The following site links and descriptions are to some of the most comprehensive Pacific Northwest regional fish policy information on the Web. Please send additions and corrections to webmaster@newsdata.com.
Alaska Department of Fish and Game: Check out what our northern neighbor feels about the Pacific Salmon Treaty or how it's dealing with a salmon glut by following legislative updates and press releases, along with in-season salmon harvests by area.
Bonneville Power Administration's Environment / Fish & Wildlife Group: This web site contains complete information on fish and wildlife prioritization proposals, the squawfish program , Kootenai white sturgeon, and the preliminary conclusions from the PATH process, where the region's modelers have been working together.
Columbia Basin Research (CBR): This is the home page for the University of Washington research facility that conducts studies of salmon migration on the Columbia River. It's a joint effort of two research groups through the UW's School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences.
The CBR page provides the umbrella for all the information these groups provide on the Web, which includes: DART (Data Access in Real Time) where information can be obtained on adult salmon passage, smolt indices, PIT-tag data, and river environment data. Options allow the user to select specific geographical locations, fish species, time periods and other selections; CRiSP (Columbia River Salmon Passage Model), which describes in detail fish movement, survival and the effects of river operations, calculating and displaying the influences of factors such as hatchery release dates, reservoir levels and water flow rates; and Inseason Forecasts of juvenile salmon migration produced by the RealTime Forecaster and the CRiSP model.
Also at the CBR site is an alphabetical list of more than 100 fish-related sites, information on the hydroelectric system, climate change, dissolved gas and relevant papers. Specific links are offered to other UW departments and directly affiliated entities such as the National Marine Fisheries Service. In addition, the DART page provides links to the US Army Corps of Engineers and the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission (see below). The CBR and DART pages are packed with well-organized information which is updated frequently.Fish Passage Center: The FPC keeps up-to-date information is available on the physical and biological conditions of salmon and steelhead migrating in the Snake and Columbia River basins during the migration season, including dissolved nitrogen gas saturation tables for mainstem dams and in-river sites, data on smolt monitoring for signs of gas bubble trauma, and smolt transportation schedules. The site contains juvenile salmon and steelhead passage index tables, with summaries of daily passage over the previous 14-day period. Also available are hatchery release schedules, and hydro System Operation Requests and the weekly posting of the FPC migration season reports.
For the Sake of Salmon: This organization was initiated last year by federal, state, local and tribal governments, private and public organizations and citizens, with the goal of protecting and restoring Northwest salmon to healthy sustainable populations. Its focus is habitat restoration and protection of healthy watersheds. It plans a bulletin board service, with information on watershed restoration activities and research. The site currently offers information on FSOS activities, watershed groups in Oregon, Washington and California, watershed-related conferences and seminars and publications (both print and Internet).
Idaho Department of Fish and Game: This site offers more than 2,000 published documents in its Fisheries Publications Library, utilizing a key word search by topic. Also available are the state's five-year plan for fisheries management, information on current research projects, hatchery activities and fishing reports. The site also offers the complete text of Gov. Phil Batt's Salmon and Steelhead Plan and the governor's draft bull trout plan. F&G commission meeting information, including dates and agendas, can also be accessed. Some of the files are formatted in Portable Document Format and require the Adobe Acrobat Reader to access. Users can download the free reader directly from this site.
Idaho Rivers United: IRU is an environmental group that focuses on preservation of Idaho's rivers and riparian areas, with an additional focus on salmon recovery. The group's home page is well-organized and information is easily accessed through numerous links. Available at the site are links to information pages on proposed Idaho hydro projects and dam relicensing processes, as well as river-related issues currently before the Idaho legislature. The home page also links to information pages on salmon recovery and river flow issues. Links to Northwest environmental and fish advocate groups are also available.
The Native Fish Society: This fish advocate group calls itself "an advocate for the conservation, protection and restoration of native fishes in the Northwest." In addition to information on efforts to conserve wild fish, the website offers links to several agencies and groups working in fish recovery. It also offers a guest book, which allows the user direct input into the design and direction of the website.
Northwest Fisheries Science Center: This research arm of the National Marine Fisheries Service provides information to support NMFS in anadromous fish management. Also available is a list of publications produced by NWFSC researchers, although most were not available as hot text. These pages are searchable.
Northwest Power Planning Council: The Council's home page reflects all aspects of their mandate to ensure the region has both a reliable power system and protected enhanced fish and wildlife populations. Press releases, issue papers, and important documents may be downloaded, such as the Independent Scientific Advisory Board's salmon report, Return to the River. An upcoming feature will let you download a software program that gives you an idea of what it takes to run the hydro system in a fish-friendly way.
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW): The home page offers links to ODFW initiatives such as the coastal salmon restoration plan and the 1995 report on the status of wild fish in the state. The latter document can be accessed by chapter, allowing the user to click directly to the specie of interest. A gopher page offers access to numerous reports and publications. A separate page lists reports on research projects performed by department scientists. The complete text of all volumes of the agency newsletter, News and Views is available, offering articles on a wide variety of fish and wildlife research and issues. For those with sound capabilities, the site even offers the weekly radio report, including archived reports. Finally, the page links to the Northwest Environmental Database, allowing the user to view data on fish, wildlife and habitat, by specific river basin or geographic area.
Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission (PSMFC): Representing Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Alaska and California, the PSMFC has no regulatory authority, but serves as a discussion forum in fisheries management and conservation. They have developed a coordinated information system called StreamNet that compiles data related to Pacific Northwest aquatic resources for use in the region's Fish and Wildlife Program, ESA, and related activities. A new feature is an online database that allows the user to create custom requests for data related to anadromous fish production. Under construction is a map library and interactive GIS capability, an education feature that targets a lay audience.
Save Our Wild Salmon: Save Our Wild Salmon is a coalition of 44 salmon advocacy and commercial fisher groups, "working to restore the declining numbers of wild salmon in the as well as the complete text of the group's proposed recovery plan. The site also offers e-mail access to several members of the Northwest Congressional delegation and to Northwest governors.
US Army Corps of Engineers, Northwestern Division: From the North Pacific Division home page. For current data on flows and reservoir status, go to "Water Management Division." The Portland District provides access to historic fish passage data at all federal hydro projects on the Columbia. The Walla Walla District offers a wealth of information on the Corps' activities, including documents the Corps will use to help plan the future of Snake River dams, like the Lower Snake River Juvenile Salmon Migration Feasibility Study, and their own Interim Status Report. The site also contains information on dissolved gas that is updated hourly (April 1-Sept. 1) and reports on gas abatement study.
US Army Corps of Engineers: Technical Management Team: you can read meeting minutes of the TMT, the group of river managers that meets weekly to plan hydro system operations to benefit fish, check out their online discussion forum of issues under discussion, or access fish passage information, water management data and gas supersaturation, The page contains agendas and minutes of the weekly Wednesday sessions, as well as decisions on project operational parameters.
US Fish and Wildlife Service, Region 1: General information on endangered species is available here, as is the complete text of the Endangered Species Act. On the Endangered Species Page is a link to a complete list of species protected under the ESA, including anadromous fish. Within the list, individual species are linked, for detailed profiles of status and listing process. These pages are searchable.
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife: The state's website includes current information on the Fish and Wildlife Commission and up-to-date news releases
