The Cowlitz Tribe of Washington is welcoming federal review of smelt populations in the Pacific Northwest.
The tribe petitioned the National Marine Fisheries Service to list the fish under the Endangered Species Act.
This week, the agency's Office of Protected Resources began a 90-day process to review the matter.
"We find that the petition presents substantial scientific and commercial information
indicating that the petitioned action may be warranted," the agency said in a Federal Register notice.
The tribe has depended on smelt during the mid-winter and winter months. But runs of the fish have been nonexistent in recent years.
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