Kornfield and his colleagues will determine the impact that hatchery raised salmon have had on native fish stocks in the eight proposed river runs which include the Narragauagus, Pleasant, Machias, East Machias, Dennys, Sheepscot Ducktrap and Cove Brook rivers.
The problem is that the fish that formed the base of thehatchery brood stock used to replenish salmon in Maine's rivers came from the Penobscot River until 1992, when state officials began a river-specific stocking program that placed descendents only in rivers their stock came from.
"No previous study has allowed the evaluation of the impact of hatchery stocking activities on Penobscot river Salmon, " said Chris Lage, a graduate student working with Kornfield on the study.