Cedar River Sockeye Hatchery

We produce up to 34 million sockeye fry and release them into the Cedar River each year as part of the Landsburg Mitigation Program.

The sockeye hatchery is part of a long-term commitment to account for blocking sockeye passage upstream of the Landsburg Water Diversion Dam. We produce and monitor sockeye in biologically and environmentally sound ways that minimize detrimental effects on naturally produced salmon in the Watershed.

Adult broodstock collection

Adult sockeye swimming upstream in the Cedar River (Renton, WA) are funneled by a weir into a trap, trucked to the hatchery, and spawned to provide fertilized eggs for the hatchery.

The Muckleshoot Indian Tribe and WDFW also contribute to broodstock collection by collaborating with SPU to haul sockeye by truck from the Ballard Locks.

Fry incubation and rearing

In the Hatchery, sockeye embryos are raised for 5 months to the fry stage in spring water of similar temperature to the Cedar River. Fry are thermally marked on their ear bones (otoliths) and do not have external markings.

Some natural-origin fry captured in the fry trap are sampled each year to compare size and condition to Hatchery fry.  

Fry releases

Hatchery fry are released into the Cedar River each spring. Fry are released at three locations between the Landsburg Diversion dam and Lake Washington.  

Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) works with the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Fish and Wildlife, and NOAA-Fisheries to guide hatchery operations.  We also engage with a stakeholder group (Adaptive Management Work Group) and a technical team (Technical Work Group) to advise on policy and technical aspects of the sockeye program.