2.3 THE CEDAR RIVER 



In 1972, steelhead anglers caught 278,927 steelhead in the State of 

 Washington rivers; 1,224 of these seagoing trout were caught in the Cedar 

 River. This does not seem like a lot of fish, however, to these fish add the 

 5,000 to 15,000 Chinook, 30,000 to 150,000 coho, and 50,000 to 200,000 sockeye 

 salmon that are produced in the Lake Washington system, of which the Cedar 

 River is a part. All of these fish depend on the Cedar River either for 

 spawning waters or for fresh water inflow to the lake during rearing. It is 

 estimated that the fishery in the Lake Washington-Cedar River system, with no 

 artificial propagation, could easily produce in excess of two million fish 

 annually (Beckett and Lamb 1975). 



The importance of the fishery can be appreciated when one considers the 

 following facts. Lake Washington is surrounded by the City of Seattle and its 

 suburbs. Accessible portions of the Cedar River are within a few minutes' 

 drive of metropolitan Seattle. The lake is commercially fished and the Cedar 

 River receives heavy recreational use. In addition to supporting these values, 

 the waters of the Cedar River provide an important water supply; the City of 

 Seattle draws 70 percent of its water from the Cedar River. The city owns 81 

 percent of the Cedar River watershed; pipes from the point of diversion travel 

 only 30 miles to the city limits. 



In the State of Washington, the Department of Ecology (DOE) is authorized 

 by statute to establish minimum or base flows by administrative procedure 

 after public hearing. In such a situation, the Department of Ecology becomes 

 the arbitrator among the agencies representing various uses of the stream. 

 Under Chapter 90.22 of the Revised Code of Washington, the State Fisheries or 

 Game Department, among others, can initiate administrative action by requesting 

 certain minimum flows for a stream system (Beckett and Lamb 1976). 



The procedure to establish administrative policy regarding the Cedar 

 River was initiated by the State Department of Fisheries on August 5, 1959. 

 The department requested that the Department of Ecology set minimum flows to 

 protect fisheries resources. The Department of Fisheries recommended certain 

 minimum flows in a chronological regime — that is, minimum flow requirements 

 were recommended for different conditions and times of the year — and indicated 

 that the Department of Game and the Water Pollution Control Commission (now 

 part of the Department of Ecology) concurred in these recommendations. 



Between August 5, 1959, and February 5, 1970, both the Department of 

 Fisheries and the Department of Game revised their requests on the basis of 

 further analysis. At a hearing on May 22, 1970, the Department of Game 

 requested an additional modification of its recommendation. Several agency 

 representatives testified at the hearing, including the Department of Fish- 

 eries, the Department of Game, the Department of Water Resources, the City of 

 Seattle, the Municipality of Metropolitan Seattle (METRO), the Puget Sound 

 Gillnet Association, and the Puget Sound Governmental Conference (now known as 

 the Puget Sound Council of Governments). Additional statements were received 

 from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Corps of Engineers. 



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