‘On the brink of extinction.’ New report details Washington’s salmon crisis

If Washington doesn’t do more to help its wild salmon populations, some could soon disappear for good, according to a new report from the Governor’s Salmon Recovery Office.

The 2020 State of Salmon in Watersheds report found that 10 of the 14 threatened or endangered salmon and steelhead runs are not improving and five of them are “in crisis.”

“I’m not going to sugarcoat things. Salmon are in crisis,” Erik Neatherlin, a spokesperson for the salmon recovery office, told Crosscut. “And they need our help now more than ever.”

While conservationists have made progress in recovering Washington’s salmon, “too many salmon remain on the brink of extinction. And time is running out,” the report says.

“The climate is changing, rivers are warming, habitat is diminishing, and the natural systems that support salmon in the Pacific Northwest need help more than ever,” the report states.

The salmon populations in the worst shape are Snake River Spring Salmon, Puget Sound Chinook, Lake Ozette Sockeye, Upper Columbia River Spring Chinook and Puget Sound Steelhead.

Those that are “making progress” are Snake River Basin Steelhead and Lower Columbia River Steelhead and those “approaching goal” are Hood Canal Summer Chum and Snake River Fall Chinook.

“Today, Washingtonians stand at a fork in the road with a clear choice: Continue with current practices and gradually lose salmon, orcas and a way of life that has sustained the Pacific Northwest for eons,” according to the report. “Or, change course and put Washington on a path to recovery that recognizes salmon and other natural resources as vital to the state’s economy, growth and prosperity.”

A 2011 study estimated effective recovery plans for 2010 through 2019 would have cost about $4.7 billion, the report says. However, only $1 billion has been invested, just under 22% of the need, according to the report.

Climate change is a major threat to salmon, the report says. The phenomenon has been warming Washington’s air by .15 degrees every decade over the past 100 years and the trend is expected to speed up in the future, according to the report.

The warming air trickles down to warming water in rivers, which can kill salmon, the report says.

“Without actions to address impacts from climate change there will be fewer salmon and fewer rivers where they can survive,” according to the report.

Other challenges to restoring salmon populations include fish passage barriers — including dams and hydropower facilities — predation and unmonitored hatchery programs, the report says. While fishing restrictions have helped with restoration, those efforts won’t due on their own, according to the report.

“Protection and restoration of habitat, addressing predation and mitigating the impacts of climate change must be pursued to fully benefit from the restrictions that have been applied to fishing for recovery,” the report says.

This story was originally published January 21, 2021 at 5:37 PM with the headline "‘On the brink of extinction.’ New report details Washington’s salmon crisis."