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Salmon Crisis Comes to a Head
by
findingDulcinea Staff
Due to a mass disappearance of salmon in the Sacramento River, the fishing season has been cancelled. West Coast states are seeking federal aid.
30-Second Summary
Governors of California, Oregon and Washington sent a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi requesting emergency aid for West Coast salmon fishermen and fishing communities. The three states are expected to lose $290 million and over 4,200 jobs as a result of a recent Sacramento River fishery closure.
Earlier this month, the entire chinook salmon fishing season was cancelled in California and Oregon after salmon began to disappear in huge numbers from the Sacramento River, an important spawning location for Pacific Coast fish.
Fishermen worry that without federal assistance, the cancellation of the fishing season will put them out of business. Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire said, “What’s really needed is help from Congress and the Bush administration.”
According to the New York Times, some blame the salmons' disappearance on federal and state water managers’ mishandling of the Sacramento River. However, state and federal officials and biologists suggest that unusual ocean currents depleted the salmons' food supply.
Although policymakers can do little to alter oceanic conditions, they can work to restore freshwater habitats. “That means a multi-state effort to restore tributaries, provide cool water for salmon, removed unneeded dams, retrofit unscreened diversions of water and reduce pollution,” said an editorial in The Sacramento Bee.
Salmon prices are expected to skyrocket, according to the U.S. News & World Report. Today, fresh-caught salmon sells for more than $5.00 per pound, but just three years ago, the price hovered around $1.75.
Earlier this month, the entire chinook salmon fishing season was cancelled in California and Oregon after salmon began to disappear in huge numbers from the Sacramento River, an important spawning location for Pacific Coast fish.
Fishermen worry that without federal assistance, the cancellation of the fishing season will put them out of business. Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire said, “What’s really needed is help from Congress and the Bush administration.”
According to the New York Times, some blame the salmons' disappearance on federal and state water managers’ mishandling of the Sacramento River. However, state and federal officials and biologists suggest that unusual ocean currents depleted the salmons' food supply.
Although policymakers can do little to alter oceanic conditions, they can work to restore freshwater habitats. “That means a multi-state effort to restore tributaries, provide cool water for salmon, removed unneeded dams, retrofit unscreened diversions of water and reduce pollution,” said an editorial in The Sacramento Bee.
Salmon prices are expected to skyrocket, according to the U.S. News & World Report. Today, fresh-caught salmon sells for more than $5.00 per pound, but just three years ago, the price hovered around $1.75.
Headline Links: West Coast fishermen in need
The Oregonian reports that governors of California, Oregon and Washington sent a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi requesting emergency aid for West Coast salmon fishermen and fishing communities. According to the letter, the three West Coast states expect to lose $290 million and over 4,200 jobs as a result of the fishery's closure.
Source: The Oregonian (Associated Press)
On April 11, 2008, U.S. News & World Report wrote that the cancellation of the entire season of chinook salmon fishing in California and Oregon is the first time that Pacific Fishery Management Council has taken such a drastic measure in its 22-year history. The ban was the result of months of deliberation. California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger requested federal disaster assistance and declared a state of emergency following the announcement of the ban.
Source: U.S. News & World Report
Fishermen worry that without federal assistance, the cancellation of the fishing season will put them out of business, reports SanLouisObispo.com. State government funding can only go so far, according to Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire. “What’s really needed is help from Congress and the Bush administration,” she said. Meanwhile, some fishermen are helping themselves, traveling great distances to pursue salmon. Moro Bay salmon and albacore fisherman Craig Barbre went to Alaska in 2007 to pursue salmon, and plans to do so again in 2008.
Source: SanLouisObispo.com (The Tribune)
Background: Examining the ban and the disappearance
Oregon newspaper The Register Guard reported that most fishermen were in favor of a West Coast-wide closure of the salmon fishing season. The reason, said Jeff Reeves of the Oregon Salmon Commission, is that the alternative option of a limited fishing season would require that the overall salmon population not fall below a certain point. That “floor” would be too restrictive and difficult to stay above.
Source: The Register Guard
According to the New York Times, some fishermen blame the salmon disappearance on federal and state water managers’ mishandling of the Sacramento River. It is possible that too much water was drained, or that water was drained at the wrong time, leaving salmon vulnerable to disease and predators. However, state and federal officials and biologists suggest that “highly unusual ocean conditions in 2005” could have depleted the salmon’s food supply.
Source: New York Times
Related Topics: Salmon aren’t the only struggling fish
Development has led to fish being killed all over the United States. Sometimes, the cause is clear, such as in Grand Island, Neb., where more than 10,000 fish were killed in March 2008 because of pollution from the city’s wastewater treatment plant and a local company. While in Virginia’s James River, fish have been mysteriously dying each winter since 2004.
Source: findingDulcinea
Opinion & Analysis: How to help the salmon
An editorial in The Sacramento Bee newspaper questioned scientists regarding the Sacramento River salmon disappearance: “Is this change in the ocean temporary? Or is it a harbinger of a more permanent transition caused by climate change?” Although policymakers can do little to alter oceanic conditions, they can work to restore salmon habitat, said the editorial. “That means a multi-state effort to restore tributaries, provide cool water for salmon, remove unneeded dams, retrofit unscreened diversions of water and reduce pollution.”
Source: The Sacramento Bee
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