Swift Reservoir fish collector to get new net

ARIEL — PacifiCorp plans to install a 650-foot-long, 60-foot-deep net to its fish collector at Swift Reservoir on the upper North Fork of the Lewis River.

Chris Karchesky, fish passage coordinator for the utility, said the new net will be in place by April 1.

Coho, spring chinook and winter steelhead are being reintroduced above Swift Dam as part of the 2008 federal relicensing of Merwin, Yale and Swift hydroelectric projects.

Studies in 2014 and 2015 show the young fish produced in the watershed upstream of Swift are surviving their trip through the reservoir well. However, only 15 percent to 25 percent are entering the floating collector attached to Swift Dam.

Radio and acoustic telemetry work conducted by Cramer Fish Sciences found the fish arrive at the forebay of Swift Dam, but too few actually are attracted by the artificial flow created by pumps on the $60 million facility.

The new net will be almost perpendicular to the existing net, which keeps the young fish from reaching the dam. It is hoped the new net will funnel fish to the attraction water.

Karchesky said the new net will not be in place during the peak of the summer boating season.