85 



Colonel BOHN. Given the alternative, the installation of the dams 

 has certainly made it more difficult for the salmon to move up and 

 down through the river. 



Senator Kempthorne. Are you familiar with our efforts toward 

 the development of a fish friendly turbine? 



Colonel BoHN. Yes, I am, sir. 



Senator Kempthorne. We received the appropriation this year 

 and Mr. Stelle, are you supportive of that effort? 



Mr. Stelle. Yes, sir. I think that holds some promise. I think we 

 should all get aggressive and creative in our efforts to make modi- 

 fications to the dams, the surface collection, some of the passages 

 around these dams. 



Colonel BOHN. Mr. Chairman, we're currently addressing every 

 possible way to streamline our processes and move out more quick- 

 ly, move through the study phases, move through the prototype 

 phases, and move on to the full scale implementation of as many 

 good ideas as we can come up with. 



Senator KEMPTHORNE. I appreciate that. Colonel. 



Mr. Stelle, finally, do you see why a lot of folks are very con- 

 cerned with the decision on spill when we look at the results of the 

 1994 spill, which were just a few weeks after the spill began, was 

 stopped because the fish were dying from it; you had a 100-percent 

 sample of the gas bubble trauma; the monitoring of that was put 

 in after the fact; we've had professionals from the National Marine 

 Fisheries Service state that in hindsight, they would have done it 

 differently, in hindsight, we would have done peer review before 

 the act. 



Now, in 1995, based upon that record of 1994, you still are doing 

 an aggressive spill progrcim and yet the monitoring, we have sci- 

 entists who say that we don't believe the monitoring is going to be 

 as accurate because we're not using the same methodology that 

 was used in 1994. Do you see why we are very bothered by this? 



Mr. Stelle. Senator, yes, I do. I think the execution of the 1994 

 program was not adequate and I don't think there's any question 

 about that. I think the design and execution of the monitoring pro- 

 gram last year was also not adequate. It was precisely because of 

 that that the Service, in combination with the other entities within 

 the region, has put a hell of a lot of effort into developing a bio- 

 logically sound and reliable monitoring program to accompany this 

 year's spill program. When all is said and done, I frankly think 

 that this monitoring program is solid and is reliable. 



Is it perfect? No, I don't think it's perfect, sir, and we're prepared 

 to make some adjustments in it, but I think, on the whole, it's very 

 solid. 



Senator Kempthorne. I appreciate that but I don't understand 

 when a particular methodology was used last year which yielded 

 scientific evidence, as pointed out by Dr. Schiewe, with 90X, you 

 saw things, and at lOX, you don't see as much; why don't you stay 

 with 90X? I don't understand. Too, I just think there is a real situ- 

 ation here that NMFS may be overextended, and I think that some 

 of the science that has oeen recommended, I'm concerned if it 

 doesn't fit with the policy path that you want to follow, then those 

 scientists, it's not convenient to have them back. 



