GCPUD Press Release

Salmon Protection Flows Set in Mid-Columbia River

December 04, 2006

EPHRATA -- With fall Chinook salmon spawning complete in late November, protective river flow rates have been set for the next seven months in the 51-mile Hanford Reach area of the Columbia River.

Grant County PUD Senior Biologist Chris Carlson and Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife Biologist Paul Hoffarth monitored the progress of fish spawning with weekly survey counts of salmon redds, or nests, on the Vernita Bar located in the upstream end of the Hanford Reach.

Based on adult salmon passage counts this fall, biologists estimate that 40,000 to 50,000 fall Chinook spawned in the Hanford Reach. This estimate is lower than in recent years, but only slightly less than the 10-year average.

The Vernita Bar is used as an index area for all fish spawning in the Hanford Reach. Significant spawning activity along this 1.5 mile gravel bar provides data on the timing and distribution of fall Chinook activity. Vernita Bar is located four miles downstream from Grant PUD’s Priest Rapids Dam.

The final index area survey on November 26 helped biologists determine that a minimum Columbia River flow rate of 70,000 cubic feet per second (cfs) would be optimum for protection of eggs in the river gravel. This level of river water flow will be maintained through the Hanford Reach spawning area until incubation is complete and the young salmon have emerged from their gravel nests. Depending on river temperatures, that will occur in May or June.

The seven mid-Columbia River hydroelectric dams work together to ensure the salmon eggs remain covered with water until the young salmon emerge. Following emergence, river flows are regulated to minimize flow fluctuations during early rearing within the Hanford Reach prior to their journey downstream to the Pacific Ocean. Grant PUD power dispatchers coordinate power generation and river flow from the seven dams.

Grant PUD operates its hydro projects to protect listed and non-listed species. Fall Chinook operations run from October through June. Additional efforts to protect juvenile salmon run from June through August, meaning that Grant PUD operates the Priest Rapids Project for salmon protection 10 months out of each year.

The collaborative effort to protect this key natural spawning area in the Hanford Reach has been successfully applied since 1988. This model of cooperative salmon management involves operators of mid-Columbia River hydroelectric projects, federal and state agencies, Indian tribes and environmental interests.

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Grant County Public Utility District is a Washington state municipal corporation that began electric service in 1942. Owned by the people it serves, Grant PUD generates and sells electricity to Grant County residents and millions of customers throughout Central Washington and the Pacific Northwest. The Priest Rapids Project, comprised of Priest Rapids and Wanapum Dams, produces nearly 2,000 megawatts of clean, renewable and reliable electricity – enough to supply a city the size of Seattle. A leader in science based technology; Grant PUD is committed to finding effective measures for the protection, mitigation and enhancement of salmon, steelhead and other natural and cultural resources.

Media Contact:
Gary Garnant
(509) 754-5027 / ggarnan@gcpud.org