[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 136 (Friday, July 17, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34740-34741]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-17034]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Bonneville Power Administration


Klickitat Hatchery Program

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

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement 
(EIS) and a floodplain and wetland assessment.

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SUMMARY: BPA intends to prepare an EIS in accordance with the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) on funding proposed changes to the 
existing salmon and steelhead hatchery program in the Klickitat 
subbasin in Klickitat and Yakima counties, Washington. As mitigation 
under the Pacific Northwest Electric Power Planning and Conservation 
Act, BPA proposes to upgrade and improve the Klickitat Hatchery, a 
Mitchell Act artificial production facility built and funded by the 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries (NOAA 
Fisheries), located seven miles east of Glenwood, Washington, at river 
mile 42 of the Klickitat River. The proposed changes would also involve 
construction, of a new Wahkiacus Hatchery and Acclimation Facility 
located at river mile 17 on the Klickitat River in Wahkiacus, 
Washington, and a steelhead acclimation facility at McCreedy Creek at 
river mile 70. With this Notice of Intent, BPA is initiating the public 
scoping process for the EIS. BPA is requesting comments about potential 
environmental impacts that it should consider as it prepares the EIS 
for the proposed changes to the program, as well as comments on 
alternatives that meet fish production objectives for the Klickitat 
Hatchery Program. Further details are provided in the SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION section below.
    In accordance with DOE regulations for compliance with floodplain 
and wetlands environmental review requirements, BPA will prepare a 
floodplain and wetlands assessment to avoid or minimize potential harm 
to or within any affected floodplains and wetlands. The assessment will 
be included in the EIS.

DATES: Written scoping comments are due to the address below no later 
than August 18th, 2009. Comments may also be made at the EIS scoping 
meeting to be held on August 4th, 2009, from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the 
Lyle Community Center.

ADDRESSES: Send letters with comments and suggestions on the proposed 
scope of the Draft EIS, and requests to be placed on the project 
mailing list, to Bonneville Power Administration, Public Affairs 
Office--DKE-7, P.O. Box 14428, Portland, OR 97293-4428, or by fax to 
503 230-3285. You also may call BPA's toll free comment line at 800 
622-4519 and leave a message (please include the name of this project); 
or submit comments online at http://www.bpa.gov/comment. BPA will post 
all comment letters in their entirety on BPA's Web site at http://www.bpa.gov/comment.
    On Tuesday August 4th, 2009, an open-house scoping meeting will be 
held from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Lyle Community Center, Lyle, 
Washington. At this informal meeting, we will provide maps and other 
information about the project and have members of the project team 
available to answer questions and accept oral and written comments. You 
may stop by anytime during the open house.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rosy Mazaika, Environmental 
Coordinator, Bonneville Power Administration--KEC-4, P.O. Box 3621, 
Portland, Oregon 97208-3621; toll-free telephone 1-800-282-3713; direct 
telephone 503-230-5869; or e-mail [email protected]. You may also 
contact Patricia Smith, Project Manager, Bonneville Power 
Administration--KEWL-4, P.O. Box 3621, Portland, Oregon 97208-3621; 
toll-free telephone 1-800-282-3713; direct telephone 503-230-7349; or 
e-mail [email protected]. Additional information can be found at BPA's 
Web site: http://www.efw.bpa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Fisheries programs in the Klickitat River 
subbasin are co-managed by the Yakama Nation and the Washington 
Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), and include the Yakima/
Klickitat Fisheries Project (YKFP) funded by BPA. The YKFP uses state-
of-the-art artificial propagation methods designed to re-establish, 
supplement, or increase natural production and harvest opportunities of 
anadromous salmonids while maintaining the long-term fitness of target 
species and minimizing ecological and genetic impacts on non-target 
species. The YKFP has been developed to:
     Enhance existing stocks of anadromous fish in the Yakima 
and Klickitat river basins, while maintaining genetic and ecological 
resources; and
     Apply the knowledge gained through supplementation 
throughout the Columbia River Basin.

    The YKFP also pursues the protection and restoration of habitat 
important to health and restoration of anadromous fish stocks.
    Under the YKFP, in 2008, the Yakama Nation revised the Klickitat 
River Anadromous Fisheries Master Plan \1\ in response to comments from 
the Northwest Power and Conservation Council (NPCC) and its Independent 
Scientific Review Panel.\2\ Master plans are submitted as step one of 
the NPCC's three-step process \3\ for the review of artificial 
propagation project proposals for funding by the BPA. Included in the 
plan are details and the scientific basis for proposed production 
goals, facilities, monitoring and evaluation, and habitat improvements 
necessary to manage endemic spring Chinook and steelhead and hatchery 
coho and fall Chinook in the Klickitat subbasin. Because
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    \1\ http://www.nwcouncil.org/dropbox/YKFP_03-31-08%20Draft%20Master%20Plan.pdf.
    \2\ http://www.nwppc.org/library/isrp/isrp2008-6.pdf.
    \3\ Northwest Power and Conservation Council, Three-Step Review 
Process (Nov. 2006) http://www.nwcouncil.org/Library/2006/2006-21.pdf.
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    1. The facilities and habitat work are proposed to benefit more 
than one target species,
    2. Artificial production work will require BPA and NOAA Fisheries 
to coordinate efforts at the proposed various facilities, and
    3. Proposed changes to production practices for single species 
could affect other target species,

the Yakama Nation developed the Klickitat Subbasin Anadromous Fishery 
Hatchery Plan (``Master Plan'') to address all species, as well as 
Pacific lamprey.
    According to the master plan prepared by the Yakama Nation and 
WDFW, the existing Klickitat Hatchery facilities, completed in 1954, 
need repair to meet current building codes and up-to-date artificial 
production guidelines. The Tribe operates the Klickitat Hatchery and 
NOAA Fisheries provides annual operation and maintenance funding using 
appropriations to the Mitchell Act program. Under the 2008 Columbia 
Basin Fish Accords Memorandum of Agreement between the three Treaty 
Tribes and Federal Columbia River Power System Action Agencies (The

[[Page 34741]]

Accords) \4\ the Yakama Nation will actively seek congressional 
appropriations during fiscal years 2010 and 2011 for additional 
Mitchell Act funding for the new Wahkiacus facility. Under the Accords, 
BPA made funding available, pending satisfactory results from its 
environmental compliance efforts, to fund hatchery facility 
improvements to increase production in the Klickitat Basin as described 
in alternative one below.
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    \4\ http://www.salmonrecovery.gov/Biological_opinions/FCRPS/2008_biop/docs/3-tribe-AA-MOA-Final.pdf.
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    The master plan was developed in concert with salmonid production 
and harvest agreements pursuant to U.S. v. Oregon, which is the primary 
forum for decisions related to salmon and steelhead fisheries 
management for the Columbia River Basin. U.S. v. Oregon is landmark 
litigation over Indian treaty fishing rights. The Federal district 
court that initially decided the case has retained continuing 
jurisdiction to assure the development of harvest and production plans 
follow the court's decisions. Through the on-going U.S. v. Oregon 
process, the parties develop and update the Columbia River Fish 
Management Plan which addresses management of Chinook, coho, and 
steelhead in the Klickitat basin, including hatchery production at the 
Klickitat Hatchery. Current programs focus on harvest augmentation for 
coho and fall Chinook and on supplementation for spring Chinook and 
summer steelhead.
    The proposed Yakama Nation- Klickitat Hatchery Program EIS would 
respond to these master plan objectives. BPA, therefore, will prepare 
an EIS under NEPA to assist the agency as it decides whether to fund 
the proposed changes to the existing salmon and steelhead hatchery 
program in the Klickitat subbasin and, if a decision is made to fund 
the changes, which alternative to meet the master plan objectives 
should be chosen.
    Alternatives Proposed for Consideration. BPA will consider three 
action alternatives to meet master plan objectives for salmon and 
steelhead in the Klickitat Basin. One alternative, the Master Plan, 
would involve the fisheries managers increasing the production of 
Klickitat spring Chinook and steelhead at the existing Klickitat 
Hatchery and transferring artificial production of coho and fall 
Chinook to a new hatchery facility at Wahkiacus. This would free up 
water and space at the Klickitat Hatchery, ensuring optimal rearing 
densities for spring Chinook and summer steelhead at that facility. 
Transferring coho and fall Chinook production downstream would minimize 
the impact of these species on the spawning and rearing of wild spring 
Chinook and steelhead by reducing species interactions and competition 
for habitat in the 26.5-mile reach between Wahkiacus and Klickitat. A 
second alternative would evaluate meeting the same production 
objectives but at the Klickitat Hatchery alone. A third alternative 
would examine a phased approach to the proposed production changes, 
with a partial build-out at the Wahkiacus facility. The current 
Wahkiacus facility design provides for acclimation of up to 1,000,000 
coho pre-smolts and rearing and release of up to 2,000,000 fall 
Chinook. The partial build-out would consider a phased approach for 
accomplishing production objectives, with the associated phasing of the 
completion of project facilities. BPA will also consider a No-Action 
Alternative. Under the No-Action Alternative, production activities 
would continue as they do currently. Other alternatives may be 
identified through the scoping process.
    BPA will be the lead agency for preparation of the EIS. BPA will 
formally invite the Yakama Nation, WDFW, NOAA Fisheries, Klickitat 
County, and Washington Department of Ecology to be cooperating agencies 
for the proposed Yakama Nation-Klickitat Hatchery Program EIS. Other 
potential cooperating agencies may be identified as the proposed 
project proceeds through the NEPA process. BPA will also coordinate 
with NOAA Fisheries which is preparing a programmatic EIS on the 
Mitchell Act hatchery facilities it funds throughout the Columbia River 
Basin.\5\
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    \5\ http://www.nwr.noaa.gov/Salmon-Harvest-Hatcheries/Hatcheries/Mitchell-Act-EIS.cfm.
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    Public Participation and Identification of Environmental Issues. 
The potential environmental issues identified for the project are 
anticipated to include land use, socioeconomic concerns, cultural 
resources, visual resources, sensitive plants and animals, fisheries, 
soil erosion, wetlands, floodplains, water quality, water quantity, 
wild and scenic rivers, and recreation resources. BPA has established a 
45-day scoping period during which tribes, affected landowners, 
concerned citizens, special interest groups, local governments, Federal 
agencies, and any other interested parties are invited to comment on 
the scope of the proposed EIS. Scoping will help BPA ensure that a full 
range of 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. When completed, the Draft EIS 
will be circulated for review and comment, and BPA will hold at least 
one public meeting to hear comments. The Draft EIS is expected to be 
published in fall 2010. BPA will consider and respond to comments 
received on the Draft EIS in the Final EIS. The Final EIS is expected 
to be published in spring 2011. BPA's decision will be documented in a 
Record of Decision that will follow the Final EIS.

    Issued in Portland, Oregon, on July 10, 2009.
Stephen J. Wright,
Administrator and Chief Executive Officer.
[FR Doc. E9-17034 Filed 7-16-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P