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Environmen'tal Impact Statement: (EIS) should be completed for the 

 region's hatcheries. 



TU believes that the best way to evaluate the true environmental 

 costs and cost-effectiveness of the region's state, federal, and 

 tribal hatcheries is to follow EIS procedures of the National 

 Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) , or something analagous to an 

 EIS, to assess these operations. Such a process would ensure a 

 common understanding of the best available data on these critical 

 questions, consider a range of alternatives to the status quo 

 based on the best available data, and then lead to modifications 

 to hatchery operations to minimize risk and improve cost- 

 effectiveness. TU recently has taken the initial steps of legal 

 action in California to compel the state fisheries agency to do 

 just this (comply with the state NEPA law) for its state hatchery 

 operation. 



Another major benefit of the EIS process would be substantial 

 public involvement in overseeing management decisions involving 

 hatcheries. TU strongly believes that sport and commercial 

 fishermen and the public need to be made aware of the costs and 

 risks associated with hatchery operation, and should have full 

 opportunity to "just say no" if they don't believe the costs and 

 risks are worth the high expense of operating and maintaining 

 hatcheries . 



To ensure that standardized procedures are followed, we recommend 

 that the Secretary of the Interior, through the Director of the 

 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, be charged with conducting such 

 an NEPA/EIS evaluation. This process should be conducted and 

 completed as quickly as possible so as to help guide recovery 

 efforts of federally listed stocks as well as other regional 

 stocks in decline. 



