PBS Newshour: Sequestration hits Nez Perce Tribe's hatchery

One of the gauges that has been shut down in Idaho is on Lapwai Creek. It's one of the important streams for thousands of federally protected salmon in north Idaho. That gauge is located about 3/4 of a mile from where the Nez Perce Tribe just recently introduced 500,000 hatchery-raised salmon. Data from the stream gauge there helped the tribe determine when stream levels were sufficient to accommodate these juvenile fish.

Aaron Penney is a fishery manager with the Nez Perce Tribe. He says the tribe's fishery and its water resource managers used the information from the stream gauge on a regular basis. It collected data that helped determine if enough water was in the stream to provide for fish's needs, as required by a federal court settlement that his tribe fought for.

Lapwai Creek is home to two species of salmon, including the reintroduced coho salmon that had been listed as extinct by the federal government. The tribe has worked hard to get these salmon back. The stream is also diverted by the Lewiston Orchards Irrigation District which uses the water for crops.

Keeping enough cool water flowing in the stream keeps fish alive. If the water gets too warm, it kills the fish.

"We are a salmon people" Penney said. "Since our people have been here, salmon have been a provider."