commission's Habitat Education Program released a media packet
on salmon and their habitat. The media packet includes ten sample
articles, camera ready graphics and informational tables and sketches,
which can be reproduced.
The information is intended for public use. The articles
are provided in hard copy and on disk in Word, Word
Perfect and text format. They can be used intact or modified
as you wish with local information. Because of their common approach,
we envision that some publications such as sport and commercial
fishing magazines and newsletters, as well as other conservation
publications, might wish to run these articles as a series.
The packet also includes Getting Coverage: A Guide
to Working With the News Media. This document was recently
released by the group For the Sake of the Salmon.
An example of one of the graphics provided in the
information packet can be found below:
To Order the Media Packet Contact:
Liza Bauman or Teresa Fairchild of the PSMFC at (503) 650-5400.
The packet is FREE of charge.
***As we go to press, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
is about to make a decision regarding NATIONWIDE PERMITS
(See Habitat Hotline Number 28).
The Corps or a state with an approved wetlands program can issue
a "general" permit for specified categories of wetland
altering activities (discharge of dredge and fill material). Activities
conducted under a general permit need not obtain an
individual Section 404 permit as long as the general permit's
requirements and standards are complied with. There are 37 existing
nationwide permits. The Corps received over 3,700 comments on
the reissuance. Environmental groups claim the general permitting
system has resulted in significant adverse impacts to the nation's
wetlands.
Senator Frank Murkowski (R-Alaska) has said that
he will introduce an industry friendly MINING REFORM bill
in the next Congress to compete with a bill likely to be submitted
by Senator Dale Bumpers (D-Ark.).
On 11/04/96, Congress Daily, reported that the 105th Congress may become involved in developing new rules for the CONSERVATION RESERVE PROGRAM (CRP). Since 1985, the CRP has paid farmers to idle land to improve environmentally sensitive areas and reduce grain surpluses. The reason for possible Congressional action is that in September 1997, 27 million acres of CRP lands leases will expire. The reauthorization of last year's farm bill BANNED AUTOMATIC REENROLLMENT, and only allows reenrollment of "highly erodible" or "highly environmentally sensitive" lands. The fear by the Department of Agriculture is that they may have difficulty enrolling equivalent amounts of replacement land.
On 8/26/96, the Journal of Commerce reported
that the tank barge operator Maritrans Inc. is suing the
federal government for more than $200 million to recover losses
the company says it will incur due to enforcement of the 1990
OIL POLLUTION ACT. Maritrans argues that its 37 single-hull
tank barges will still be useful in 2003, when the vessels will
be forced out of service under double-hull requirements of the
1990 law. The company claims that the losses constitute a "takings"
of private property without compensation.
On 10/04/96, with passage of the Magnuson-Stevens
Act, the MARINE FISH CONSERVATION NETWORK closed its doors.
The group represented more than 100 diverse associations, including
groups representing conservation, recreational and commercial
fishing, diving, and scientific interests.
Because of an October 1996 Court of Appeals ruling,
the National Marine Fisheries Service will now have until August
of 1997 before having to make a final ENDANGERED Species
Act listing decision on STEELHEAD trout in California,
Washington, Oregon and Idaho.
On 09/27/96, The Oregonian reported that the
Army Corps of Engineers awarded a $7.6 million contract for construction
of FLOW DEFLECTORS (flip lips) at JOHN DAY DAM on
the Columbia River. Flow deflectors modify dam spillways to help
reduce the level of supersaturated nitrogen gas, thus improving
safety for juvenile salmon migrating downstream. Construction
is to be completed by mid-1998.
On 09/23/96, the Bi-State Steering Committee released
its final priority recommendations for the Lower COLUMBIA RIVER
BI-STATE WATER QUALITY PROGRAM. For a copy of the recommendations
contact Bill Young of the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality
at (503) 229-6766 or Helen Bresler of the Washington Department
of Ecology at (360) 407-6480. Further work on the Lower Columbia
Estuary will now be carried out by the LOWER COLUMBIA RIVER
ESTUARY PROGRAM. They are preparing a Comprehensive Conservation
Management Plan over the next three years. Their address is 811
S.W. Sixth Ave., Portland, Oregon 97204.
The release of the INTERIOR COLUMBIA RIVER BASIN
Ecosystem Management Project Draft Environmental Impact Statement
(DEIS) has been delayed by the Clinton Administration. When the
Project's Executive Steering Committee met with representatives
of EPA, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and the National Marine
Fisheries Service, there was a difference of opinion regarding
the extent to which the alternatives satisfy federal laws such
as the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, and the Endangered
Species Act. Concerns about implementation were also raised. The
Upper Columbia River Basin Ecosystem Management Project is part
of a 1993 Presidential directive to develop a scientifically sound,
ecosystem-based strategy for management of federal lands east
of the Cascades. The DEIS will provide management direction for
the subsequent amendment of numerous national forest plans and
BLM district resource management plans in the Interior and Upper
Columbia River Basin. The draft EIS will not be out until DECEMBER
1996 at the earliest. For Further Information Contact the
Upper Columbia River Basin EIS Project at (208) 334-1770.
A proposed dam in the Umpqua River Watershed's Elk
Creek Subbasin in southern Oregon has raised concerns because
of its potential impact on endangered searun cutthroat trout,
as well as the ESA candidate species coho salmon. The MILLTOWN
HILL PROJECT would create a 24,143 acre-foot reservoir in
Elk Creek and inundate 4-6 miles of spawning habitat. According
to its proponent (Douglas County), the project will fulfill a
portion of the existing and projected needs of urban and rural
water users. In an October 29, 1996 letter, the Western
Environmental Law Center (WELC), based out of Eugene Oregon, requested
that the National Marine Fisheries Service take action to stop
construction of the dam. The letter, signed by a coalition of
groups including the Pacific Rivers Council and American Rivers,
said: "These organizations and individuals are deeply concerned
that the biological information generated to date on the Milltown
dam does not reveal the realities of the dam's impact on fish
habitat, but rather reflects the influence of parties who have
an interest in promoting the Milltown dam." For Further Information
Contact WELC at (541) 485-2471.
On 11/12/96, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
released its Final Environmental Impact Statement on the Skokomish
River's CUSHMAN PROJECT. Since 1988, the project has released
flows of only 30 cfs to the North Fork of the river--or about
4 percent of the river's natural annual flow. Following the release
of the FEIS, Tacoma City Light, the project licensee, said (according
to the Tacoma News Tribune), that the project would be
shutdown if they were forced to comply with the terms of the FEIS.
However, according to Joseph Pavel, Tribal Spokesman of the Skokomish
Tribe, "Abandoning the Cushman Project and letting others
clean up the mess the city [of Tacoma] has made for the past 70
years is not a realistic option for the city. It simply won't
happen. Tacoma for nearly 70 years has operated the Cushman Project
with total disregard for the damage to the environment, the Skokomish
Tribe, and the general public. It is time to pay the piper."
Representative Norm Dicks (D-Wash.) is trying to resolve the battle
between Tacoma City Light, the tribes, and federal resource agencies.
However, there is a good chance that this issue will end up in
the courts.
On 11/13/96, the Final Environmental Impact Statement
for the ELWHA RIVER was released. Call Dr. Brian Winter
of Olympic National Park for Further Information at (360) 452-0302.
Signatures for Washington State's INITIATIVE 188,
the Marine Waters and Salmon Habitat Protection Initiative (see
Habitat Hotline Number 27)
are due by the end of December. For Further Information Contact
The Campaign for Marine Waters in Seattle at (206) 623-7527; Olympia
(360) 754-9177; Bellingham (360) 733-8307; or via Email at yes188@pugetsound.org,
or via Internet at http://www.pugetsound.org.
On 8/29/96, according to the Associated Press/Seattle
Daily Journal Of Commerce, WASHINGTON STATE and federal
officials released a plan to treat 56 million gallons of RADIOACTIVE
and toxic wastes stored in underground tanks at the HANFORD
nuclear reservation. Under the U.S. Department of Energy and Washington
Department of Ecology plan, one plant would separate the wastes
according to health and environmental risk, while another would
convert them into less volatile, glass-like logs through a process
called vitrification. The project would begin in 2001 and end
by 2028.
A group in GRAYS HARBOR County Washington
is attempting to stop the construction of the proposed Stafford
Creek prison. Concerns are that the prison will compromise water
quality in the Grays Harbor estuary. A group calling itself "Stop
the Proposed Prison" says that Grays Harbor is a shallow
estuary and cannot handle the additional pollution that will be
generated by the prison. One of the leaders of the prison
opposition is Brady Engvall, owner of Brady's Oysters. According
to Engvall, "The location that was chosen by the Department
of Corrections is absolutely the worst site in relation to the
total long term environmental impacts on the estuary." The
group is currently involved in fighting the wetlands permit for
the prison site. For Further Information Contact Brady Engvall
at (206) 268-0077.
On 11/18/96 the Journal of Commerce reported
that a U.S. District Court ruled that the state of Washington's
OIL SPILL PREVENTION STANDARDS, which are "more strict
than federal and international standards," are constitutionally
valid. The decision, by Judge John Coughenour, "marked a
major victory" for the Washington Office of Marine Safety
and environmental groups who defended the regulations against
a suit from the Norway-based International Association of Independent
Tanker Owners (Intertanko). Intertanko sued the state in 1995,
claiming its regulations for international oil tankers were unconstitutional
because they went "way beyond federal and international requirements."
On 09/13/96, according to the Associated Press,
a habitat restoration project being conducted by the Washington
Department of Fish and Wildlife accidentally released silt into
the TUCANNON RIVER, destroying at least one endangered
Snake River chinook salmon spawning bed and possibly damaging
others. In late September 1996, the Washington Department of Fish
and Wildlife asked that it be prosecuted in the Columbia County
District Court for the accident to demonstrate that they must
abide by the same strict standards to which others are held.
On 11/19/96, the Puget Sound Water Quality Action
Team unanimously adopted the 1997-1999 PUGET SOUND WATER QUALITY
WORK PLAN. The plan describes local, state and federal actions
necessary to protect the Sound's resources and water quality over
the next two years. The plan will have more detail added on expected
outcomes before being submitted the Washington Legislature on
December 20, 1996. For Further Information Contact Susanne Hindle
of the Action Team at (360) 407-7300.
In October, California Sea Grant reported that research
proposals were being evaluated for California's marine ECOLOGICAL
RESERVES RESEARCH PROGRAM. The approximately $1 million research
program focuses on marine enhancement and management. Research
may be conducted in any of the four coastal ecological reserves
established by the Marine Resources Protection Act in Humboldt,
Monterey, Santa Barbara, and Ventura Counties. Research will begin
in June 1997. For Further Information Contact California Sea Grant
at (619) 534-4444.
On 11/14/96, the San Diego Tribune reported
that California Coastal Commission delayed a decision on a request
by Southern California Edison to curtail a comprehensive marine
mitigation package including kelp REEF-BUILDING and wetlands
restoration. The decision has been put off until February of 1997.
On 8/27/96, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported
that the San Diego Baykeeper and the Natural Resources Defense
Council filed a lawsuit in federal court against a San Diego shipyard
for alleged pollution of the SAN DIEGO BAY. According to
NRDC, the suit marks the first court challenge in San Diego focusing
on ocean pollution from inadequate containment of storm-water
runoff. The shipyard, Southwest Marine, is San Diego's second
largest shipyard. The suit alleges that the shipyard allowed toxic
metals such as copper, lead and zinc and cancer-causing agents
such as tributyltin to drain from its ship repair yard into the
bay during rainstorms. Southwest Marine environmental compliance
consultant Dana Austin said the allegations were "without
foundation" and claimed that the shipyards were "recognized
as national leaders in environmental protection within the industry."
The lawsuit followed written notices issued by Baykeeper and NRDC
four months ago to San Diego's largest shipyards, including Campbell
Industries and National Steel & Shipbuilding Co., urging them
to comply more fully with pollution laws or face a citizen lawsuit.
On 1/9/97, the next meeting of the TRINITY RIVER
TASK FORCE's Technical Coordinating Committee will be take
place, either in Eureka or Arcata, location TBA. Greg Bryant from
the National Marine Fisheries Service will be present to discuss
how the Trinity River Restoration Program will deal with the potential
listing of coho salmon and steelhead under the federal Endangered
Species Act. An agenda will be posted prior to the meeting, along
with minutes of past meetings. For Further Information Contact
Tom Stokely Trinity County Natural Resources Division of the Planning
Dept. at (916) 628-5949.
On 10/25/96, the San Francisco Chronicle reported
that state wildlife officials, environmental groups and the Army
Corps of Engineers began converting a network of salt evaporation
ponds near Vallejo, California into a tidal marsh. The SONOMA
BAYLANDS PROJECT, which will restore eight salt ponds in San
Pablo Bay to tidal marshes, is expected to be completed by the
spring of 1997.
There were over 22,000 Comments on the TONGASS
LAND MANAGEMENT PLAN (See Habitat Hotline Number
27).
According to the U.S. Forest Service, a majority of the comments
expressed a desire to see streamside buffers expanded to protect
fisheries. A final Record of Decision is expected in late fall.
For Further Information Contact the U.S. Forest Service at (907)
586-8700.
On 09/06/96, according to the Associated Press,
Vice President Al Gore announced a $33 million agreement to protect
64,000 acres of privately-owned forest land in EASTERN PRINCE
WILLIAM SOUND (PWS), Alaska. The agreement, funded by the
Exxon Valdez settlement, will prohibit commercial timber harvest,
protect salmon and cutthroat trout habitat, and protect subsistence
fishing by members of the Tatitlek Native village corporation.
Editor's Recipe, Oyster
Rockefeller Casserole: Fresh oysters, size of your liking; 2 cups
chopped fresh spinach; 1/2 cup bread crumbs; 1/2 cup finely chopped
onion; 1/2 cup finely chopped celery; 2 cloves minced garlic;
2 Tbs. snipped parsley; Tabasco; heavy cream; Dijon mustard. Sauté
onion, parsley, celery and garlic in butter; add spinach and sauté
until greens just begin to wilt, mix in mixture of dijon, hot
sauce, heavy cream to taste. Fill baking dish one critter deep
with oysters, place sautéed vegetables on top and along
sides, cover with bread crumbs. Bake at 400 degrees until cooked
to your satisfaction (10~15 minutes).
JUNIOR EDITOR JOINS STAFF:
Olivia Josephine Phillips was born on September 8 at 7:45 PM weighing
in at 7 pounds 3 ounces. At 20 inches in length, under Oregon's
infant size regulation, she was immediately declared "a keeper."
The Staff of the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission Wishes
You A Peaceful Holiday Season!
EDITOR'S NOTE: We welcome
information on habitat news in your area. Information should pertain
to habitat of marine, estuarine, or anadromous fish or shellfish.
Feel free to fax us newspaper articles, copies of letters, public
hearing notices, etc., to (503) 650-5426. Funding for this publication
comes in part from Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration. If you
have any questions regarding the contents of this publication,
or about our habitat education program, please contact: Stephen
Phillips, Editor, Habitat Hotline, 45 SE 82nd Drive,
Suite 100, Gladstone, Oregon 97027-2522. Phone: (503) 650-5400,
Fax: (503) 650-5426. Messages can also be E-mailed at Stephen_Phillips@psmfc.org.
Layout by Liza Bauman (E-mail address: Liza_Bauman@psmfc.org).
Printed on 100% recycled sheet with minimum 50% post consumer
fiber. Date of Issue: 11/27/96.