Environmental Support
In early 2016, SEAPA and the Southern Southeast Regional Aquaculture Association (SSRAA) entered into a Memorandum of Understanding that SEAPA would support SSRAA in its efforts to rear and release approximately 600,000 Chinook smolt each spring near the outfall of the Swan Lake Hydroelectric Facility.
SSRAA is a regional non-profit corporation whose mission is to enhance and rehabilitate salmon production in southern southeast Alaska for the optimal social and economic benefit of all users. Annual contributions from this project average over 4,000 adult Chinook.
The remote rearing project gears up in late March with project preparation. Net pen infrastructure is inspected and maintained. Rearing nets are installed in anticipation of accepting fish from the Ketchikan based Deer Mountain and Whitman Lake Hatcheries. Smolt are transported via tender boat in early April for rearing until release in late May. Upon release the rearing site is cleaned and infrastructure prepped for long-term storage until the following spring.
SEAPA staff and facilities provide ongoing year-round support for this successful salmon enhancement program. Support ranges from program logistics, lodging of SSRAA staff, off-season monitoring and occasionally assisting with feeding, sampling, and releasing fish. The project has allowed for the building of relationships between SEAPA and SSRAA promoting a better understanding of our shared goals of providing tangible benefits to our communities.
SEAPA is a strong supporter of healthy fish stocks in southeast Alaska.
