A salmon summit, convened by Congresswoman Jackie Speier (D-San Francisco/San Mateo) and Congressman Mike Thompson (D-St. Helena) to address the decline of California’s salmon runs and what is needed to restore them, drew a standing room only crowd of over 200 people to the Maverick’s Lodge and Conference Center in Half Moon Bay on December 4.
“I am deeply troubled by all of the science that has been done while we are watching an entire species die,” said Speier. “We’re not going to wait 15 to 20 years when such a profound impact is being seen on the ecosystem right now. While the Bay Delta Conservation Plan must go forward, we got to do something for the immediate future.”
Speier emphasized that the estimated value of full recovery of the Central Valley Chinook salmon runs could provide 94,000 new jobs and $5.7 billion in annual revenue for the state.
“There is an economic reason for the salmon fishery to remain strong – it’s about heritage and jobs that go back generations,” concurred Thompson. “It also about the future of our environment. The salmon are the canary in the cave – if salmon populations aren’t healthy, something is wrong in the watershed.”
The event featured three panels of salmon experts, Caleen Sisk-Franco, chief of the Winnemem Wintu Tribe, Federico Barajas of the US Bureau of Reclamation, Jerry Johns from the California Department of Water Resources and Rod McGuiness of the National Marine Fisheries Service
Panel 1 provided an overview of water and fish science and the impacts on the commercial and sportfishing industry. Panelists included Christina Swanson, executive director and chief scientist of the Bay Institute, Zeke Grader, executive director of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations, and Dick Pool, the owner of Pro-Troll Fishing Products, administrator of Water 4 fish and board member of the American Sportfishing Foundation.
While Rod McGinnis of the National Marine Fisheries Service in his talk blamed “ocean conditions” for the collapse, Pool displayed charts documenting the direct correlation between water exports out of the California Delta and the collapse. Pool emphasized the seriousness of the salmon collapse and outlined some solutions.
“The fall run salmon population has declined from nearly 800,000 fish in 2002 to only 39,500 fish in 2009,” said Pool. “This is the largest salmon crash in US history. It is a 97 percent crash – the run in 2009 was only 3 percent of what it was in 2002.”
Even worse is the status of natural spawning fish. “The National Marine Fisheries Service said there are were only 10,000 of these fish in 2009,” said Pool. “We need hatchery fish, but we need to build the wild stocks. However it is business as usual; Rome is burning and nothing happens.”
He emphasized, “We need immediate actions now, we need things done now or we will never fish again.”
He said the biological opinions and Endangered Species Acts are now under attack – and asked for guidance from the Representatives about the most effective methods to defend these efforts to protect the salmon.
Pool suggested conducting a study on salmon smolt trucking around the Delta. “We know that ninety-two percent of the salmon smolts are lost in the Delta, and we’re not getting the returns of hatchery fish from the trucking program that we thought we would get, so the agencies need to do an immediate study on the trucking program,” stated Pool.
He also said the Bureau of Reclamation needs to close the Delta Cross Channel Gates gets so that Mokelumne River salmon don’t stray into the Sacramento River system, but instead go into the Mokelumne. He said the capacity of the Mokelumne River Fish Hatchery, the DFG’s most modern fish hatchery, needs to be fully utilized.
Grader acknowledged the role of declining water quality and other factors in the collapse, but emphasized that all other factors are related to flows through the Delta.
”We have in the coal industry climate deniers who claim there is no climate change,” quipped Grader. “Now we have flow deniers such as Westlands Water District and some agencies who want to deny the need Delta freshwater flows.”
He said that solutions to increased water supply can be found through increased water conservation, water recycling, ground water management and a push for green, sustainable de-salinization.
Panel 2 focused on “The People: Commercial, charter and sports fishermen.” This panel included Duncan MacLean, a commercial fisherman and captain of the Barbara Faye out of Pillar Point, Jacky Douglas, the well known charter boat captain of the Wacky Jacky, and Mark Gorelnick, a recreational salmon angler who sits on the board of directors of the Coastside Fishing Club and the advisory board of the West coast Highliners.
Panel 3 addressed the business and economic impact of the salmon collapse and featured representatives of the food industry, harbors and small businesses. This panel included Paul Johnson, the owner of Monterey Fish Market, Paul Grenell, the general manager of the San Mateo County Harbor District, and Peggy Beckett, the owner of Huck Finn Sportfishing in Pillar Point Harbor.
After the third panel finished, Caleen Sisk-Franco, the chief and spiritual leader of the Winnemem Wintu Tribe, outlined one of the most creative solutions to restoring salmon proposed at the summit – the tribe’s plan to get winter run chinook past Shasta Dam back into the McCloud River.
“We were the first scientists – we’re salmon people,” she said. “After the Baird Fish Hatchery was built on the McCloud River in the 1870’s, our fish were shipped around the nation and to New Zealand.”
She reported on the tribe’s trip to New Zealand in spring 2010 to conduct joint ceremonies with the Maori people and to arrange bringing back the original winter run chinook salmon eggs to the U.S. from the Rakaira River.
While the Maori and New Zealand governments said they would provide winter chinook eggs to be reintroduced into the McCloud, the U.S. government is reluctant to do this, claiming that the fish have adapted to a shorter river and estuary and may not re-adapt to the Sacramento system and Bay-Delta, according to Sisk-Franco.
“While these governments are working with us, it’s our own government that is saying that we must do to do these studies to find out whether the salmon will survive the 300 mile journey,” said Sisk-Franco.
“We are asking the commercial and recreational fishermen to work with us in getting these fish to come back to the McCloud,” she said. “The Indian people know that if the salmon are gone, so will we.”
After Sisk-Franco spoke, Thompson and Speier vowed to fight for the restoration of salmon.
"We've got the law on our side, we've got the science on our side and you've seen today the beginning of a very, very strong organization," said Thompson.
“We will take our show on the road to the 74 harbors throughout the state,” vowed Speier. “When Californians hear about what’s really going on, I think they will rise up.”