Nisqually Fish Programs

Tacoma Power supports fish populations and aquatic habitat throughout the Nisqually River Project. Programs include stocking kokanee in Alder Lake to provide fishing opportunities and managing river flows and supporting hatchery production to benefit salmon in the Nisqually River.

Kokanee Fishery

Since 1999, Tacoma Power has stocked Alder Lake with up to 250,000 kokanee each year to support recreational fishing. Kokanee are landlocked sockeye salmon, meaning that they do not migrate out to the ocean and instead live their entire lives in the reservoir.

Explore Alder Lake Park Recreation

Salmon Habitat Improvement

Tacoma Power releases water from LaGrande Dam into the Nisqually River to improve fish habitat downstream. During the summer and fall, these flows are higher than naturally occurring flows, creating additional spawning habitat for Chinook and coho salmon and allowing fish to use more of the river.

Tacoma Power also funds the Nisqually Indian Tribe’s Clear Creek Hatchery, which produces approximately four million Chinook smolts and one million coho smolts each year. About 12,000 adult Chinook and up to 4,000 adult coho return to the hatchery annually.