FY 2014 Chinook and Summer Chum Harvest and Hatchery Management Planning and Analyses

WORKSITE: STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA
(Edited 8-5-19 to clarify work related to Summer Chum Salmon Conservation Initiative)

The Tribe engaged the expertise of Point No Point Treaty Council (PNPTC) staff to participate in the following:
- PNPTC prepared pre-season forecasts of abundance for Hood Canal and Strait of Juan de Fuca Chinook and summer chum and looked at modeled fishery impacts as a preliminary step to implementing planned fisheries as required to meet ESA requirements in the Salmon Recovery Plans and Harvest Management Plans.
- PNPTC staff participated in effort to develop and review Hatchery Genetic Management Plans (HGMPs) for tribal and state hatcheries in the Hood Canal and Strait of Juan de Fuca regions, as well as in other harvest and hatchery management planning processes.
- PNPTC staff updated information needed to update the implementation of the Summer Chum Salmon Conservation Initiative (SCSCI). The SCSCI focuses on maintaining effective harvest and hatchery practices while increasing and aligning habitat improvements. The SCCI incorporates both harvest and artificial production management provisions (such as standards that determine when and how hatchery supplementation is applied, and more). The SCCI also contains an assessment of other species’ hatchery programs, and their effect on summer chum.
- PNPTC Staff also participated in an ongoing effort to update the recovery goals established in the summer chum recovery plan.

Both PNPTC and Jamestown SKlallam Tribe staff participated in the 2016 co-manager North of Falcon forum to set harvest management strategies that will contribute to salmon recovery.

Tribal staff reviewed the sample rates for specific fisheries to make decisions about the fisheries in order to best protect ESA-listed summer chum and other threatened or weak species.


WORKSITE: DUNGENESS
Jamestown staff performed analysis of WDFW’s 2016 Chinook escapement data, and determined hatchery versus natural origins. Staff also reviewed coded-wire-tag data.

Jamestown prepared for and attended the annual Dungeness Chinook Technical Committee meeting, along with Washington Department of Wildlife staff in early 2017. The purpose of this meeting was to review the previous year’s data (including spawner surveys, broodstock collection, egg and fry growth/survival, etc.) and to discuss ways to improve future adult returns, as well as any changes to our current methods for the upcoming season.

Evaluating carcass and tag data allows restoration planners to determine contributions from the naturally produced portion of Chinook returns, detect trends, and gage effects of the supplementation efforts on boosting abundance of Chinook populations. Analyses of wild verses hatchery returns will be used for adapting and planning future approaches to the supplementation and broodstock programs.

The goal of our harvest management planning is to develop strategies that, when implemented, will protect ESA-listed salmonids, and produce regulations that ultimately benefit ESA-listed salmonids.
The harvest management planning, updates and analysis are suggested in approved recovery plans.

As noted in APPENDIX A, Puget Sound Chinook Salmon Recovery Plan, 2011 IMPLEMENTATION STATUS ASSESSMENT BY WATERSHED A Qualitative Assessment of Implementation of the Puget Sound Chinook Salmon Recovery Plan, funding for staff capacity is an ongoing need to work on the numerous policies, programs and additional planning and coordination needed to move the entire Recovery Plan forward.