Hatcheries releasing fish early because of drought

State hatcheries in northwest Oregon are releasing fish ahead of schedule because of the drought.

The first week of June, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife's North Nehalem Hatchery released 1,550 rainbow trout averaging about 1 pound apiece that had been on the stocking schedule for release in September at about 2 pounds a fish.

Two factors were in play, said Robert Bradley, a fish biologist with the department's Tillamook office: deteriorating conditions at the release sites and more important, using the water at the hatcheries to raise salmon and steelhead.

"At the time we released our trout … the lakes were getting borderline, but we were still able to stock the fish," he said. "But looking ahead more than likely they would have been at really warm temperatures at the time the scheduled stocking rolled around.

"But the more immediate need was that (Nehalem) river flows were dropping, and water availability was dropping. And they needed that water to go through the hatchery, the higher priority to use for salmon and steelhead that have to stay there for another year."

Spring Chinook being raised at the state's Trask River Hatchery near Tillamook will be released about a month earlier than planned because of the water situation.

The crew there is recirculating water to the upper part of the hatchery as they mark the fish to identify them as hatchery salmon prior to the early release.

"We typically release our spring Chinook smolts toward the end of July," Bradley said. "We've already released a few groups of them to free up some space at the hatcheries.

"For instance, in the Trask virtually all of the production will be released by the first of July. We'll probably start releasing some of the fall Chinook early as well."

While early releases are not ideal, he added, the warmer water actually accelerated growth rates , he said.

Cedar Creek Hatchery near Hebo, which raises spring Chinook, and the volunteer-operated Rhoades Pond on Three Rivers about 6 miles from Hebo, which raises fall Chinook, are in better shape, water-wise and because of raising fewer fish than the state's larger hatcheries, he added.

The spring Chinook at Cedar Creek should be released on schedule in about three weeks.

Unlike the Willamette River Basin, which depends on melting snowpack – virtually nonexistent this year - to feed the rivers through the summer, Oregon's coastal rivers and streams are fed almost exclusively by rain runoff.

And with the long, dry spring and into summer, flows are the worst that he's ever seen, Bradley said. And the river gauges are confirming his observations.

"The last time that I looked at them and made a comparison it's about a third of the average water flow," he said. "For recorded history we're approaching the lowest flows ever recorded for the given date," and could end up with "some of the lowest flows ever recorded by the end of the summer unless we get a change in the weather pattern."

While there haven't been the pre-spawn mortalities that have been seen in Willamette Valley rivers such as the Willamette, Clackamas and Santiams, water temperatures are creeping into the danger zone.

"We're not quite to the level of the Willamette, yet, but we do have some 70-degree water in the lower parts of the rivers," Bradley said. "So it's getting there, and it could become an issue. There's some years when we don't see any 70-degree water."

One problem that already has been seen is that with the dropping rivers and streams, there have been reports of non-hatchery wild fish being left high and dry.

"The biggest concern that we've seen already is the stranding of some juvenile fish trapped in the back-water areas," Bradley said. "There's probably some of that going on that we're not going to know about. They'll probably dry up or birds or whatever will get to them."

With the added stress on the adult fish because of the weather and water situation, he also had advice for anglers who are pursuing them.

"I think the take-home message this year is that people who are out trout fishing, or fishing for Chinook and summer steelhead, these fish are out in conditions that are not favorable to them," Bradley said. "Anything that's caught and released needs to be handled with care. Early mornings or late evenings are the best times to fish. Fish need to be released as quickly as possible and with as much care as possible.

"At this point it's all about survival. These fish have got to live, the adults that are coming in now whether it's sea run cutthroat or spring Chinook or summer steelhead, they're all living until the fall or the winter before they spawn. And they've got some tough conditions to survive through the next few months."

hemiller@StatesmanJournal.com, (503) 399-6725 or follow at twitter.com/henrymillersj and friend or facebook.com/hmillersj

Warm water danger

River temperatures of 70 and 75 degrees may feel good to swim in, but it's killing salmon. Page 1D