Develop a Master Plan for a Rearing Facility to Enhance Selected Populations of White Sturgeon in the Columbia River Basin proposal 200715500

FY07-09 proposal 200715500

Section 1. Administrative

Proposal title	Develop a Master Plan for a Rearing Facility to Enhance Selected Populations of White Sturgeon in the Columbia River Basin
Proposal ID	200715500
Organization	Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission (CRITFC)
Short description	Develop a Master Plan to create a regional Columbia Basin rearing facility for the enhancement of selected white sturgeon populations in reservoirs upstream of Bonneville Dam and downstream of Grand Coulee and Granite dams.
Information transfer	The completed proposal (in the form of a Master Plan) would fund the completion of the Step 1 planning document necessary for a Artificial Production facility as required for Step 1 in the 3 Step Process for capital projects. This inititial document would then undergo additional reviews and refinement, as Steps 2 & 3, leading to a final design to go out for bid, after exhaustive reviews, to ensure that all details are completed for the final facitility.
Proposal contact person or principal investigator

Contacts

Contact	Organization	Email
Form submitter
Blaine Parker	Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission	parb@critfc.org
All assigned contacts
Blaine Parker	Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission	parb@critfc.org
Blaine Parker	Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission	parb@critfc.org

Section 2. Locations

Province / subbasin: Mainstem/Systemwide / Systemwide

Latitude	Longitude	Waterbody	Description
		Columbia River	Unknown at this time, to be determined as a component of the process. The facility will be located in either Oregon or Washington.

Section 3. Focal species

primary: White Sturgeon All Populations
Additional: This space is been used not for another focal species, but to specify that this proposal is to address white sturgeon populations upstream of Bonneville Dam and downstream of Grand Coulee and Lower Granite dams, on the Columbia and Snake rivers, respectively.

Section 4. Past accomplishments

Year	Accomplishments

Section 5. Relationships to other projects

Funding source	Related ID	Related title	Relationship
BPA	198605000	Evaluate Sturgeon Physical Hab	The proposed project is stongly linked to this project since supplementation of white sturgeon was a task element in Project 198605000 from 1999 through 2003. Research conducted during this period of time added greatly to the knowledge of white sturgeon culture for the mainstem Columbia River. An excellent cooperative opportunity for future M&E needs of this proposal exists by continued partnerships with Project 198605000. Their continuing efforts on monitoring of reservoir sturgeon populations in the mainstem reservoirs of the Columbia Gorge, Lower Middle Columbia and Lower Snake sub basins present a unique collabrative opportunity to share costs, expertise, and technical abilities to provide for the enhancement of white sturgeon throughout much of the Basin.
BPA	198806400	Kootenai R White Sturgeon	Project 198806400 as the first conservation white sturgeon hatchery will serve as a valuable source of expertise and information to the proposed project. Likewise, the proposed project at completion could provide unique research opportunities to Project 198806400 given the due to the conditional limitations from their ESA Recovery Plan.
BPA	199502700	Lake Roosevelt Sturgeon	The proposed project would complement current efforts by Project 199502700 by conducting similar restoration and enhancement efforts for white sturgeon in a different area of the Columbia Basin with different management goals and productivity levels.
BPA	199700900	Eval Sturgeon Pop - Snake R (L	This proposal could benefit Project 199700900 by stabilizing white sturgeon populations immediately downstream of Lower Granite Dam to the Snake River confluence with the Columbia. These restoration efforts would enhance the efforts of Project 199700900 to restore the viability of white sturgeon upstream to Hells Canyon Dam.
BPA	199902200	Assessing Genetics Columbia Ba	Genetic analyses from Project 199902200 will form the basis for much of the genetic and supplementation planning necessary to implement appropriate stocking regimes that will benefit wild populations genetically and numerically.

Section 6. Biological objectives

Biological objectives	Full description	Associated subbasin plan	Strategy
Increase population abundance	Increase abundance and productivity of white sturgeon in Lower Middle Columbia reservoirs to levels that can sustain reasonable harvest	Lower Middle Columbia	1) Releases of hatchery reared white sturgeon could be used to increase abundance and productivity in selected reservoirs. 2) Periodic monitoring by Project 198605000 used to provide periodic updates on status of supplemented populations.
Increase progress toward tribal restoration goals	Hatchery releases of white sturgeon to provide regular annual recruitment to rebuild sturgeon populations and associated tribal fisheries.	Lower Middle Columbia	Releases of hatchery reared white sturgeon to supplement abundance of wild sturgeon populations, thereby providing additional recruitment and and sustainability for tribal and sport harvest opportunties.
Increase progress toward tribal restoration goals	Hatchery releases to be considered if prolonged recruitment failures pose risks to population productivity	Columbia Gorge	Consider hatchery releases paired with periodic monitoring and evaluation as a tool to reverse populations due to prolonged recruitment failures.
Increase progress toward tribal restoration goals	Hatchery releases would enhance the abundance and productivity of white sturgeon downstream of Lower Granite Dam, thereby providing regular annual recruitment to rebuild populations and associated tribal fisheries.	Lower Snake	Supplementation of existing populations of white sturgeon in Lower Snake Subbasin reservoirs would provide potential new harvest opportunities for tribal fishers during the enhancement period of Project 199700900.
Reduce predation impact	Supplement white sturgeon populations in reservoirs where predation at early life stages limits population abundance and productivity	Lower Middle Columbia	Release of larger (>120mm) hatchery reared white sturgeon juveniles will increase population abundance formerly limited by predation at early life stages

Section 7. Work elements (coming back to this)

Work element name	Work element title	Description	Start date	End date	Est budget
Council 3-step Process: Step 1	Develop Master Plan Step 1	The development of the Master Plan and the completion of Steps 2&3 will lead to the construction of a rearing facility for white sturgeon. The completed facility will provide juvenile white sturgeon for release in selected reservoirs in the Columbia and Snake rivers to enhance existing white sturgeon populations. These releases will increase population abundance, provide additional fish for tribal and sport fisheries, and will provide recruitment to white sturgeon populations limited by egg and larval predation.	1/1/2007	12/31/2009	$435,218
Biological objectives Increase population abundance Increase progress toward tribal restoration goals Reduce predation impact			Metrics

Section 8. Budgets

Itemized estimated budget

Item	Note	FY07	FY08	FY09
Personnel	Biologist (TBD), salary adjusted annually for inflation at 3%	$58,154	$59,899	$61,696
Fringe Benefits	Rate at 0.32	$18,609	$19,168	$19,743
Supplies	included cell phone plan, adjusted annually for inflation at 3%	$720	$742	$764
Travel	For rental car (10 days/ $40/day), airfare (4 regional trips @ $210/trip), per diem (20 day/$40/day), lodging (15 nights/$60/night), mileage (5,000 miles/$0.34/mile) adj. annual @ 3%/yr for inflation	$4,640	$4,779	$4,923
Capital Equipment	not applicable	$0	$0	$0
Overhead	Estimated to be 0.36 of personnel,fringe,supplies, and travel	$29,564	$30,452	$31,365
Other	Fishery and Engineering Consultant(s)	$30,000	$30,000	$30,000
Totals		$141,687	$145,040	$148,491

Total estimated FY 2007-2009 budgets

Total itemized budget:	$435,218
Total work element budget:	$435,218

Cost sharing

Funding source/org	Item or service provided	FY 07 est value ($)	FY 08 est value ($)	FY 09 est value ($)	Cash or in-kind?	Status
Totals		$0	$0	$0

Section 9. Project future

FY 2010 estimated budget: $1,200,000
FY 2011 estimated budget: $1,200,000

Comments: FY 2010 expenses are for completion of Step 2 (Progress Review Phase) in the 3 Step Process. Expenses in FY 2011 are for the completion of Step 3 (Detailed/Final Phase) in the 3 Step Process.

Future O&M costs: Estimated O&M costs are somewhat difficult to judge at this time, but given my previous experience and discussions with qualified individuals, I estimate an annual O&M costs for the future facility to be between $300,000 to $500,000.

Termination date: 1/01/2012
Comments: The termination date reflects the effective operation date of the Columbia Basin White Sturgeon Conservation and Enhancment Hatchery. The completed Master Plan and its associated Steps 2 & 3 will be finished when the facility is completed..

Final deliverables: Completion of a Master Plan for the artificial production of white sturgeon in the Columbia Basin (downstream of Grand Coulee and Lower Granite dams, and upstream of Bonneville Dam).

Section 10. Narrative and other documents

Reviews and recommendations

FY07 budget	FY08 budget	FY09 budget	Total budget	Type	Category	Recommendation
NPCC FINAL FUNDING RECOMMENDATIONS (Oct 23, 2006) [full Council recs]
$0	$0	$0	$0	Expense	Basinwide	Do Not Fund
NPCC DRAFT FUNDING RECOMMENDATIONS (Sep 15, 2006) [full Council recs]
$0	$0	$0	$0		Basinwide

ISRP PRELIMINARY REVIEW (Jun 2, 2006)

Recommendation: Not fundable

NPCC comments: The technical and scientific background is overly general regarding the conditions for using artificial production to enhance white sturgeon in the middle sections of the Columbia River Basin. The discussion of white sturgeon culture provides sufficient evidence that production of hatchery fish can be successfully accomplished. It is less clear that the reservoirs and river reaches in question are suitable for growing sturgeon to augment a sport and commercial fishery. It is not clear from the background and other sections of the proposal whether this proposal is to provide a put-grow-and-take sport and commercial fishery, or to provide adults to "supplement" and "restore" a self-sustaining population. Justification for a broad-scale, conservation hatchery is not provided. The team preparing any future proposal should take into consideration the comments below about clarifying the goals, intent, and deleterious effects when developing their assessment. The proposal identifies that there was a tribal request in the 1994 Fish and Wildlife Program calling for a facility to supplement white sturgeon populations and that concerns were raised about disease, genetics, and biological risks. The proposal indicates that these have been addressed by projects 19860500 and 198806500. A statement is provided asserting that persistence of white sturgeon lies at the heart of the Fish and Wildlife Program's requirement to restore the Columbia River ecosystem. It is not clear however, whether the proposed action is to restore the sturgeon populations or restore sturgeon fisheries or both. These need to be resolved before the initial assessments guiding a Three-Step Review. The same issue is germane to the relationship to the NOAA Fisheries Biological Opinion - increase lamprey and sturgeon to self-sustaining levels within 25 years. It is not clear whether the proposal will contribute to establishing self-sustaining populations or supporting fisheries. The objective to increase population abundance of white sturgeon in the Lower Middle Columbia River is clear. The objective to reduce predation on sturgeon eggs and larvae in the Lower Middle Columbia subbasin is not at all clear. The scope of the benefits is not clear. There might be conservation benefits to the focal species, but that is not very likely to persist. There could be benefits to humans by sustaining a depleted fishery through artificial means. With other funded projects in the basin focusing on re-establishing natural reproduction, with a conservation hatchery as a temporary adjunct, it is not clear why the region should move toward wholesale artificial production of white sturgeon.

ISRP FINAL REVIEW (Aug 31, 2006)

Recommendation: Not fundable