The Bonneville Power Administration initiated the Select Area Fishery Evaluation (SAFE) Project in 1993 at the recommendation of the Northwest Power Planning Council to investigate terminal fisheries on the lower Columbia River.  Terminal fisheries are being explored as a means to increase sport and commercial harvest of hatchery fish while providing greater protection for weak stocks of salmon and steelhead including those protected under the Endangered Species Act.  Initial funding for the SAFE Project covered a comprehensive, 10-year feasibility study which was planned in three phases: site investigation, initiation of smolt production and releases at the most suitable sites, and increasing fish production to full capacity at all sites.

Five Select Area Fishing sites were established: Youngs Bay, Blind Slough and Tongue Point in Oregon, and Deep River and Steamboat Slough in Washington.  Each site has provided both recreational and commercial fishing opportunities, although season structure and target species differ with current management goals and production strategies.  Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, and Clatsop County Economic Development Council are co-contractors for the SAFE Project.  The Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife receives $685,587 in 2006 to conduct all activities on the Washington side of the Columbia River plus monitor water quality at all SAFE (OR & WA) sites.  The remaining $988,019 for Oregon activities is divided between the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife and Clatsop County Economic Development Council.

Experimental fishing seasons were established at each site to harvest the initial adult returns from the experimental releases.  Fishery landings are extensively sampled to determine stock and age composition and recover coded wire tags.  Sampling of the recreational fisheries, spawning grounds, and at the hatcheries provides additional tag recovery data that is used to monitor survival, stray rates, and fishery contribution.  Production, acclimation, and release strategies have varied over time at each site as empirical results from CWT releases have been analyzed to determine which methods have the best survival, highest fishery contribution, and lowest stray rate.  For all sites combined, annual SAFE project smolt releases during 1993-2005 have ranged between 2.0-4.2 million coho, 0.4-1.8 million spring chinook, 0.1-0.6 million upriver bright fall chinook, and 0.1-1.4 million select area bright fall chinook.

The SAFE Program releases high quality hatchery salmon smolts from net pen sites in terminal fishing areas.  These fish subsequently provide significant harvest opportunity for sport and commercial fishers when they return as adults.  The economic value of the fishery, as measured in ex-vessel dollars, has increased from approximately $198,000 in 1996 to $1.2 million in 2004.  The SAFE program has demonstrated high survival rates for smolts released by the project, high harvest rates and low stray rates for returning adults, low impacts to non-local salmonids, and high economic value to the fishers and the communities that benefit from the fisheries.  Plans for the third phase of the project, maximizing production releases for all species at all sites has been limited by available funding.