A Salmon State of Affairs (PT. 1)

In the Pacific northwest each year there is a migration of anadromous fish that is unrivaled, in size and scope, by any other on the coast. Each year the Pacific salmon move from their ocean environments and return back to their home river spawning grounds. Yet, the salmon do not always find a hospitable environment upon return to these spawning grounds. They, in general, have not found ideal conditions for survival anywhere in their life's cycle. Many reasons contribute and create inhospitable environments for the salmons life journey, but nothing comes close to the negative effects and impacts of human affairs upon that journey. Salmon struggle with problems that have come with expanding human populations. In our State of California we have almost 40 million residents that all, in some way or another, impact a salmon s journey. A number of reports have chronicled the large declines and localized extinctions of many of our California Salmon.

The people in California, whose jobs and communities depend on fish to sustain themselves have taken a beating. Resources departments and communities have been totally inundated and overwhelmed by the intricacies and magnitude of the problem facing our salmon sticks.
In my own lifetime I have season shutdowns, season closures, local extinction, and experienced a sense of hopelessness in the outlook for the future of California salmon runs.
Questions come to mind:
Why are salmon declines going unnoticed by most California residents?
Who or what agencies are responsible for finding solutions to this unprecedented state of salmon affairs?
What, at this point, can be done to reverse the recent trends in salmon numbers?
I am keenly aware of the plight these fish face, and as a California fisherman I am deeply disturbed and frustrated by policies being implemented to "save our salnon". I have come to no direct opinions as to who is at fault, nor will I intend to point fingers at people or agencies. That rhetoric has kept the wheels spinning in courts around our State meanwhile our fish continue to disappear. By the way, these are OUR fish..in a sense of stewardship and responsibility of caretaking of our State resources. Who else is going to do it? What are we waiting for to happen? The complete extinction of our State salmon fisheries, like the once famed Coast Atlantic salmon stocks now gone? There is only one thing I am certain that is the case and that is the fish themselves are the only innocents in this fight. The responsibility for California salmon runs rests on US - Fishermen, Resource management agencies, residents, and local governments. We must fight, and win, this battle to save our fisheries and give the salmon s fighting chance to survive their incredible life cycle. We must ensure that our children will be able to enjoy the quality of our California fisheries we once had. We cannot take for granted that we will always have this opportunity to do something great. To be the stewards of California fisheries is a monumental challenge that will require sacrifices, comprising, and a ton of understanding. We must overcome this paralysis we have been stuck in to do something now to save our fisheries before it's simply too late. (Part 1) TBC...
-Paul (GSF Admin)