Oregon ends N. Umpqua summer steelhead hatchery to help fish

ASTORIA, Ore. (AP) — The commission that oversees Oregon’s fish and wildlife programs has voted to end the summer steelhead hatchery program on the North Umpqua River after severe declines in the number of wild steelhead returning from the Pacific Ocean. The 4-3 vote late last week transitions the agency to a “wild fish only” management plan in an attempt to help the genetically distinct wild summer steelhead bounce back. Environmental groups say the owe the commission a “debt of gratitude.” State officials closed sport fishing on the Umpqua and North Umpqua rivers last summer in response to record-low wild summer steelhead returns.