Fall Fact Sheet No. 1 & Compact Action
July 29th, 2010
The Columbia River Compact convened for a face-to-face meeting in the River Room at 25 River Street in Cathlamet, Washington at 10:00 a.m. Thursday, July 29, 2010 to consider recreational sturgeon fisheries below Wauna, and non-Indian commercial fisheries in the Columbia River main stem and the off-channel fisheries in the Select Area Fisheries Enhancement program.
The pre-season forecast for all fall Chinook stocks in the aggregate is significantly larger than returns in 2009, as well as greater than the 10-year average. Fall Chinook stocks comprise both upriver and lower river stocks, as well as tule fall Chinooks and bright fall Chinook stocks. Fishery managers refer to these different run components by acronyms, which are outlined in the table on page 1 labeled “Stock Status.”
The preseason forecast for summer steelhead is less that last year’s return, but greater than the 10-year average. Retention of incidental catch of steelhead by the non-Indian commercial fishery has been prohibited since 1975.
The pre-season forecast for coho salmon is only about 40% of last year’s return, and 52% of the 10-year average. The vast majority of lower Columbia River (LCR) coho production resides in the hatchery system. LCR “natural” coho were listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act in 2005. Fisheries for hatchery coho have been constrained by potential impacts to natually spawning coho since that time.
Fall Fact Sheet No. 1 and the subsequent Compact Action Notice are appended as PDF files.
