TISHOMINGO, OK - Although you may not be heading out the lake to fish anytime soon, it's one local fish hatchery's job to make sure when you do the fish will be there. Dara Downs visited the Tishomingo National Fish Hatchery.

The Tishomingo National Fish Hatchery is the only national fish hatchery in the state of Oklahoma, and now thanks to Recovery Act Funds almost $115,000 in federal grant money they'll be make improvements that are vital to the future of the hatchery.

Manager of the Tishomingo National Fish Hatchery Kerry Graves says these 50-year-old business buildings lose a lot of cold and heat, meaning big electricity bills, which Graves said can be hard in a down economy.

"Well the economy is hurting and our budget is tight, and so every little bit that we can save will be important," Graves says.

The two grants the fish hatchery was awarded by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services will go toward putting in more energy efficient windows and doors, as well as adding liners like these to two of the fish ponds.

That's something Graves says will make a big difference in the summer when water levels drop.

"There going to be beneficial year round just in water conservation. The water that we save in those ponds we have a lot of other uses, and we have a lot of other ponds we can divert the water to."

Graves says one of the main goals of the fish hatchery is to prevent species of fish and aquatic creatures from disappearing like the alligator snapping turtle, which Graves says was down to only two populations in the state a few years ago.

Assistant project manager Ralph Simmons says the hatchery plays an important role in keeping native fish in Oklahoma.

"Oklahomans should be proud of the paddle fish. We have one of the best populations of paddle fish in the world, so while Oklahomans may take them for granted, if you travel around the country there aren't very many paddle fish. "

Graves says because the fish hatchery is the only one of its kind, these improvements will not only help now, but for years to come.

"It's a great feeling. These are improvements that we've needed to make for many years, and it's wonderful to be able to get the improvements made."

Graves says the exceptional cold and wet winter has delayed the two improvement projects, but he says they hope to have them done later this Spring.