Support recreational opportunities by creating, maintaining, and enhancing sport fisheries around the state

The Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW) received a $2.4M formula grant from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service under the Sport Fish Restoration program (CFDA 15.605) for the period of July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026. The grant supports NDOW's core fisheries management operations, including the operation and maintenance of four state hatcheries—Mason Valley Fish Hatchery, Gallagher Fish Hatchery, Lake Mead Fish Hatchery, and Spring Creek Rearing Station—which collectively produce and stock approximately 1.1 million trout annually in Nevada public waters. These facilities culture multiple trout species including rainbow, brown, tiger, cutthroat, and bowcutt to meet the recreational fishing demands of an estimated 120,000 resident and nonresident anglers who fish in Nevada for approximately 1.4 million days annually.

Beyond hatchery operations, the grant funds fisheries monitoring and evaluation activities conducted by NDOW fishery biologists, which inform stocking recommendations and support the development of statewide stocking plans. These services enable NDOW to create recreational angling opportunities where none would naturally exist, maintain and enhance fisheries experiencing intense angling pressure, and rebuild fisheries affected by severe drought conditions. The project advances NDOW's statutory responsibility under the Dingell-Johnson Act to manage sport fish and native sport fish populations while promoting the aesthetic, recreational, and economic value of Nevada's wildlife resources.

The most recent U.S. Fish and wildlife service national survey on fishing, hunting, and wildlife-associated recreation estimates 120,000 thousand resident and nonresident anglers fish in nevada for 1.4 million days annually. Therefore, in order to accommodate this demand, the nevada deaprtment of wildlife (ndow) owns and manages mason valley fish hatchery, gallagher fish hatchery, lake mead fish hatchery, and spring creek rearing station for culturing trout, primarily rainbow, brown, tiger, cutthroat, and bowcutt. Ndow is responsible for promoting and managing public fisheries around the state. As a result, state hatcheries play an important role in fisheries management by providing recreational angling opportunity where none would naturally exist, by maintaining enhancing fisheries where angling pressure is intense, and by rebuilding fisheries affected by severe drought. Ndow hatcheries typically produce and stock about 1.1 million trout annually in public waters. The state of nevada recognizes the value of wildlife for aesthetics, recreational, and economic aspects and gives the department of wildlife authority to administer laws for preservation, protection, management, and restoration of state wildlife. The fisheries division, under the guidance of commission policy p-33, has the responsibility of managing sport fishes and native sport fishes of the state under the provisions of the dingell-johnson act (sport fish restoration program). The monitoring and evaluation of fishery populations and habitats conducted by fishery biologists allow ndow to develop appropriate stocking recommendations. Those recommendations are then used to develop statewide stocking plans which are implemented by the state hatchery program. The overall purpose of the project is to promote, sustain and enhance recreational sport fish populations and provide increased angling satisfaction and opportunity. Receiving federal aid in sport fish restoration enables the agency to fulfill its mission to protect, conserve, manage, and restore wildlife and its habitat for aesthetic, scientific, educational, recreational, and economic benefits to citizens of the state and united states.