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By Hugh Miller School days are here again and our STEP (Salmon Trout Education Program) is already off and running. As you can imagine, it is a challenging task to coordinate over 120 STEP classes in eight different counties. The program's success however, provides ample reward to the Project Coordinators. More teachers are asking to join this popular program each year. Our STEP K-12 Teacher Workshop is scheduled for January 15th & 16th, 2000. We will be doing a curriculum upgrade and adding a STEP web page during this school year. As in past years, releases of steelhead fry by certified STEP classes will most likely occur during May or June, 2000. STEP continues to emphasize a thematic curriculum, which uses a hands-on approach in teaching the importance of preserving our remaining native salmon and steelhead populations to children in K-12 grades. In the two-day workshop, teachers interact and learn together. Teachers learn actual methods and techniques for working with groups of students out on a stream and how to process streamside information back in their classrooms. Last year, STEP teachers were recognized for their contributions to their students and communities. Brett Harte Middle School Teacher, Hope Oliver was awarded an all-expense trip to Colorado by General Electric, to attend a curriculum development course in environmental studies. Elementary STEP teacher, John McPherson was publicly recognized by the Morgan Hill Unified School District Supervisors for his work with students in STEP activities. If you would like additional information about STEP, you may contact the STEP Educational Advisor, Barry Burt at (831) 688-0187, or the STEP Coordinator Hugh Miller (408) 268-3945. Click here to learn more about the STEP Program.
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By Dave Streig Our hatchery is now almost fully restored thanks to the many hours of work done by a dedicated group of volunteers. Also crucial to the restoration project were grants from the Packard Foundation and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, and great community support. All of the damaged water lines have been replaced. The washed out dams and diversions supplying water to the rearing pools and hatchery building have also been replaced. These repairs have been carefully reviewed to include upgrades to help withstand future flooding when it occurs. The Department of Fish & Game built our old diversion dam in 1927 for the old Big Creek Hatchery. After the floods of 1998, only half of this diversion dam was left standing. The current repairs on the diversion dam should be sufficient to keep fresh water flowing to the hatchery for the next few years. New fiberglass pools have been installed to replace the pools that were washed down the creek in the 1998 floods. New irrigation and drainage lines have also been installed to protect our volunteers from water discharges and flooding. They are also better protected from floating logs and derby that may come down the creek during the winter runoff. The pools should be completely cured and ready to receive adult fish for spawning as soon as it starts raining this season. We also hope to complete the rebuilding of our bathroom facilities that were flattened by falling trees during the 1998 floods. This job should be completed by the time our first fin clipping work parties begin, depending on the weather. Our planting trailer that was damaged by falling trees in 1998 has been rebuilt and is back in use. The old Dodge planting truck whose right side suspension was collapsed and frame cracked by falling trees has been deemed scrap and cannot be fixed. We hope to replace this by a donation, or new grant money. When this is completed, we will be back in full operation. This year's fish are all out in rearing pools. We have 28,200 Steelhead and 3,900 Coho Salmon to be planted next spring. Our Section 10 permit for Coho Salmon rearing under the Endangered Species Act, which was filled in 1996, has finally gone back to National Marine Fisheries headquarters in Silver Springs, Maryland, for final review. The permit issuance should be by November 1999. A lot of time has been spent on paperwork and meetings. It finally appears we will receive the First Federal Section 10 Endangered Species Permit issued to raise Coho Salmon. Although Coho Salmon Recovery Plan is still not finalized, our hatchery has been identified as a critical component to the recovery of Coho Salmon south of San Francisco. The Steelhead listing is still awaiting the federal 4d-rule listing in the Federal Register. If this is ever completed and posted in the Federal Register, all hatcheries will have to file for a Section 10 permit for the handling of Endangered Steelhead. |