PIT Technology and Hatchery MitigationJ. Murauskas and J. Miller 1

Use of PIT technology to improve hatchery mitigation in the Columbia

Presented by

Josh Murauskas and Joe MillerJanuary 27, 2015

PIT Technology and Hatchery MitigationJ. Murauskas and J. Miller 2

• Over 130 facilities

• Outdated agreements

Columbia R. Hatcheries

Columbia R. Chinook hatchery releases (from Levin et al. 2001)

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The Concept of Salmon Mitigation

Pre-project Unavoidable loss Mitigation Post-project

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• Juvenile survival = 93%

• Returns = 46,500 wild fish

– Shortage of 3,500 adults

• Hatchery SAR = 0.5%

• 700,000 smolts to mitigate loss

Example Mitigation Calculation using PITs

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Example Baseline Estimates

Nego-tiated

SARs Carrying capacity

Egg-smolt Smolt trap pHOS -

2,000,000

4,000,000

6,000,000

8,000,000

10,000,000

12,000,000

14,000,000

16,000,000

Spring Chinook

Steelhead

An

nu

al sm

olt

pro

du

cti

on

6

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What is Fish Performance?

• Juvenile survival

• Smolt-to-adult returns

• Age structure

– All estimable with PITs

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Example Comparison of Programs

• 700,000 smolts

• 0.5% SAR

• 20% Age 3 returns

• 2,800 Age 4+ adults

• 400,000 smolts

• 1.3% SAR

• 10% Age 3 Returns

• 4,680 Age 4+ adults

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Age Structure (Chelan River, BY 2008)

n = 107 n = 175

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Reminder of PIT Infrastructure

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• Reduced phenotypic discrepancies with wild fish

• Minimized hatchery footprint

• Maximize value of dollar invested

• Improved nurture to meet nature’s design

Incentive-based Hatchery Programs

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• Mitigation should involve calculation of:

– The size of the pie

– How best to replace your piece

• By improving mitigation strategies, we can

enhance harvest and conservation programs

• Our PIT infrastructure a great backbone

Summary

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Questions?jmurauskas@anchorqea.com