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Three years ago at the salmon summit we discussed the issue of 

 hatcheries, and at that time it was agreed that this issue required 

 careful review. 



Well, I am here today to Bay that there is still plenty of 

 room for improvement. The problems we have faced for decades still 

 exist today; hatchery production increases while irreplaceable wild 

 stocks are dwindling. And still there is no central agenda to 

 coordinate government policy to address these demands. 



For too long many in our region have viewed artificial 

 propagation --hatcheries-- as the end-all solution to declining 

 salmon and stealhead populations. Eatcheries have been used as a 

 means of staying one step ahead of ecological degradation. 



It has been known throughout the last several decades that 

 maintaining wild populations is important to the long-term survival 

 of a species. 



The release of large numbers of hatchery- raised fish 

 genetically distinct from wild stocks combined with the impacts of 

 mixed- stock fisheries adversely affects the genetic integrity and 

 ecological diversity of natural populations. The result is the 

 decline of the wild populations, and the eventual decline of the 

 species. 



This is not to say that hatcheries can not and will not play 

 a productive role in the restoration of salmon and stealhead 

 populations. However, there needs to be close management of the 

 hatchery system to ensure its environmental sensitivity. 



One thing appears certain. There is a lack of one central 

 hatchery management agenda, and as a consequence government 

 hatchery productions are uncoordinated, and often ineffective. 

 Currently, federal hatchery management policies are different from 

 state policies and state hatchery policies differ from those 

 practiced in other states and so on. 



One example of this is that some hatcheries produce coho which 

 return to the river at the same time as the endangered Snake River 

 fall chinook. Unknowingly, recreational and commercial fishermen 

 catch the endangered fall chinook, while fishing for the coho. As 

 a result, endangered fish are needlessly and unknowingly killed. 



Another example is that some hatcheries release large numbers 

 of stealhead trout at a time when they can prey on endangered 

 chinook smolt . This also contributes to the decline of the 

 species. 



There are projects underway, such as the Integrated Hatchery 

 Operation Team (IHOT) , which 1b working to create an agenda to 

 coordinate hatchery management in the Columbia River Basin. 

 Unfortunately, because the coordination of government hatchery 

 policy has not been established as a priority this program has 



