Purchase and install an automated pipetting instrument to be used at the Hagerman Fish Culture Experiment Station genetics laboratory. This instrument will be used for a variety of procedures during the genotyping process, including DNA extraction, sample preparation, and reaction set-up.

Purchasing the pipetter will have the result of reducing per-sample costs from an estimated $45/sample to $40/sample, and at the same time increasing delivery capability for multiple BPA genetics contracts, including SNP marker discovery, expanding Chinook and steelhead genetic baselines, genetic stock ID (GSI) of lower Columbia R. fisheries, GSI of stocks passing Bonneville Dam, landscape genetics, sturgeon genetics, and kelt reproductive success.

GSI project processes are the primary beneficiary of the pipetter, allowing for less expensive identification of the origin of the various fish returning above Bonneville Dam.

The pipetting instrument will be purchased with a majority Bonneville Power Administration funding, but cost shares from NOAA and the Pacific Salmon Commission (PSC) will also be used (see budget). BPA is the lead agency on this purchase, and the title to the equipment will be retained by the BPA.