105 



Hatcheries were ueually not sited or sized to make up for a specified amount 

 of local habitat damage, nor to restore populations to a particular level. 

 Only in the last two decades have such concepts begun to be accepted. Rather, 

 hatcheries were expected to increase total catch as much as possible. In that 

 sense, coho and steelhead efforts were successful throughout the Basin, and 

 fall Chinook were successful on the Humptulips. Chum enhancement has not 

 noticeably increased catch anywhere in the system and has been discontinued 

 (Dick Stone, WDF, pers. comm.). Sea-run cutthroat releases have been 

 extensive but never evaluated (Jay Hunter, WDW, pers. comm.). 



Some believe hatcheries pose a danger to natural fish production unless the 

 program is carefully designed and managed (Oregon Trout 1990; Hilborn 1992). 

 Investment in a hatchery leads to demand for efficient harvest of hatchery 

 fish, which may overhirveit intermingled wild fish (Bakke 1987), unless the 

 hatchery program provides for harvest at a separate time or place. 

 Importation of an exotic hatchery stock, or artificial selection for favorable 

 hatchery traits using a native stock, may decrease fitness of natural spawners 

 if these cross with hatchery-reared strays (Hindar et al. 1987). Hatchery 

 fish released at an improper time, place, size, or number can competitively 

 displace naturally produced fish (Solazzi et al. 1990). Finally, hatcheries 

 may serve as incubators of disease and magnify their effect on wild fish 

 (Goodman 1990). Proper management can reduce or avoid most of these effects, 

 but the general theme of recent research is that every existing or proposed 

 hatchery should have specific goals, safeguards, and evaluation for 

 compatibility with the native stock with which it shares a gene pool. 



HATCHERY FISH PRODUCTION 



Percent hatchery flBh 



There M probably •one Entiled atimmrr iteclbead uuil reproduction but the amount ■ undetermined. 

 Tbereu come contribution from cooperative rearing projecu but it ii presently uoooantificd. 

 Data eot available. 



Table 14. Hatchery contributions to Chehalis Basin anadromous salmonid runs 

 (WDF and WDW unpublished data; QFiD and WDW 1990). 



48 



