[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 147 (Tuesday, August 2, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44347-44348]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-15192]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Bonneville Power Administration


Chief Joseph Dam Hatchery Program

AGENCY: Bonneville Power Administration (BPA), Department of Energy 
(DOE).

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement 
(EIS).

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SUMMARY: This notice announces BPA's intention to prepare an EIS on a 
comprehensive management program for summer/fall Chinook salmon in the 
Okanogan subbasin and the Columbia River between the confluence of the 
Okanogan River and Chief Joseph Dam including construction, operation, 
and maintenance of a hatchery and acclimation ponds. While the focus of 
the Chief Joseph Dam Hatchery Program (CJDHP) is on the propagation of 
summer/fall Chinook salmon, the EIS will also consider the use of the 
proposed facilities to reintroduce extirpated spring Chinook salmon to 
their historical habitats in the Okanogan subbasin in Okanogan County, 
Washington.

DATES: Written comments are due to the address below no later than 
September 19, 2005. Comments may also be made at one of the EIS scoping 
meetings to be held on August 24, 2005, and August 25, 2005, at the 
address below.

ADDRESSES: Comments and suggestions on the proposed scope of the Draft 
EIS for this project, and requests to be placed on the project mailing 
list, may be mailed by letter to Bonneville Power Administration, 
Communications--DM-7, P.O. Box 14428, Portland, OR 97292-4428. Or, you 
may FAX them to 503-230-3285; or submit them on-line at http://www.bpa.gov/comment/.
    Public scoping meetings will be held on Wednesday, August 24, 2005, 
from 5 p.m to 8 p.m. at the Okanogan PUD in the Auditorium, 1331 2nd 
Avenue, Okanogan, Washington 98840, and Thursday, August 25, 2005, from 
2 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Wenatchee Convention Center in the Golden 
Delicious Room, 201 N. Wenatchee Avenue, Wenatchee, Washington 98801. 
At these informal open house meetings, we will provide information 
about the project, including maps, and have members of the project team 
available to answer questions and accept oral and written comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mickey Carter, Project Manager, 
Bonneville Power Administration--KEC-4, P.O. Box 3621, Portland, Oregon 
97208-3621; toll-free telephone number 1-800-282-3713; fax number 503-
230-5699; e-mail address [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: BPA shall be the lead Federal agency in 
preparing and issuing an EIS for this project. The Confederated Tribes 
of the Colville Reservation (Colville Tribe), although not a Federal 
agency, are a primary proponent and cooperating entity for this EIS and 
would be operating and maintaining the program and facilities if 
implemented. Additional cooperating agencies on this EIS may include 
the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, 
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, NOAA Fisheries, and Public 
Utility Districts.
    Proposed Action: The Proposed Action is to develop a comprehensive 
management program for summer/fall Chinook salmon in the Okanogan 
subbasin and the Columbia River between the confluence of the Okanogan 
River and Chief Joseph Dam including construction, operation, and 
maintenance of a hatchery (at the base of the Chief Joseph Dam) and 
acclimation ponds (throughout the Okanogan River subbasin), broodstock 
collection, egg incubation, rearing, release, and selective harvest. 
While the focus of the CJDHP is on the propagation of summer/fall 
Chinook salmon, the EIS will also consider the use of the proposed 
facilities to reintroduce extirpated spring Chinook salmon to their 
historical habitats in the Okanogan subbasin.
    To ensure programmatic flexibility and cost effectiveness, the 
CJDHP proposes to make use of a combination of new and existing fish 
production facilities. The summer/fall Chinook component of the CJDHP 
is designed to increase the abundance, distribution, and diversity of 
naturally-spawning summer/fall Chinook salmon within their historical 
Okanogan subbasin habitat, which will support recreational, ceremonial 
and subsistence fisheries. The summer/fall Chinook population in the 
Okanogan River is at present supported by a single hatchery program 
that produces 576,000 yearling smolts annually.
    The proposed CJDHP will increase production of juvenile summer/fall 
Chinook by 2,000,000, including 1,100,000 fish primarily for 
conservation purposes and 900,000 fish primarily for harvest purposes. 
This increased production level is expected to result in an adult 
return to the Okanogan subbasin of approximately 6,000 to 29,000 
summer/fall Chinook salmon. The spring Chinook component of the CJDHP 
is designed to introduce naturally-spawning spring Chinook populations 
to their historical Okanogan subbasin habitat, which will support 
stable ceremonial, subsistence, and recreational fisheries. The CJDHP 
spring Chinook component proposes to initially increase production of 
Carson stock spring Chinook destined for the Okanogan subbasin to 
900,000 smolts. This increased production level is expected to result 
in an adult return to the Okanogan subbasin of approximately 2,700 to 
9,000 spring Chinook. As surplus Upper Columbia

[[Page 44348]]

River spring Chinook become available from other fish production 
programs, the Carson stock spring Chinook will be replaced with 
endangered stock.
    Process to Date: In May 2004, the Colville Tribes submitted a 
Master Plan for the CJDHP as part of Step 1 of the Northwest Power and 
Conservation Council's Three-Step Review Process. The Master Plan 
included conceptual designs for hatchery facilities necessary for the 
production of summer/fall Chinook and spring Chinook. The Master Plan 
was reviewed by the Independent Science Review Panel as part of the 
Council's process.
    The project was also available for public comment as part of the 
Council's process. In February 2005, the Northwest Power and 
Conservation Council approved the CJDHP Master Plan and directed the 
project to proceed with Step 2, which includes National Environmental 
Policy Act analysis.
    Alternatives Proposed for Consideration: BPA is currently 
considering two alternatives for evaluation in the EIS: (1) The 
construction of a new summer/fall Chinook salmon and spring Chinook 
salmon hatchery facility at the base of Chief Joseph Dam along with a 
combination of new and existing acclimation facilities and adult 
collection facilities; and (2) the no-action alternative. Other 
alternatives may be identified through the scoping process. Mitigation 
measures will be considered, separate from features of the proposed 
action that could avoid or substantially reduce the environmental 
consequences of the proposed action.
    Public Participation and Identification of Environmental Issues: 
The scoping process will help BPA ensure that a full range of 
alternatives and issues related to this proposal is addressed in the 
EIS, and also will identify significant or potentially significant 
impacts that may result from the proposed project. BPA has established 
a 45-day scoping period for this project during which affected 
landowners, concerned citizens, special interest groups, local 
governments, and any other interested parties are invited to comment on 
the scope of the proposed EIS. Public and internal scoping on this 
project will also include two public open house meetings. When 
completed, the Draft EIS will be circulated for review and comment and 
BPA will hold public meetings to receive comments on the Draft EIS. BPA 
and the cooperating agencies will consider and respond in the Final EIS 
to comments received on the Draft EIS. BPA's decision will be 
documented in a Record of Decision. The EIS will satisfy the 
requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act. When completed, 
the Draft EIS will be circulated for review and comment, and BPA will 
hold at least one public comment meeting for the Draft EIS. BPA will 
consider and respond in the Final EIS to comments received on the Draft 
EIS. BPA's subsequent decision will be documented in a Record of 
Decision. Maps and further information are available from BPA at the 
address above.

    Issued in Portland, Oregon, on July 27, 2005.
Stephen J. Wright,
Administrator and Chief Executive Officer.
[FR Doc. 05-15192 Filed 8-1-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P