Tag: salmon

Study Shows Changes in Yukon River Discharge May Be Impacting Salmon
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Study Shows Changes in Yukon River Discharge May Be Impacting Salmon

Scientists studying new information on changes in river discharge from winter ice melt and temperature in the Yukon River in Alaska say it may be influencing the timing and duration of juvenile chum, Chinook and coho salmon migrations. They are trying to determine whether, as salmon migrations change, due to shifting environmental conditions, whether it leads to a mismatch with the availability of prey. Katharine Miller, a fish biologist and lead author of the study, which was released on March 20, said the work is important in helping communities better understand what is behind recent declines in salmon abundance and how climate-induced environmental changes may alter migration patterns in future years. The long-term decline of Chinook salmon along the Yukon River since the early 19...
PFMC Offers Alternatives for 2023 West Coast Ocean Salmon Fisheries
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PFMC Offers Alternatives for 2023 West Coast Ocean Salmon Fisheries

The Pacific Fishery Management Council last week adopted three alternatives for 2023 ocean salmon fisheries off the coasts of Washington, Oregon and California, all in advance of its plan to make a final decision on salmon seasons during its April 1-7 meeting. Detailed information about season starting dates, areas open and catch limits for the three alternatives are on online at the council’s website: www.pcouncil.org. The council noted that forecasts for West Coast Chinook and coho stocks in 2023 are a mixed bag, with some low and high points when compared to 2022 stocks. Federal requirements to conserve Canada’s Fraser River coho, lower Columbia River natural tule Chinook, Klamath River fall Chinook and Sacramento River fall Chinook are the main constraints for this year’s ocean sal...
Washington Salmon Still Face Multiple Challenges: State Report
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Washington Salmon Still Face Multiple Challenges: State Report

Salmon at every phase of their lives are continuing to struggle from the impact of climate change and other challenges, including habitat loss, according to the latest biennial report of the Washington state Salmon Recovery Office. “We can’t wait to save them – we have to invest in their recovery right away by restoring habitats and doing everything possible to repel threats to their survival,” Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said. Data compiled for the “State of Salmon in Watersheds” report concludes that of the 14 population groups of salmon and steelhead in Washington listed as at-risk of extinction under the federal Endangered Species Act 10 are in crisis or falling further from recovery goals. The report, released in late February, and accompanying website, https://stateofsalmon.wa.go...
Registration Opens for 2023 Washington Salmon Recovery Conference
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Registration Opens for 2023 Washington Salmon Recovery Conference

Registration has opened for the ninth biennial Salmon Recovery Conference, scheduled for April 18-19, featuring salmon recovery projects, research, monitoring and more in Washington state. The event is expected to bring together over 650 salmon recovery professionals to share their work aimed at recovering salmon. The draft schedule for the event, which takes place at the Vancouver Convention Center, is online at the conference website, https://rco.wa.gov/salmon-recovery/salmon-recovery-conference/. Early registration is open until March 8 and regular registration closes April 7. Ticket prices vary, with discounts available for student, nonprofit, tribal and virtual attendees. The Salmon Recovery Conference is offered every other year by the Washington State Salmon Recovery Funding B...
Testimony Challenges Exploitation of Alaska’s Area M Commercial Salmon Fleet
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Testimony Challenges Exploitation of Alaska’s Area M Commercial Salmon Fleet

Written testimony now up for consideration by the Alaska Board of Fisheries, which is meeting Feb. 20-25 in Anchorage, challenges allowing Area M commercial salmon harvesters to continue to exploit these declining mixed stock fisheries without restriction. The testimony, from University of Washington fisheries research professor Daniel Schindler, contends that allowing such harvests to continue is antithetical to the sustained yield principle of the Alaska Constitution and in direct conflict with Alaska’s Sustainable Salmon Policy. The 2022 commercial salmon harvest for Area M was estimated by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game at 160.7 million fish, valued at about $720.4 million. That compared with a 2021 total harvest of 233.8 million fish valued at $643.9 million. Schindler’s ...
Update on Hatchery Fish Impact on Wild Salmon Due in 2023
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Update on Hatchery Fish Impact on Wild Salmon Due in 2023

Researchers with the North Pacific Anadromous Fish Commission (NPAFC) in Vancouver, Canada, said they anticipate including the latest hatcheries related research in their upcoming 2023-2027 science plan, in hope the data would be used to improve management to support salmon stocks. “Scientists are focused on density dependent and carry capacity issues to understand how salmon growth and survival are affected by hatchery and wild salmon abundance and quantify the current limits to salmon production at each life stage,” NPAFC Executive Director Vladimir Radchenko said. “The ability of the Pacific Ocean to produce salmon is not constant, and for the most part, the limits are not known,” he explained. “A general concern is that competition among different salmon populations may lead to low...
Cook Inlet Commercial Salmon Fishery Run Exceeds Preseason Forecast
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Cook Inlet Commercial Salmon Fishery Run Exceeds Preseason Forecast

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s preliminary summary of the Upper Cook Inlet commercial salmon fishery shows the area’s sockeye salmon total run of 5.2 million fish was 6% greater than the preseason forecast of 4.9 million fish. The commercial salmon fishery harvest of 1.4 million salmon however was 44% less than the recent 10-year average annual harvest of 2.5 million fish. The 2022 ex-vessel value of all salmon species was $12.3 million and 535 less than the previous 10-year average annual ex-vessel value of $23.0 million. ADF&G biologists said that of the five species of Pacific salmon harvested in Upper Cook Inlet the sockeye salmon accounted for 91% of the total ex-vessel value over the past decade.   The 2022 chinook salmon harvest of 2,278 fish is the lowest on reco...
Washington Cancels Net Pen Salmon Farm Leases
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Washington Cancels Net Pen Salmon Farm Leases

Washington state officials have declined to renew expired leases for two remaining finfish net pens citing the damage done in the Cypress Island net pen collapse of 2017. The state’s Department of Natural Resources in mid-November informed Cooke Aquaculture, based in Saint John, Canada, that the agency would not renew the two aquaculture facilities leases in Rich Passage off Bainbridge Island and off Hope Island in Skagit Bay. Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz said that the catastrophic event sparked an effort to terminate finfish net pen operations due to lease violations. “Despite years of litigation – and a company that has fought us every step of the way – we are not able to deny lease renewals for the remaining net pen sites,” Franz said. The decision will return those w...
UBC Researchers Begin Study of Road Salt Impacts on Salmon
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UBC Researchers Begin Study of Road Salt Impacts on Salmon

A new five-year study by University of British Columbia researchers will focus on the impact of road salt on salmon habitat and baby salmon and how the public can help reduce potential impact from road salt. The study, announced in early November, noted that Pacific salmon are in decline and posed the question of whether too much salt in critical salmon streams could be a cause. Adult salmon live in salt water but grow up in fresh water and there’s evidence that quite moderate salt levels at a young age causes mortality and stunted growth in these fish. The study itself will focus on the region around Vancouver, British Columbia, also known as the Lower Mainland. There is currently relatively limited monitoring of salt levels in the area’s creeks and streams, although there are various...
1st Meeting of NPFMC Salmon Bycatch Committee Set
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1st Meeting of NPFMC Salmon Bycatch Committee Set

A new Salmon Bycatch Committee formed by the North Pacific Fishery Management Council is set to hold its first meeting on Monday, Nov. 28. Council members Andy Mezirow, owner of Gray Light Fisheries in Seward, and Rachel Baker, deputy director of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G), were named as co-chairs. Others appointed to the council’s task force include Ruth Christiansen, United Catcher Boats; Oscar Evon Coastal, Coastal Villages Region Fund; Serena Fitka, Yukon River Drainage Fisheries Association; Jennifer Hooper, Association of Village Council Presidents; Mellisa Johnson, Arctic-Yukon-Kuskokwim Tribal Consortium; Stephanie Madsen, At-Sea Processors Association; Elizabeth Reed, Westward Seafoods; Steve Ricci, Bristol Bay Economic Development Corp; Kevin Whitworth...