Regional: Council Calls for Closure of Salmon Fishing

CBS 5: KPIX San Francisco
04/11/2008

The Pacific Fishery Management Council in Seattle today made the decision to stop salmon fishing in California for the 2008 season, officials announced.

The decision came after the council considered the extremely low number of salmon reported, especially in the Sacramento River. In addition to California, most of Oregon will be included in the fishery closure.

"It wasn't unexpected, but it was a big disappointment," said Zeke Grader of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Association, which is based in San Francisco.

The council's recommendation to close commercial and sport Chinook salmon fisheries in the two states will be forwarded to the National Marine Fisheries Service for approval by May 1.

According to Earthjustice, a law firm dedicated to protecting the environment, water managers on the Sacramento River diverted and pumped an all-time record high of 6.4 million acre feet of water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta in 2005. Juvenile fish that year would have returned as adults in 2007 to migrate through the delta and out to sea.

The lack of fresh water inflow negatively impacted the number of fish, not only in the Sacramento River, but also in the Klamath and Columbia rivers, the firm said.

"This is a disaster for West Coast salmon fisheries, under any standard," said Don Hansen, chairman for the council, in a prepared statement.

"There will be a huge impact on the people who fish for a living, those who eat wild-caught king salmon, those who enjoy recreational fishing, and the businesses and coastal communities dependent on these fisheries," he said.

Grader said he was worried about how the decision would affect fishermen financially.

"We're going to be asking for federal assistance and looking for alternatives to keep our fishermen afloat for the next year or two until we get a chance to fix salmon problem," said Grader in a prepared statement.

He also said he was hoping the council wouldn't let the closure affect catch-and-release studies that were scheduled for this summer. Zeke said such studies help determine the cause of fish shortages.

"These salmon are recoverable if we make smart choices and make them soon," said Todd True, an attorney for Earthjustice. "The science tells us it's not hopeless, but it is increasingly urgent to pay attention and change the way we're managing these three rivers so all people can enjoy salmon again."

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger proclaimed a state of emergency and sent a letter to President Bush asking for federal disaster assistance. He also said he would sign a bill that would appropriate approximately $5.3 million to begin coastal salmon and steelhead fishery restoration projects.

"Today's decision by the Pacific Fishery Management Council underscores our responsibility to quickly free up state and federal resources to help the fishing industry cope with the devastating economic impacts closing the season will have," Schwarzenegger said.

Typically, the salmon season spans from May 1 through Oct. 31 and, between California and Oregon, averaged more than 800,000 Chinook salmon caught annually between 2000 and 2005.