Comment on proposed FY 2006 budget

The FY 2006 budget of $923,887 will be split between the project O&M and M&E programs. For 2006, the O&M share will be $378,073, while the M&E share will be $545,814. This overall budget is consistent with Bonneville's approved budget and, depending on cost increases for 2006, should be adequate to continue O&M and M&E operations at the current level. However, if 2006 cost increases are greater than anticipated, especially for personnel (health benefit costs), indirect rate and transportation (increased fuel costs), O&M and M&E efforts would be reduced significantly and would impact the effectiveness of the JCAPE project. Significant cost increases absorbed over the previous three years of flat funding for items such as personnel, transportation, and indirect costs would require an increase of 3% in order to ensure collection efforts similar to the previous years. Budget reductions to fund increases in fixed costs (fish feed, fish marking, personnel benefits and supplies) must come from other non-fixed line items such as transportation and travel. Reduced funding for these line items will limit the collection effort and reduce the quantity and quality of data collected. Additional funding is desired for FY 2006 for the M&E portion of the project to implement a reproductive success study that is consistant with the projects Monitoring and Evaluation Plan and is a high priority for the Independent Science Review Panel, as stated in their most recent review posted February 2005. Additional monies for 2006 - $145,000, 2007 - $145,000, $60,000 per year from 2008 onward.

Accomplishments since the last review

Performed evaluation of natural and supplementation fish. Estimated juvenile production and survival of Johnson Creek summer chinook salmon. Monitor Johnson Creek adult escapement and estimate adult production. Collected DNA, scale, and finray samples from juvenile and adult Chinook salmon. Conducted redd, carcass, and prespawning ground surveys. The synthesis of this data enabled the project to look at key performance metrics. Utilizing Work Elements 70, 99, 118, 119, 132, 141, 157, 158, 159, 162, and 165 this project provided the following performance metrics: Metric – Abundance. Abundance Performance Metrics: adult escapement to Snake Basin and tributary, fish per redd, redd counts, spawner abundance, hathcery fraction, ocean harvest, tributary harvest, juvenile abundance, hatchery production abundance, smolt equivalents, and run prediction. Metric – Survival-Productivity: Survival-Productivity Performance Metrics: smolt-to-adult return rate, progeny-per-parent ratio, recruit/spawner, pre-spawn mortality, juvenile survival to Lower Granite Dam, juvenile survival to mainstem dams, in-hatchery life stage survival, post-release survival, and relative reproductive success. Metric – Distribution: Distribution Performance Metrics: adult spawner spatial distribution, stray rate, juvenile rearing distribution, and disease frequency. Metric – Genetic: Genetic Performance Metrics: genetic diversity, reproductive success, and effective population size. Metric – Life History: Life History Performance Metrics: age class structure, age at return, age at emigration, size at return, size at emigration, condition of juveniles at emigration, condition of juveniles at emigration, adult spawner sex ratio, fecundity by age, adult run timing, spawn timing, juvenile emigration timing, and mainstem arrivial timing. Metric – Habitat: Habitat Performance Metrics: physical habitat, stream network, instream flow, water temperature, and fish assemblage.

FY 2006 goals and anticipated accomplishments

Project Goal: Reduce the demographic risk of extirpation of the ESA listed Johnson Creek summer chinook salmon and begin its recovery through supplementation. Operate and maintain adult collection and conduct juvenile releases on Johnson Creek and egg incubation and juvenile rearing facilities at the McCall Fish Hatchery. These facilities are necessary to implement the JCAPE program and achieve the overall goal of preventing the extirpation of the Johnson Creek salmon population. Establish baseline information on the Johnson Creek summer chinook salmon population. Monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of supplementation to aid in the recovery of the natural population of Johnson Creek summer chinook. Future Accomplishments: Utilizing Work Elements 70, 99, 118, 119, 132, 141, 157, 158, 159, 162, and 165 this project will provide the following performance metrics: Metric–Abundance: adult escapement to Snake Basin and tributary, fish per redd, redd counts, spawner abundance, hathcery fraction, ocean harvest, tributary harvest, juvenile abundance, hatchery production abundance, smolt equivalents, and run prediction. Metric-Survival-Productivity: smolt-to-adult return rate, progeny-per-parent ratio, recruit/spawner, pre-spawn mortality, juvenile survival to Lower Granite Dam, juvenile survival to mainstem dams, in-hatchery life stage survival, post-release survival, and relative reproductive success. Metric–Distribution: adult spawner spatial distribution, stray rate, juvenile rearing distribution, and disease frequency. Metric–Genetic: genetic diversity, reproductive success, and effective population size. Metric–Life History: age class structure, age at return and emigration, size at return and emigration, condition of juveniles at emigration, adult spawner sex ratio, fecundity by age, adult run timing, spawn timing, juvenile emigration timing, and mainstem arrivial timing. Metric-Habitat: physical habitat, insream flow, water temperature, and fish assemplage.

Subbasin planning

How is this project consistent with subbasin plans?

Consistency: The project is consistent with and implements Aquatic Strategies 1A1, 1A2, and 1A3 Mgt. Plan page 20). These strategies relate to Objective 1A; to increase the numbers of spawning adults to achieve recovery goals. Aquatic Strategies 1B2, 1B3, and 1B4 (Mgt. Plan pages 21-23). These strategies relate to Objective 1B; achieve goals through application of artificial propagation programs. Aquatic Strategies 2A1, 2A2, 2A4, 2A5, and 2A7 (Mgt. Plan pages 23-25). These strategies relate to Objective 2A; improve understanding and definitions of small populations. Aquatic Strategies 3A1, 3A2, and 3A3 (Mgt. Plan page 25). These strategies relate to Objective 3A; address data gaps to measure freshwater survival and productivity. Aquatic Strategies 3C1, 3C2, 3C3, 3C4, and 3C5 (Mgt. Plan pages 25-27). These strategies relate to Objective 3C; address data gaps to measure progress towards delisting and full recovery.

How do goals match subbasin plan priorities?

Priority: The Salmon Subbasin Management Plan prioritization process utilizes an environmental framework approach to prioritization and does not address biological characteristics explicitly. They do acknowledge this shortcoming: “The weakness in this approach, however, is that the focus on environmental limiting factors and problem statements does not adequately address or balance biological limiting factors within the prioritization framework.” The plan caveats the entire prioritization process with this request: “Filling key data gaps will further improve the accuracy of prioritization processes. ….. The general agreement among the Technical Team members was that to conduct a scientifically valid prioritization, certain information that is not currently available would be needed (e.g., basic egg to fry, parr, presmolt, and smolt survival information, population-specific adult abundance and productivity key performance data).” The JCAPE project goals scientifically address all data gaps listed above and will be invaluable in providing data for the prioritization process. In addition to the Salmon Subbasin Plan, the NOAA Fisheries Draft 2005 – 2007 Implementation Plan, Section E (Hatchery Actions), states; Implement a Safety-Net Program as an Interim Measure to Avoid Extinction, recommends that the JCAPE project continue as a Near-Term Priority (2007). BPA currently funds the JCAPE project near-term implementation action for Snake River spring/summer Chinook safety-net program.

Other comments

The JCAPE project has indicated the requirement to measure the reproductive success of natural and supplementation fish utilizing a parentage analysis approach. Measurement of reproductive success is consistant with performance level evaluation required in the NOAA Fisheries RME Plan (2003) and 2000 FCRPS Biological Opinion. This has also been stated as a high priority by the Independent Science Review Panel in their February 2005 review of the JCAPE Monitoring and Evaluation Plan (Submitted to ISRP in December 2004 for review). The JCAPE project has collected all the necessary samples since 1998 to implement the analysis of reproductive success. Initial costs for budget year 2006 and 2007 include analyzing all backlog samples from previous years, with budget years 2008 and forward to indicate a base level of funding necessary to continue analysis on a year to year basis.