chinook – Fishermens News

First Salmon Since 1912 Spotted in Oregon’s Klamath Basin Following Dam Removal

23Oct

By Mark Edward NeroNo Comments

First Salmon Since 1912 Spotted in Oregon’s Klamath Basin Following Dam Removal

On Oct.16, a fall-run Chinook salmon was identified in a tributary to the Klamath River, becoming the first of the fish to return to the Klamath Basin in Oregon since 1912 when the first of four hydroelectric dams was constructed, blocking migration. The salmon – part of a species which travel up rivers from the sea to breed – was identified by Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife fish biologists. The Chinook and others likely traveled about 230 miles from the Pacific Ocean to reach the tributary, months after the Klamath River dams were removed to ensure fish passage from California to Oregon. “This is an exciting and historic development in the Klamath Basin that demonstrates the resiliency of salmon and steelhead,” ODFW Director Debbie Colbert said. “It also inspires us to c...

New Tool Pinpoints River System for Individual Chinook Salmon

2Oct

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New Tool Pinpoints River System for Individual Chinook Salmon

A new tool developed by NOAA Fisheries scientists allows researchers to pinpoint the river system that individual Chinook salmon come from, thereby enabling more precise management and protection of threatened and endangered populations. “It's like giving every fish a unique genetic fingerprint,” Donald Van Doornik, a NOAA Fisheries biologist and lead author of a paper published July 8 in the North American Journal of Fisheries Management, explained. “We can use this fingerprint to figure out where that fish came from by comparing it to other fishes’ DNA,” he added. A Sept. 26 announcement by NOAA Fisheries noted that by identifying specific Chinook populations contributing to mixed-stock fisheries, they’ll be able to design more effective conservation and management strategie...

Chinook Bycatch Shutters Central Gulf of Alaska Whitefish Fishery

2Oct

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Chinook Bycatch Shutters Central Gulf of Alaska Whitefish Fishery

An unprecedented bycatch of some 2,000 Chinook salmon prompted NOAA Fisheries to shut down the whitefish fishery in the Central Gulf of Alaska on Sept. 25, leaving some 50,000 tons of pollock in the water and presenting the makings of economic disaster for Kodiak. Salmon are a prohibited species catch in the whitefish trawl fishery. Two trawlers that caught the bycatch in their nets immediately stopped fishing when they realized the bycatch and alerted the other 17 boats in the fleet to avoid the area, so based on available information, those vessels were compliant with federal regulations, NOAA Fisheries officials said. NOAA Fisheries was continuing to evaluate the data as it became finalized by the observer program to determine if additional in-season management actions were...

3Jul

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Comment Deadline Regarding Alaska Chinook Salmon Petition Extended

NOAA Fisheries has extended through Sept. 6 the deadline for public comment on its 90-day finding regarding a petition to list Gulf of Alaska Chinook salmon as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The 45-day deadline extension was announced on June 27. The agency earlier had set a 60-day public comment period to end on July 23. In advance of its initial findings, NOAA solicited scientific and commercial information about the status of the Gulf of Alaska Chinook population. The agency noted that it’s unable to extend the statutory deadline for completing the status review and publishing a 12-month finding under the ESA. Given that requirement, anyone interested in submitting their comments and data is advised to do so as soon as possible to allow mor...

NOAA to Determine if Chinook Salmon Should Be Declared Endangered

29May

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NOAA to Determine if Chinook Salmon Should Be Declared Endangered

NOAA Fisheries has initiated a review of the status of Gulf of Alaska Chinook salmon, to see if protections under the Endangered Species Act sought by a Seattle conservation group are warranted. NOAA’s May 24 announcement in the Federal Register for a study sought by the Wild Fish Conservancy in Seattle, notes that in reviewing the conservancy’s petition it found numerous factual errors, omissions, incomplete references, and unsupported assertions and conclusions. But the petition contained enough information for a reasonable person to conclude that the petitioned action may be warranted, NOAA said. NOAA said the agency would accept public comment on the petition through July 23. The conservancy, which advocates for more Chinook salmon to feed southern resident orca whales ...

Emergency Action on Bering Sea Chinook Salmon Bycatch Denied

24Apr

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Emergency Action on Bering Sea Chinook Salmon Bycatch Denied

NOAA Fisheries has denied a request to institute a zero cap on Chinook salmon bycatch in the Bering Sea, to ensure no bycatch of Chinook salmon in the Bering Sea pollock fishery, saying the petition did not meet criteria necessary for emergency action. The decision, announced by NOAA Fisheries on April 18, was in response to a petition submitted Jan. 17 by five Native Alaska tribal entities, asking Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo to close the Bering Sea pollock fishery, which opened on Jan. 20. The petition was signed by the Association of Village Council Presidents, Kuskokwim River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission, Tanana Chiefs Conference, Yukon River Drainage Fisheries Association and Yukon River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission. The petitioners also asked the Commerce Department ...

Alaska, Canadian Officials Sign Agreement Aimed at Yukon Chinook Salmon Recovery

3Apr

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Alaska, Canadian Officials Sign Agreement Aimed at Yukon Chinook Salmon Recovery

Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) officials said April 1, that they have signed an agreement with Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) regarding recovery of Chinook salmon in the Yukon River drainage. The agreement is focused on rebuilding those stocks to a level that they can once again provide for subsistence, sport, commercial and personal use fishing opportunities. The agreement implements a suspension of directed Chinook salmon commercial, sport, domestic and personal use fisheries in the mainstem Yukon River and Canadian tributaries for one full life cycle, a total of seven years. “After hearing from people living along the river, it is time to look beyond single year management,” ADF&G Commissioner Doug Vincent-Lang said. “This agreement looks to rebuild o...

Tens of Thousands of Chinook Salmon Discarded as Bycatch in Canadian Trawl Fishery: DFO Report

14Feb

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Tens of Thousands of Chinook Salmon Discarded as Bycatch in Canadian Trawl Fishery: DFO Report

A new report from Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) confirms that an estimated 28,117 salmon were caught and discarded as bycatch in the groundfish trawl fishery off the coast of British Columbia in the 2022-2023 fishing season, including some 26,273 Chinook salmon. The DFO report, released Jan. 22, said that over 20,000 Chinook salmon were likely thrown overboard, while 3,700 were landed and subsequently discarded as waste. The discard of the Chinooks, a major food source for a remaining 75 endangered Southern Resident killer whales, comes as the Canadian government is investing millions of dollars into protecting Southern Resident orca whales, plus millions of dollars to support wild salmon. “The is an appalling waste for not just a salmon species that is listed as threatene...

Unalaska, Tribal Entities at Odds Over Chinook Salmon Bycatch

7Feb

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Unalaska, Tribal Entities at Odds Over Chinook Salmon Bycatch

Increasingly low returns of prized Chinook salmon in Alaska have become a hot new point of contention between the city of Unalaska and tribal entities calling for a cap of zero king salmon bycatch in the Bering Sea pollock trawl fishery. National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) advised the North Pacific Fishery Management Council (NPFMC) on Jan. 28 that six tribal entities have asked NMFS to begin an emergency rulemaking under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA) that would halt the bycatch of Chinook salmon in the Bering Sea pollock travel fishery. The NMFS has urged the NPFMC to review the request and provide input. If the council does not review the request, NMFS is expected to independently review it consistent with section 305(c) (1) of the MSA,...

2023 Runs to All Bristol Bay Districts Exceed Forecasts

27Sep

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2023 Runs to All Bristol Bay Districts Exceed Forecasts

Preliminary data compiled by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game show that the run of sockeye salmon run to Bristol Bay in 2023 was 54.5 million fish, with runs to every district within this easternmost arm of the Bering Sea exceeding preseason forecasts. Data show that the run itself was the eighth largest inshore run since 2003 and 17% above the 46.7 million average run for the latest 20-year period, stretching from 2003 to 2022. All sockeye salmon escapement goals were met or exceeded, with a total bay-wide escapement of 13.9 million fish, according to the preliminary document issued on Sept. 22. The ex-vessel value of salmon harvested in Bristol Bay in 2023, calculated by using the fish ticket weight and price paid for each species, totaled $117.4 million for all salmon...