Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 104 Part 2.djvu/74

 104 STAT. 1054 PUBLIC LAW 101-452 —OCT. 24, 1990 Public Law 101-452 101st Congress An Act Oct. 24, 1990 To authorize a joint Federal, State, and Tribal study for the restoration of the fishery [H.R. 3787] resources of the Chehalis River Basin, Washington, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Chehalis River United States of America in Congress assembled. Basin Fishery Resources Study SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. A^o^m*''"' This Act may be cited as the "Chehalis River Basin Fishery Resources Study and Restoration Act of 1990". SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. (a) FINDINGS.— The Congress finds the following: (1) The Chehalis River Basin in southwestern Washington, including Grays Harbor and its tributsuies, has approximately 1,400 separate rivers and streams totaling nearly 3,400 miles in length which flow into the Pacific Ocean through Grays Harbor, a major west coast estuarine system. (2) The Basin historically produced large runs of anadromous and resident fish that supported important commercial, recreational, and tribal fisheries within the Basin and off the coast of the States of Washington and Alaska and Canada; however, the population of these fishery resources is less than one-half the levels that occurred prior to 1935. (3) The decline in productivity of the Chehalis system is thought to result from a number of activities. Ongoing studies by the State of Washington and others have linked significant mortality of Chehalis River salmon to water quality degradation, sedimentation of spawning gravels, reduced stream flows, and reduced spawning escapements. (4) The Federal Government has a substantial interest in the fishery resources of the Basin because important interjurisdictional (including international) and tribal fisheries are involved and several federally constructed, permitted, and licensed water projects are located in the Basin. 0>) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are— (1) to require a comprehensive study of the causes of the decline of fishery resources originating in the Chehalis River Basin; (2) to develop recommendations for a program to address the causes of those declines; and (3) to restore those fishery resources in a reasonable period of time. SEC. 3. JOINT FEDERAL, STATE, AND TRIBAL STUDY AND RECOMMENDA- TIONS. (a) STUDY.—Subject to section 5, the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service shall undertake a comprehensive study of the fishery resources and habitats of the Basin and, on the basis of such study, develop goals and recommend short- and long-term 49-139 O - 90 (452)

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