BY ANDY WALGAMOTT, NORTHWEST SPORTSMAN MAGAZINE
ODFW and two longtime fish and fishing advocacy organizations are stepping up the pressure on the Bonneville Power Administration after it said it would no longer contribute to a salmon hatchery program fueling sport and commercial fisheries in the Lower Columbia and offshore.
Following last Friday’s unsatisfactory meeting with BPA, the state agency posted a one-minute video to Facebook Thursday evening that says millions of young salmon in production are in “limbo,” sport fishermen stand to lose out on 34,000 returning adult fish produced by the Select Area Fisheries Enhancement Program annually and Gnat Creek Hatchery will close, and they’re urging anglers to contact BPA “and tell them to reverse their decision and save the SAFE Program.”
The post says to email Communications@bpa.gov or call 800-622-4519 and leave a comment, and ODFW is asking anglers to share it, which it has been 38 times as of this morning.
ODFW also linked to a national American Sportfishing Association action alert.
“The Columbia River no longer supports the salmon runs and fishing opportunities it once did because of the construction and operation of the Federal Columbia River Power System. Congress directed BPA to mitigate those impacts through the Northwest Power Act. For more than 30 years, SAFE has been one of the region’s most successful fishery mitigation programs, providing sustainable fishing opportunities while protecting wild salmon,” ASA’s alert reads.
Earlier this week, the local Association of Northwest Steelheaders launched a similar effort.
“Perhaps most concerning, BPA made this decision without meaningful consultation with tribal leaders, state fish and wildlife managers, Northwest Power and Conservation Council, or the public at large despite decades of collaboration under the Northwest Power Act.,” the Steelheaders’ wrote in their action alert.
They say it has provided nearly 100 percent of the spring Chinook and 90 percent of the coho harvested on the Lower Columbia by nontreaty commercial fishermen since 2017, keeping the netboats “off the main stem of the Columbia river, helping protect vulnerable wild stocks.”
Like ASA’s, the Steelheaders’ alert includes more information and a way to send a message to BPA Administrator Travis Kavulla.
According to ODFW, the end of BPA funding – set to begin October 1, leaves a $2.3-plus million shortfall in SAFE funding that can’t be patched over by program partners, which include Clatsop County Fisheries and WDFW.
“Oregon will lose tens of millions of dollars in economic activity and harvest opportunity for thousands of commercial and recreational fishermen in future years,” an ODFW fact sheet says.
Since BPA’s June 18 decision, Democratic lawmakers in both Washington and Oregon have called attention to it. So far, nearly all members of the latter state’s Congressional delegation as well as Governor Tina Kotek, along with Washington Bob Ferguson and now Representative Marie Gluesenkamp of Southwest Washington have fired off press releases or sent letters to BPA.
Now, anglers and the public are directly being asked to chime in.
