Besides pollution,deforestation of upper watersheds and loss of habitat due to the construction of dams,tribal gillnetting and excessive commercial offshore netting hatcheries have done well to compromise the health of our steelhead runs. Now we are seeing evidence of hatchery interbreeding and the effects it is having on our wild fish stocks,what's left of them.

I say get rid of all hatcheries. I know it's not that simple but few things worth saving come easy. I have seen evidence of improving steelhead runs on several streams in california and the apparent recovery of some of these wild fish runs coincides with improving spawning habitat and the discontinuation of hatchery supplementation.


It makes no sense to deprive wild fish for their eggs in order to satisfy sport fishermen. These fish are too valuable and once a run is extinct the characteristics of that run and its genetic diversity are gone forever. You can't duplicate mother nature.