Looming Salmon Closures Will Hurt Coastal and Inland Communities 

by Dan Bacher
March 22, 2008  

Coastal communities will be devastated by the looming closure of commercial and recreational ocean salmon fishing seasons off the California and Oregon coast. The cities of Sacramento , Knights Landing, Colusa, Corning , Red Bluff and Redding and other Central Valley communities will also also face losses of revenue generated by recreational salmon fishing.

Although the Bush and Schwarzenegger administrations have tried to avoid any responsibility for this fishery collapse, it becomes clearer every day that federal and state mismanagement of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and the Central Valley rivers have played a huge role in the collapse.

"In California and Oregon south of Cape Falcon (in northern Oregon ), where Sacramento fish stocks have the biggest impact, the commercial and recreational salmon fishery had an average economic value of $103 million per year between 1979 and 2004," according to a statement from the Pacific Fishery Management Council on March 21. "From 2001 to 2005, average economic impact to communities was $61 million ($40 million in the commercial fishery and $21 million in the recreational fishery)."

The Bush administration says that the reason for the sudden collapse of the Sacramento fall Chinook stock is "not readily apparent," but fishing, tribal and environmental groups point to massive water exports from the California Delta in recent years and rapidly declining water quality in Central Valley rivers as the key factors behind the fishery collapse. Although the ocean conditions were undoubtedly poor, many of the fish never made it to the ocean because they were sucked into the massive state and federal export pumps in the Delta or starved as they migrated through the estuary, due to the collapse of the Delta food chain.

Photo: Zeke Grader, executive director of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations (PCFFA), explains how dramatic increases in Delta exports correspond directly with salmon fishery declines.

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Federal and State Governments Announce Emergency Closures, Public Meetings

by Dan Bacher

Faced by the unprecedented collapse of Sacramento River fall chinook salmon, the state and federal governments on March 21 announced emergency closures of early ocean salmon fishing seasons off California and Oregon, as well as the schedule of their upcoming meetings to chose a final option for the 2008 season starting May 1.

The federal Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) have taken "emergency action" to close the ocean sport fishery between Horse Mountain and Point Arena ( Fort Bragg and Shelter Cove areas) on April 1, 2008 , according to a "Salmon Fishing Update" released by the California Department of Fish and Game on March 21.

In addition, emergency action was taken to close the April 5 sportfishing openers in San Francisco and Monterey port areas (south of Point Arena to the U.S.-Mexico Border).

The Fish and Game Commission will consider emergency action on March 28 to conform to the PFMC actions affecting state waters. The Commission is expected to approve the emergency salmon fishing closures in state waters, those ocean waters within 3 miles of shore.

"These actions are being taken to protect Sacramento River fall Chinook salmon which returned to the Central Valley in 2007 at record low numbers," according to the DFG. "Even if all ocean sport and commercial fisheries are closed throughout California , salmon returns are not projected to meet the escapement goals required by the PFMC Salmon Fishery Management Plan."

The PFMC has produced three ocean salmon fishing season options (effective May 1, 2008 through April 30, 2009 ) for public comment.

Option 1 provides very limited commercial and sport fishing after May 18.

Option 2 provides no commercial or sport fishing after March 31 but allows a non-retention research project to collect tissue samples for genetic stock identification analyses.

Option 3 provides no fishing between Cape Falcon , Oregon and the U.S.- Mexico border.

On April 1, the PFMC will hold a public hearing meeting in Eureka to receive comments on the proposed ocean salmon fishery management options adopted by the PFMC. The PFMC will then meet April 7-11 in Seattle to adopt a final regulatory packet from the three options listed above.

On the same day, the PFMC released a statement formally announcing its April 7-12 meeting in Seattle , Washington , where an option for managing West Coast salmon fisheries will be chosen and recommended to National Marine Fisheries Service.

On March 14, the Council adopted three public review options for the 2008 salmon season, two of which would totally close fisheries for Chinook salmon off California and most of Oregon . Seasons for northern Oregon and Washington were also drastically reduced. The Council is scheduled to take final action to choose a single option on Thursday, April 10.

“The 2008 salmon season considerations have been dominated by the unprecedented collapse of the large Sacramento River fall Chinook stock,” said Council Executive Director Donald McIsaac. “Council members will now take a final vote on whether any fishing on Sacramento fish should be allowed in the ocean this year.”

The Sacramento River is the driver of commercial and recreational fisheries off California and southern Oregon . The minimum conservation goal for Sacramento fall Chinook is 122,000 – 180,000 spawning adult salmon.

As recently as 2002, 775,000 adults returned to spawn. This year, even with all ocean salmon fishing closed, the return of fall run Chinook to the Sacramento is projected to be only 58,200. Under the option that allows small fisheries in specific areas, returns would be approximately 51,900.

"The economic implications of the low abundance of Sacramento River fall Chinook salmon could be substantial for commercial, recreational, marine and freshwater fisheries," according to the PFMC.

In California and Oregon south of Cape Falcon (in northern Oregon ), where Sacramento fish stocks have the biggest impact, the commercial and recreational salmon fishery had an average economic value of $103 million per year between 1979 and 2004. From 2001 to 2005, average economic impact to communities was $61 million ($40 million in the commercial fishery and $21 million in the recreational fishery).

"The potential closure is devastating news to beleaguered salmon fleets on the west coast," the PFMC said. "California and Oregon ocean salmon fisheries are still recovering from a poor fishing season in 2005 and a disastrous one in 2006, when Klamath River fall Chinook returns were below theirspawning escapement goal. The catch of salmon in 2007 in these areas was also well below average, as the first effects of the Sacramento River fall Chinook stock collapse was felt."

The PFMC and National Marine Fisheries maintain that the reason for the sudden collapse of the Sacramento fall Chinook stock is "not readily apparent." Although the Bush administration has tried to blame the collapse on "ocean conditions in previous statements," the National Marine Fisheries Service appears to be softening their hard line on this, faced by increasing criticism by fishing groups, Indian Tribes and environmental groups that "ocean conditions" are being used as a smokescreen to cover up the big role that export pumping, water pollution and habitat destruction have played in the Sacramento River salmon collapse.

"The National Marine Fisheries Service has suggested ocean temperature changes, and a resulting lack of upwelling, as a possible cause of the sudden decline," the PFMC stated. "Many biologists believe a combination of human-caused and natural factors are to blame, including freshwater in-stream water withdrawals, habitat alterations, dam operations, construction, pollution, and changes in hatchery operations."

The Council has requested a multi-agency task force led by the National Marine Fisheries Service’s West Coast Science Centers to research about 50 potential causative areas and report back to the Council at the September meeting in Boise , Idaho .

“After everyone asks how this could have happened, the question then becomes ‘is there anything we can do to fix it?’,” said Council Chairman Don Hansen. “The Council will take an immediate step to fix what it has authority to fix, which is appropriately managing the ocean fisheries that affect this valuable resource.”

The Council will accept public comment on the salmon options until April 1, and at its April 7-12 meeting in Seattle , Washington . Comments may be sent to the Pacific Fishery Management Council, 7700 NE Ambassador Place, Suite 101 , Portland , OR 97220 , emailed to pfmc.comments [at] noaa.gov, or faxed to (503) 820-2299. Meanwhile, scientists will also review the options to determine the effects on salmon and on the coastal economy.

Public hearings to receive input on the options are scheduled for March 31 in Westport , Washington and Coos Bay , Oregon , and for April 1 in Eureka , California . In addition, the California Fish and Game Commission will make a decision on California ’s state-managed salmon fisheries on April 17.

At its meeting in Seattle , the Council will consult with its scientific and fishery stakeholder advisory bodies, hear public comment, and choose a final option for ocean commercial and recreational salmon fishing. Final Council action is scheduled for Thursday, April 10. The National Marine Fisheries Service is expected to make a decision to implement the Council recommendation into federal regulations before May 1. The California Fish and Game Commission will set freshwater seasons affecting Sacramento fall Chinook salmon later in 2008.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council is one of eight regional fishery management councils established by the Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976 for the purpose of managing fisheries 3-200 miles offshore of the United States of America coastline. The Pacific Council recommends management measures for fisheries off the coasts of California , Oregon , and Washington .

Pacific Fishery Management Council: http://www.pcouncil.org

Options for 2008 salmon management: http://www.pcouncil.org/salmon/salcurr.html#saloptions08

Schedule of hearings: http://www.pcouncil.org/events/2008/salproc08.html#hearings  

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Source:  http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/03/22/18488003.php