infeasible, biologically imprudent or 

 inconsistent with the Northwest Power Act. 



■ Provide additional water storage and 

 improve water-use efficiency in the Snake 

 River Basin through water leases, use of 

 uncontracted storage space and other 

 measures. 



■ Review analyses and refine strategies to 

 nieet rebuilding targets. 



■ Secure options on power-generating 

 resources that could reduce the load on 

 hydroelectric dams, thereby ensuring greater 

 flows for fish. 



■ Investigate other water-saving measures to 

 help ease the demand for hydroelectricity. 



■ Coordinate river flow and temperature 

 measures through the Council's Fish Opera- 

 tions Executive Committee, which includes 

 policy-level representatives of the affected 

 state and federal agencies and Indian tribes. 



■ Research and conduct an amendment 

 proceeding on the relationship between 

 increased flows, increased water velocity and 

 salmon survival. 



■ Conduct a review of studies and select best 

 actions to further improve mainstem survival. 



Screen dams and spill water to 

 protect juvenile fish 



Immediate actions 



■ Improve and/or install screens to divert 

 juvenile fish away from turbines at Snake and 

 Columbia river dams. 



■ Spill water at dams to aid juvenile salmon 

 migration until adequate turbine screens are in 

 place. 



Intermediate actions 



■ Evaluate, design and test extended-length 

 screens at Snake and Columbia dams. 



■ Continue working on fish passage 

 improvements at Bonneville Dam. 



■ Improve screening and bypass for both 

 juvenile and adult fish at the Leaburg and 

 Walterville hydroelectric projects in the 

 Willamette River Basin. Similar actions are 

 called for at the mid-Columbia public utility 

 district dams. 



Reduce losses to predators 



■ As an experiment, reduce the population of 

 squawfish, a salmon predator, by 20 percent in 

 the Columbia River. 



■ Evaluate and report on predation of salmon 

 by seals and sea lions in the lower Columbia 

 River. _ ' ■ 



Barge juvenile fish past dams 



Immediate actions 



■ Accelerate improvements in barge 

 transportation of juvenile salmon past Snake ■ 

 and Columbia dams, including use of cooler 

 water, reduced densities of fish in barges and 

 broader dispersion of the fish at release sites. 



Intermediate actions 



■ Study improved fish holding and loading 

 facilities, alternative fish collection sites and , 

 alternative transportation technologies. 



Additional river actions 



■ Conduct water availability studies. Establish 

 minimum instream flow levels. Deny new water 

 appropriations that would harm fish. And 

 acquire existing water rights on a "willing- 

 seller" basis to improve fish flows. 



■ Enforce water rights and withdrawal limits 

 atdiversions, including measuring devices. 



■ Seek mitigation for lower water levels 

 behind Dworshak Dam. 



■ Install juvenile PIT tag detectors at 

 mainstem dams to better track migrating fish. 



■ Evaluate impacts of flow operations on 

 resident fish at Hungry Horse, Libby, Grand 

 Coulee and Dworshak dams. 



■ Study gas supersaturation resulting from 

 increased flows. 



■ Evaluate modifications to bypass release 

 systems at dams to reduce juvenile mortality 

 and use of underwater sound systems to guide 

 fish away from turbines. 



■ Report on the extent of predation and 

 predator research in the mid-Columbia 

 reservoirs. 



■ Evaluate feasibility of using video-based j 

 counting of adult fish passing dams. Institute 

 iffeasible. 



43 



