drawdown ranged from 2 6 to 54 feet and averaged 35 feet. In 

 1961, Noxon Rapids Reservoir was integrated into the 

 Northwest Power Pool under terms of the Northwest Power 

 Coordination Agreement. Deep, spring season drawdowns were 

 in response to calls for power from the Bonneville Power 

 Administration or other utilities. The spring drawdowns also 

 created up to 230,000 AF of storage space for flood control. 



Initial fisheries management efforts to establish a 

 viable fishery in Noxon Rapids Reservoir were mostly 

 unsuccessful. Chemical treatment to remove unwanted rough 

 fish followed by planting rainbow trout fingerlings produced 

 an excellent fishery for a brief period when the river was 

 first impounded. Subsequent fish plantings have included 

 brown trout (690,000 fry), kokanee salmon (1,000,000 fry), 

 westslope cutthroat trout (926,000 fingerlings), burbot (420 

 adults), and rainbow trout (200,000 fingerlings). These 

 plants have been unsuccessful. 



Fish populations noticeably increased from 1980 to 1985. 

 During this period, Noxon Rapids Reservoir drawdowns were 

 within a maximum of 12 feet. Increased numbers of game fish 

 and forage fish during this period are believed to be a 

 result of the relatively more stable reservoir conditions. 

 In 1982 and 1983, smallmouth bass were planted in the 

 reservoir, and by 1984, the fish were being caught by 

 anglers. At the same time, the numbers of largemouth bass 

 were also increasing. 



A new reservoir operation plan that reduces the extent 

 and frequency of drawdowns was initiated in 1986 following a 

 meeting of the Washington Water Power Company, the Northwest 

 Power Planning Council, and the DFWP. In 1985, the DFWP and 

 WWP began a three-year pilot fisheries development program. 

 Hundreds of thousands of brown trout eggs and fingerlings 

 and over 2,000 adult burbot have been planted in the 

 reservoirs. The program was recently extended through 1989 

 and expanded to include enhancements for bass. 



The fish populations of both Noxon Rapids and Cabinet 

 Gorge reservoirs have been periodically sampled with gill 

 nets since 1958. The results indicate a shift in species 

 composition, probably as a response to the more stable water 

 levels in the 1980s. Mountain whitefish, rainbow trout, and 

 bull trout are substantially reduced in Cabinet Gorge, while 

 the numbers of largemouth bass, brown trout, and yellow 

 perch have increased. Surveys also indicate increased 

 numbers of brown trout are spawning in the Bull River, a 

 tributary to Cabinet Gorge Reservoir. 



Fish population samples from Noxon Rapids Reservoir 

 indicate fairly stable populations from 1960 through 1982, 



2-37 



