• Manage liar\est to ensure the risk 

 of imprecision and error in pre- 

 dicted run size does not threaten 

 the survival and recovery of natu- 

 rally spawning populations. 



• Monitor inriver and ocean fisher- 

 ies and routinely estimate stock 

 composition and stock-specific 

 abundance, escapement, catch, 

 and age distribution. F.xpand 

 monitormg programs as neces- 

 sary to reduce critical uncertain- 

 ties. Manage data so that it can 

 be easily integrated and readily 

 available in real time. 



• Manage harvest consistent with 

 the protection and recovery of 

 naturally spawning populations. 



• Biennially, solicit scientific peer 

 review of harvest management 

 plans and analyses, stalling in 

 January 2002. 



6. Hvdrosystem Passage and 

 Operations 



Primary strategy: Provide condi- 

 tions within the hydrosystem for 

 adult and juvenile fish that most 

 closely approximate the natural 

 physical and biological conditions, 

 provide adequate levels of survival 

 to support fish population recovery 

 based in subbasin plans, support 

 expression of life histoiy diversity, 

 and assure that flow and spill opera- 

 tions are optimized to produce the 

 greatest biological benefits with the 

 least adverse effects on resident 

 fish while assuring an adequate, 

 efficient, economical, and reliable 

 power supply. 



The development and operation of the 

 hydrosystem has major impacts on fish. 



These impacts are not restricted 

 to anadromous fish. White sturgeon 

 spau ning depends on certain patterns 

 of spring flow; trout and other 

 species migrate between resenoirs 

 and adjoining streams and are afTected 

 by reservoir levels. High rates of dis- 

 charge from a reservoir may reduce 

 the food supply available to fish in that 



"The Council i 



enact a n „.„m 



C' in 



containing nneasures for 



the hydrosysiL . „^ 



October 2001 in a 



subsequent phase of 



this program. " 



reservoir and even entrain those fish, 

 sending them downstream. Even fish 

 living in free-flowing stretches below 

 reseiA-oirs can be strongly impacted 

 by sudden changes in river elevation 

 or water temperature resulting from 

 operation of the upstream project. 

 Wildlife are also affected by 

 the development and operation of 

 hydroelectric projects. In particular, 

 reservoir levels greatly affect the 



I Major Impacts of the 

 Hydrosystem on Fish: 



1 . The dams thcmseK es are barriers to 

 upstream and downstream migration. 



[ 2. The dams, and the reservoirs behind 

 I them, reduce the velocity of tiic 



river, affecting juvenile and adult 



migration speed. 



3. The storage, release, and impound- 

 ment of water changes the pattern 

 of water flows and water tempera- 

 tures above, through and helow the 

 hydroelectric dams and changes the 

 charaetcri.stics of the estuai'y. 



4. The resei"\'oirs eliminate spawning 

 and rearing areas in the mainslem 

 by uiereasing the river depth, 

 decreasing water velocity, and 

 retaining sediments. 



5. Changes in reservoir elevation 

 afTeet the access offish to adjoining 

 streams, and aflect the availability of 

 I'ood for lisli jiviiis; in the reservoirs. 



I L 



trees, shrubs, and grasses that would 

 nonnally grow at the water's edge 

 and provide wildlife nesting and 

 feeding habitat. 



All of these impacts are basically 

 habitat issues. The strategies iden- 

 tified earlier in the habitat section 

 are applicable here as well, and sev- 

 eral of the strategies in this section 

 are simply specialized applications of 

 those in the habitat section. 



The Council recognizes that the 

 National Marine Fisheries Service 

 and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 

 acting under the authority of the 

 Endangered Species Act, will be pre- 

 scribing detailed conditions for the 

 improvement and operation of the 

 hydrosystem through the issuance of 

 biological opinions. These condi- 

 tions focus on the needs of listed spe- 

 cies, especially migration and pas- 

 sage needs. 



The Council plans to enact a 

 mainstem coordination plan contain- 

 ing measures for the hydrosystem by 

 October 200 1 in a subsequent phase 

 of this program. The puipose of these 

 measures will be to recommend ways 

 in which the hydrosystem operations 

 called for in the biological opinions 

 could be adjusted, so as to assure 

 that those operations meet the needs 

 of ESA-Iisted stocks and the dictates 

 of the Northwest Power Act. The 

 hydrosystem measures will also pro- 

 vide necessary guidance to the Coun- 

 cil's subbasin planning process. 



Until October 2001", when the 

 Council plans to have these hydrosys- 

 tem measures developed, the Council 

 recommends that Bonneville, the 

 Bureau of Reclamation, the U.S. 

 Anny Corps of Engineers, and other 

 operating agencies not mov e fonv aid 

 with prev iously called-for but unim- 

 plemented measures in Sections 5 and 

 6 of the 1994-1995 Fish and Wildlife 

 Program (Council document 94-55) 

 relating to hydrosystem operations, 

 including specific flow augmentation 

 measures, except to the extent the 

 measures are fully consistent with the 

 hydrosystem strategies outlined in this 

 Phase One program. 



The Power Act requires the Coun- 

 I cil, in this program, to adopt mea- 



2000 COLUM 



Fish and Wild 



25 



