But the population of the nene is growing with every breeding season. They re out of danger at the present level of stewardship, says Bachman, who s worked in the wildlife and forestry division for 40 years. And, after swimming and feeding in ocean waters for two or three years, they almost always come back to their river of origin and lay eggs before dying. At the Lewis River hatchery, Roberts and his co-workers rear early and late coho and spring chinook, and monitor the population of the wild fall chinook, which is on the endangered species list. We re turning things exactly around in these fishes favor in terms of the sheer numbers of fish that we plant.
Public awareness is the key to preserving wild fall chinook.
Roberts and other environmentalists inform the public that logging, land development, heavy industries along river banks and farmers using river water for irrigation all contribute to the demise of salmon. For example, Roberts notes that in the old days, farmers wouldn t place protective screens over their irrigating systems. They would just pump the juvenile fish right out of the river and right onto the land. Just like the nene, predators feast on salmon and man is making it even easier. All the dredge spoils are piled up in places where they never used to be.