Participating in Russian River "Fish Squeeze" with NOAA Under Secretary Mark Schaefer
April 25, 2014
NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) hosted Under Secretary for Conservation and Management, Dr. Mark Schaefer on February 25th, at the Don Clausen Fish Hatchery in Geyserville, CA. The event included a roundtable discussion on the Russian River watershed, providing an opportunity for Dr. Schaefer to learn about on-going Federal, State, and local "habitat enhancement" efforts, aimed at restoring threatened steelhead and salmon species in the basin.
In addition to scientists from HMT, representatives from the National Weather Service (NWS), Army Corps of Engineers, the Sonoma County Water Agency, CA Fish and Wildlife and a number of local and regional stakeholders also attended the event. HMT’s role in providing improved forecast information to better manage flows for fish habitat was one of the topics discussed in the roundtable.
After the roundtable, the group toured the fish hatchery and several members had an opportunity to participate in a "fish squeeze" to release eggs from female salmon and steelhead as part of the hatchery’s captive breeding program. The group then visited an area of habitat restoration along Dry Creek, a major tributary of the Russian. The event also provided an opportunity for HMT, NMFS, and NWS to engage with General Turner from the Army Corps of Engineers on the concept of using weather forecasts to manage reservoir operations (i.e., forecast-based operations) in the Russian.
Contact: Rob Cifelli
