Fish Trucked to Bays

November 2, 2023

Question: Is trucking fish still necessary if the drought is over?

Answer: Drought conditions have played a major role in the decision to use trucks to distribute millions of hatchery-raised salmon to San Pablo and San Francisco bays. During the last multi-year drought, CDFW transported young salmon to more suitable locations due to low river flows and elevated water temperatures, which can be a lethal mixture for the fish.

CDFW salmon hatcheries have traditionally taken a diverse approach in planning strategies used to release fall-run Chinook salmon smolts. Even on the wettest of years the department will incorporate components of releases not just into the rivers next to our hatcheries, but at downstream locations like the San Pablo and San Francisco bays. Releases have also occurred into the ocean, specifically supporting our ocean harvest enhancement programs for anglers. The different tactics help reduce the risk for the overall population, if one of the groups happens to experience losses.

CDFW can track groups of hatchery origin fish as juveniles on their seaward migration and as adults in angler catch reports and when they return to their place of origin to spawn, by retrieving coded wire tags implanted at the hatchery. This data helps inform discussions on the performance of each release strategy and guide decision making on changes to release plans employed each year.