This is just one post in the Endangered Species & Wildlife Category

A fisherman’s view of the salmon crisis

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on April 29, 2008 at 5:37 am

From the Sacramento Bee, this commentary, written by Dave Bitts, a fisherman, as well as board member and secretary of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations and Humboldt Fishermen’s Marketing Association:

I wanted to become a salmon fisherman the first time I saw boats trolling around Bodega Bay and Fort Bragg as a kid. I have always approached this business with the attitude that we must leave the salmon fishery in good shape for the next generation.

Now, I worry whether we will leave our children and grandchildren any salmon at all. We’ve abused our rivers to the point that the fish are on the verge of permanently vanishing. Commercial and recreational fishermen, ice houses, fuel docks, boat yards, gear stores and other businesses could disappear along with the salmon.

Mr. Bitts commentary discusses the salmon crisis from the first person view, and he believes that the salmon crisis is due to poor management of the watersheds. He ends with this:

Like most fishermen, I’m willing to forgo fishing this season. But for decades, the government’s main fish recovery strategy has been to force more restrictions on fishermen, while ignoring flow and water quality issues. This is true in spite of the hundreds of millions that have been spent on restoration projects. The result is fewer salmon and fewer fishermen. We’re not addressing the real cause.

We need Congress to immediately investigate the West Coast salmon crisis. Tell your senators and representatives to make sure federal agencies stop suppressing science and start following the law. In addition, West Coast fishermen and the broader economic community that depends upon salmon for its livelihood need immediate disaster relief.

Most of all, tell our leaders: We owe it to our coastal communities, to the hard-working families who have depended upon fishing for 150 years and to everyone who enjoys salmon for dinner, or even just knowing salmon are around, to make our rivers safe for salmon so we all have a future. If we can’t learn to coexist with salmon, are any wild creatures safe from us?

Read the full text of this commentary in the Sacramento Bee by clicking here.

April 29, 2008 · Filed Under Endangered Species & Wildlife, Salmon