At the Council's request, the ISRP participated in a Lake Roosevelt Kokanee Workshop and revisited its FY 2007-09 recommendation regarding the kokanee production elements of the following projects:
- Spokane Tribal Hatchery (199104600)
- Sherman Creek Hatchery (199104700)
- Chief Joseph Kokanee Enhancement (199501100)
- Ford Hatchery (200102900) (all in the Intermountain Province, Lake Roosevelt) and
- Banks Lake Fishery Evaluation Project (200102800, Columbia Plateau Province)
In its FY 2007-09 review, the ISRP rated the kokanee propagation portions of the proposals “not fundable” (does not meet scientific criteria). The ISRP was concerned with the lack of success of kokanee actions given the significant limiting factors for kokanee in Lake Roosevelt, namely entrainment and predation. However, the ISRP recommended that the projects’ continued redband and triploid rainbow production was “fundable” (meets scientific review criteria). For the Banks Lake proposal, the ISRP had serious concerns about trying to manage for kokanee in a lake with high abundances of walleye and bass but found that the project justified continued testing of the kokanee effort.
After participating in the well-organized workshop, answering specific Council questions, and revisiting its FY 2007-09 review, the ISRP's recommendation remains essentially the same. The ISRP concludes that there is no scientific justification to continue artificial production of kokanee for stocking Lake Roosevelt or programs to develop and support naturally produced kokanee. However, the ISRP believes that if it could be conclusively demonstrated that the entrainment problem was controlled or significantly reduced, if the walleye population was significantly reduced and managed, and if drawdown levels were reduced or managed, then artificial production and/or support of natural production of kokanee could be re-initiated. As stated in the ISRP's final FY 2007-09 recommendations, the kokanee production for experimental stocking in Banks Lake (where the aforementioned limiting factors are less severe) is justified.
