The Pacific Fishery Management Council is charged with deciding whether there will be any salmon fishing off the California coast this year, or whether to designate a marginal fall fishery that would make this year just a bit better than last. On the table is one option, out of three, that would give fishermen 10 days to fish.

If the council chooses that option, it would be by the slimmest of margins. It has to make a decision based on an expected return of chinook salmon to the Sacramento River of at least 122,000, while current projections suggest 122,196 should return.

”We've got 196 fish to play with, folks,” said the council's Dan Wolford. “That's not very much.”

The California option that would allow fishing off the far north of the state assumes that very few Sacramento River salmon would be caught in a season that runs from Aug. 29 to Sept. 7. The theory is that most fish off the Eureka and Crescent City areas would be those returning to the Klamath River. Expectations for the Klamath River's fall run are strong this year.

Casey Allen with Humboldt Area Saltwater Anglers said that closing the fishery altogether would make for a repeat of last year's disastrous fishless season, which hit fishermen and businesses hard.

”We just want to go fishing and we think that all actions should be taken to make that happen,” Allen said.

A number of fishermen pleaded with the council for any fishery at all.

Tim Klassen with Reel Steel Sportfishing said that when salmon season is canceled, clients cancel too, and often don't come back. Just a short season would help, he said.

Others felt that the council should consider revising its potential choices to include a season 15 days long, perhaps starting earlier in August.

Several Klamath River fishermen welcomed the 30,000 fish being allocated to in-river fishermen this year -- but seriously doubted they could ever catch that many. Given that last year's allocation of 22,500 salmon wasn't even close to being caught, but the required number of wild spawning salmon didn't meet expectations, E.B. Duggan with the Trinity River Guides Association called for caution.

If those projections are wrong again this year, Duggan said, it could continue to harm the river's salmon and fishing opportunities into the future.

The council will set seasons at its hearing beginning next week in Millbrae.