A federal court ruling this week has thrown into doubt the future of a valuable commercial king salmon fishery in Southeast Alaska.
Endangered orcas swim in Puget Sound and in view of the Olympic Mountains just west of Seattle, as seen from a federal research vessel that has been tracking the whales in 2014.
The ruling means the federal agency will have to consider anew the effects of the fishery on orcas and on protected Puget Sound and Columbia River salmon stocks and whether a plan to offset the harvest by releasing more king salmon from hatcheries is sound. NOAA Fisheries said Wednesday it is still reviewing the decision. In a written statement, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game said it was considering an appeal.
While the endangered Southern Resident Killer Whales don’t typically venture as far north as Alaska, a huge amount of the Chinook salmon caught in the Southeast Alaska troll fishery — about 97 percent — originate from rivers to the south, in British Columbia, Washington and Oregon. If those fish weren’t caught, many would be available for the orcas to eat as the salmon migrate to their natal rivers to spawn, the Wild Fish Conservancy argues.
Jones adopted her recommendations in his opinion Monday and asked her to consider potential remedies. Possibilities include continuing to allow the trollers to fish for Chinook while NOAA fixes the legal errors, banning them from doing so, or something in between. It’s also possible NOAA could be ordered to desist from increasing hatchery production of king salmon unless it demonstrates the mitigation plan is sound.
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