Salmon report spells disaster for local fisherman; “it’s probably going to be worse than anything we’ve experienced before”

From Inside Bay Area:

Local fishermen saw doom in a report released Tuesday warning that the Sacramento River’s fall chinook salmon population fell by two-thirds in 2007 and is headed for collapse, according to data from the federal government. The sharp drop in chinook, or “king,” salmon returning from the Pacific Ocean to spawn in the Sacramento River led the Pacific Fishery Management Council, which released Tuesday’s report, to suggest that it may be necessary to close the salmon season entirely.

That would spell disaster for both commercial and recreational fishermen at Pillar Point Harbor, who typically depend on the salmon and Dungeness crab seasons for their entire incomes. Poor salmon returns from the Klamath River in 2006 and 2007 previously caused regulators to cut the first month and a half of salmon season, which normally starts May 1, resulting in untold financial losses for fishermen.

Those losses would be compounded by an even poorer season this year. And the pain would be borne not just by fishermen, but by all the groups that benefit from salmon season — from processors to bait shops, RV parks, and fishing guides along the Klamath River.

Duncan MacLean, a Half Moon Bay fisherman who is on a team that advises the fishery council, said he’s bracing for hard times.

“It’s probably going to be worse than anything we’ve experienced before,” said MacLean, 58, who relies on salmon fishing for as much as 70 percent of his income.  “It’s going to put a lot of us out of business.”

To read the full text of this article from Inside Bay Area, click here.

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