This Monday, officials are expected to ban all commercial and recreational salmon fishing off the coast of California until 2023. Much of the weather will be canceled in neighboring Oregon as well.
The reason: is an alarming loss in fish stocks caused by the one-two punch of heavily designed streams and climate change’s amplified heat and drought. According to researchers, there are new risks in the water that are less well understood but may be linked to global warming.
Salmon Fishing
West Coast officials announced in early March that they may recommend a ban on salmon fishing this year. It would be only the second time in California history that the salmon fishing season has been canceled.
The impending prohibition comes as the West experiences a major reduction in fish populations as a result of a multiyear drought that drained reservoirs and dehydrated much of the land, especially in California.
The proposed shutdown, which is being discussed by the Pacific Fishery Management Council in a multi-day conference that began Saturday, would affect tens of thousands of people like Bates who rely on salmon fishing for a living. It will also irritate thousands of Californians who love summer recreational fishing.
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Danger In Communities, Cultures
According to the Golden State Salmon Association, the $1.4 billion salmon fishing sector employs 23,000 people in California, and industries that rely on huge salmon populations have been particularly hard hit.
Fish Emeryville, a family-owned business, has chartered guests to fish for chinook salmon for the past 52 years. Salmon fishing, according to Guiliano, owner of a charter boat firm, accounts for nearly half of the company’s revenue.
During the prohibition, Guiliano and other fishermen would have to make do with other species, though he stressed that nothing could rival the cash generated by salmon. While the megadrought played a significant role in the decline in salmon levels, some fishing groups blame California’s water distribution system.
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