May 2006 Issue

Council Adopts Standard to Ensure Future Energy Supplies for the Northwest

At its meeting in Walla Walla, the Council adopted the region's first energy standard designed to ensure an adequate energy supply for the Pacific Northwest. The new standard is expected to be incorporated into the westwide electricity reliability assessments required in the national energy legislation enacted by Congress. "The standard will raise a red flag to alert the region when we are at risk of running short of electricity," said Council Chair Tom Karier. "If such a standard had been in place in the mid-1990s, we would have had time to avert the 2000-2001 energy crisis."

Council Recommends Construction of Hatchery for Threatened Chinook Salmon

The Council authorized the construction of a $16.4 million fish hatchery in Northeastern Oregon to improve the production of spring Chinook salmon in the Imnaha and Grande Ronde rivers. The Council's approval is contingent upon the Bonneville Power Administration's confirmation that the hatchery will receive an appropriate amount of credit in the biological opinion and that it is consistent with NOAA Fisheries' recovery goals. Restoring the fish in the Grande Ronde River Basin is part of a larger, long-term planning effort by state and federal fishery managers for Snake River salmon and steelhead. The new facilities will augment the Lookingglass Hatchery operated by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. The Nez Perce Tribe is the sponsor of the Northeast Oregon Hatchery. Its partners include the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Update on 2006 Spring Chinook Salmon Run

Robin Ehlke and Dick Stone, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, presented the latest information on this spring's Chinook salmon run (180k PDF). After a slow start to the season's run, the number of fish counted at Bonneville Dam has grown, and fishery managers predict an in-season forecast of between 65,000 - 88,400 fish. Ehlke noted that the fisheries were managed conservatively, with a 25 percent buffer on the allowable ESA impact to upriver spring Chinook salmon. Due to the early low run numbers, the commercial fishery closed on March 16 and the lower river sport fishery closed on April 14. The treaty Indian fishery is currently ongoing.