News briefs

Ready to part with your junk car?
    Methow Recycles is looking for a few good hulks.
    The valley’s non-profit recycling center is testing the waters to see if there are enough residents looking to get rid of junk cars to schedule a metal recycling drive later this spring.
    “This is just testing the waters,” said center manager Betsy Cushman.
    In order to make a metal recycling drive pay for itself, about 80 cars or trucks must be collected. In each of the previous four metal drives – in 1998, 2001, 2004 and 2007 – way more than 80 vehicles were turned in, Cushman said.
    She said she would especially like to hear from people who may have property with a lot of junk vehicles on it where transport to the collection site would be problematic. “I may be able to offer them a really sweet deal,” she said.
    To let Methow Recycles know about your junk cars, call Cushman at 996-2696 or e-mail her at betsy@methow recycles.org.

Chelan Ridge volunteer feted
    HawkWatch International has announced that Richard Hendrick of Brewster is the 2009 volunteer of the year for his work with the Chelan Ridge Raptor Migration Project.
    Volunteers and staff count 2,000 to 3,000 raptors migrating through the eastern Cascade Mountains during autumn from the observation site on Chelan Ridge. The project collects scientific data and serves as an environmental educational opportunity for the public.  
    Hendrick has volunteered for 13 years, donating more than 200 hours each season, helping with site setup, trail maintenance and filling in at count observations. The award was established to recognize the outstanding contributions that volunteers have historically made to enhance the work of HawkWatch and its partners.
    Hendrick has worked at the site since it opened in 1997. He helps capture birds and, using powerful binoculars, can tell when birds are coming before anyone else can see them, said Kent Woodruff, biologist with the Okanogan Wenatchee National Forest, a partner with HawkWatch.
    “Richard is a very active birder in the neighborhood,” said Woodruff. “Richard has worked hard every year and is part of the reason for our success.”

Yakamas expand coho program
    There will be more hatchery salmon and steelhead acclimating in natural ponds and side channels of the Methow and Wenatchee Rivers this year.
    The Northwest Power and Conservation Council has endorsed $4.8 million in funding over the next 10 years to expand the Yakama Nation’s coho acclimation pond programs in both basins to include spring Chinook and steelhead. The Bonneville Power Administration makes the final funding decision and would issue the contract for the project.
    “This is not new production, but an improvement on existing programs at the Methow State Fish Hatchery, Winthrop National Fish Hatchery and Wells Dam,” said Tom Scribner, project manager for the Yakama Nation’s coho reintroduction program.
    He expects the project could release spring Chinook this year at two sites, the Biddle Pond on Wolf Creek and in a pond on the Lost River at the Kicking Mule Ranch.  Sites on the Wenatchee River could be testing multiple species in one pond.
    The project will test the generally accepted concept that acclimating and releasing fish in a manner that mimics natural systems increases the effectiveness of hatchery programs and can improve the viability of Endangered Species Act-listed Chinook and steelhead, according to a memorandum from the council. The funding will support testing the concept, overhead costs, monitoring and evaluation.
    For more information call the Yakama Indian Nation Fisheries office at 996-9846.