On October 26, 2017 the Council and Bonneville received a submittal from USFWS for Proposal #2017-005-00, Pacific Lamprey Conservation Initiative Columbia River Basin Projects.  The overarching goal of the proposal is to support the intent of the cooperative effort among agencies and tribes to achieve long-term persistence of Pacific Lamprey and support traditional tribal cultural use over the U.S. range by funding on--the--ground implementation of restoration actions that contribute to this effort. The purpose of the proposal is to facilitate funding for high priority lamprey restoration actions that are currently unfunded or partially funded in the Columbia River Basin. This process will work in parallel with other programs that are currently and will continue to fund lamprey restoration projects. In essence, this proposal is an umbrella type project  for Pacific Lamprey in the Basin.  That is, the Agreement Conservation Team will utilize identified priority projects from the annually updated Regional Implementation Plans (RIP) from Regional Management Units (RMU) within the Columbia and Snake River basins (i.e., Lower Columbia/Willamette, Mid-Columbia, Snake and Upper Columbia).

On October 27, 2017 the proposal was submitted to the ISRP and on November 28, 2017 the ISRP provided its review (ISRP document 2017-13) – due to the umbrella intent of the proposal the emphasis of the review focused on the operating guidelines and selection criteria that guide the implementation of the priority lamprey actions. The ISRP found the proposal “Meets Scientific Review Criteria (Qualified)”.  

The proposal received is facilitated by the USFWS and administered through Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission (PSFMC).  The restoration actions in the appropriate RMU’s will be reviewed and selected by the Agreement Conservation Team based on the following criteria as outlined in the Pacific Lamprey Conservation Agreement Operating Guidelines;

1. Project Rationale
2. Linkage of Actions to Threats
3. Project Feasibility
4. Partner Engagement and Support
5. Monitoring and Evaluation – Contribution to Knowledge Gaps
6. Budget and Timelines

In addition, the Agreement Conservation Team’s selection criteria are consistent with those of the Council in regard to whether they:

1. Are based on sound science principles;
2. Benefit fish and wildlife;
3. Have clearly defined objectives and outcomes; and
4. Have provisions for monitoring and evaluation of results.

Following are the proposed actions that the project intends to implement this Fiscal Year (2018) to address priority restoration needs across RMUs in the Columbia/Snake and reduce overall risk to lamprey populations (see below)


Adult Passage Improvement in Lower Yakima
Adult Passage at Prosser dam – two new volitional vertical wetted wall (VWW) passage structures, modify existing VVW structures to allow volitional passage

Translocating Adult Lamprey Past lower Snake River Dams
Make improvements (safety and protection) to holding facility for adults.

Lower South Fork McKenzie River Floodplain Enhancement Project
Address primary threat for the Willamette RMU (i.e., stream and floodplain degradation). Will also address limiting factors of  fine sediment deposition, spawning gravel, off channel habitat and high flow refuge