Hatchery Scientific Review Group Press Conference
Remarks by Jeffrey Koenings, Ph.D., WDFW Director
April 23, 2004

I'd like to thank all of you for taking time to be here this afternoon.

In my opinion, today marks a clear change in direction. We are talking about the ingredients of a better future, not simply rehashing failed past practices featured in story and legend. We are talking about scientific conclusions based upon a 3-year intensive, on-the-ground review of state, tribal and federal hatcheries.

The bottom line message is clear: hatcheries have been, are, and will be a very important tool for fish management in Washington State. But for that future to occur there will be changes.

The successful implementation of these changes is important for two major reasons:

First, hatcheries provide the overwhelmingly number of fish harvested in our sustainable fisheries-fisheries that are hugely critical from both an economic and cultural standpoint.

Second, hatcheries are important - as we have come to increasingly realize over the years- as an integral tool in the recovery of our naturally spawning salmon stocks.

But just as times change, so does science. Technology - and the way we apply that technology - evolves as our knowledge expands. Hatchery technology in its broadest sense is no different, and today we benefiting from that new knowledge.

Several years ago, we boldly seized upon a unique opportunity in this state to risk charging a group of independent scientists to review salmon and steelhead hatchery operations in Puget Sound and along the coast.

The scientists were charged with employing the best science available to review hatchery operations and come up with specific recommendations on how the facilities might better fulfill their dual role of supporting sustainable fisheries and conserving naturally-spawning salmon and steelhead populations.

The scientists were also charged with evaluating how the hatcheries performed relative to their respective watersheds, in other words, how compatible they were in the ecosystems in which operated.

The scientists have accomplished their task.

Now it's up to my Department, along with our fisheries co-mangers, the tribes, to implement their work, and I know I can speak for both of us when I say we are committed to doing just that.

For anyone thinking that this is just another report that will be put on a shelf somewhere to gather dust, well, you would be mistaken.

As budgets generally set policy implementation, the state funded $8 million of hatchery reform projects recommended by the hatchery reform group, in the recently completed capital budget.

Capital dollars aside, the co-managers have already been implementing the recommendations of the independent scientists. At last count, about a third of their program-specific recommendations have been put in place. We know, because we have developed a new database to track our progress.

A few examples, we have eliminated Chinook salmon releases at three of our hatcheries (Coulter, McAllister and Fox Island) to better allow naturally spawning salmon populations to rebuild in their respective watersheds.

We have altered spawning and brood stock collection protocols at hatcheries to include natural origin adults at levels recommended by the independent scientists- a move that will help maintain the genetic integrity of local stocks.

We are designing new, state-of-the art pollution abatement treatment facilities for some of our hatcheries and new intake systems for others. The latter will meet new criteria developed by the independent scientists aimed at minimizing impacts to downstream migrating juvenile salmon.

We are also using the independent scientists' work to guide the co-managers as we draft a new, comprehensive, statewide steelhead management plan.

So, as you can see, change is happening now and it will continue to occur - just as changes are being implemented to meet harvest protection rules, and fish producing habitats are being protected and restored. So in a broader sense hatchery reform is contributing to salmon recovery. That recovery is happening, we are indeed making progress.

But none of the progress made thus far could have occurred without the support of Governor Locke, Congressman Dicks, state legislators, the tribes and many, many others.

We still have a big job before us but the road map is now set and the path to the future looks a lot clearer.

Again, thank you for coming.

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