The state Department of Fish and Wildlife will accept public comments through Jan. 4 on an updated draft management plan that will be used by the agency to guide hatchery operations on Soos Creek in King County.
The plan, known as a hatchery and genetic management plan, describes the operation of the state hatchery program for fall chinook salmon in the Green (Duwamish) River basin and the potential effects of the program on wild fish species – including salmon and steelhead – that are protected by the federal Endangered Species Act.
The draft plan is available for review at wdfw.wa.gov/hatcheries/hgmp or at the department’s office in Olympia. To schedule an appointment to review the plan in person, call 360-902-2782.
Comments on the draft HGMP can be submitted by mail to Hatcheries, State Department of Fish and Wildlife, 600 Capitol Way North, Olympia, WA 98501, or by email at HGMP-PScomments@dfw.wa.gov.
The department has updated the draft plan to better reflect current efforts to protect and restore wild salmon in the basin.
NOAA Fisheries also is currently working to produce a final environmental impact statement on the effect of hatchery programs on protected salmon and steelhead populations in the Columbia River and Puget Sound.
Compiled by Jeffrey P. Mayor, jeff.mayor@thenewstribune.com
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