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The Chinook Salmon, Freshwater Phase.
The top fish is a male; the bottom fish a female.
Background
This web
page demonstrates how simulation might be used in fishery management.
Fisheries have declined in the Pacific Northwest and around the world.
You will learn how previous simulation models have been used to help
managers deal with the many factors contributing to the decline. The
model includes an interactive exercise to place you in the role of
fishery manager .
The declining
salmon runs on the Snake and Columbia river system is one of the most serious
environmental problems in the Pacific Northwest. The salmon have disappeared
from 40% of their historical breeding ranges despite a public and private
investment of more than $1 billion. The annual salmon and steelhead runs have
dwindled to 2.5 million, less than a quarter of the run sizes of 100 years ago.
This web site provides two models which may be used to simulate parts of the
complex and threatened salmon system. The Smolts Migration Model focuses on the
spring migration of hatchery smolts to the ocean. It may be used to test the
relative merits of barging fish or drawing down the reservoirs to help the
smolts reach the ocean.
There are
several Northwest planning processes underway for the recovery of fish
runs. One of the latest publications is the "Conservation of Columbia
Basin Fish," dated July 27, 2000, more commonly called the "All-H
Study." The H's are improvements to either Fish Harvest, Hatcheries,
Habitat, or the Hydro system for the recovery of fish runs in the
Columbia River basin. The executive summary is provided below and
links for more information can be found on the Internet at BPA's Environment, Fish and Wildlife web page for the Federal Caucus.
Main
Menu
(hyperlinks to information and
resources)
Background on Salmon
Migration *
Extra Background on the Salmon Smolts
Migration *
The Smolts Migration Model: Users'
Guide *
Executive Summary from the All-H Planning Process (PDF file)
Other Resources:
* Chapter references are excerpted from "Modeling the Environment: An Introduction to System Dynamics Modeling of Environmental Systems" by Andrew Ford. Copyright © 1999 by Island Press. Posted to this website by permission of Island Press. All rights reserved.
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