PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Federal biologists say they’re looking at steps to reduce the damage hatchery fish do to wild runs of salmon and steelhead in the Columbia River Basin. That could have a heavy impact on fishing.
The Oregonian newspaper reports that the toughest step under consideration would reduce hatchery operations so much that the number of salmon and steelhead taken from the Columbia basin would drop by half.
About three-quarters of the salmon and steelhead returning from the ocean are hatchery fish.
But they compete with wild fish for food and spawning grounds. They can spread disease into wild fish, weaken their genetic stock and even prey on them.
The alternatives are in an environmental impact statement under consideration by the National Marine Fisheries Service.
