Years ago, Weyerhauser was in the fish business. According to SG
they dropped it, because of preharvest by sport and commercial boats.
if we had a goal... To maximize commercial harvest in specific rivers, while not competing with tribal or sport harvest. Hopefully the tribes would go along with splitting the harvest with sport only fishing.
Although this might never get to a viable point, I have wondered for a while about using creeks, or small tribs to use as a commercial harvest open farm style operation, similar to the weyerhauser approach or the Tulalup tribe set up, that operates two hatcheries on their reservation. If the creek or river has no viable wild run to damage, and we could make this work on a multi river arrangement, you get the nets out of salt and you make it a non tribal commercial operation and keep the sports on other watersheds.
Instead of clipping, they just put a small tag, to identify strays. Have a spring, fall or continuous run whatever species, kings or silvers. Then run a trap or weir, nets near the mouth and let the commercial harvest take it all, and run the facilities. In some respects, a processor could do the entire operation, cutting out the independent harvest. But make it private with state oversight. Work it into the Canadian Alaska US treaty where commercial harvest at sea would be eliminated for [at least these] salmon, so they arent preharvesting each others fish. (future operations might form in BC and Alaska given similar extinct runs). Other factors would have to look at limiting number of licenses and methods for commercial boat harvest if any were to continue in Alaska waters. But, one goal would be to work around losing 60 plus percent of the columbia river fish to alaska and Canadian commercial harvest. Would have to eliminate harvest of herring and sardine, but not limited to those species to increase food supply. Sport harvest of herring or smelt etc like in the cowlitz etc would be ok, so some bait needs would be met.
Now, instead of saying it wont work or just saying no, lets brainstorm the various factors that would make it work. If its done well, it could compete with farms and relieve wild fish from commercial harvest, reduce state subsidies for multiple hatcheries to support the commercial fishing industry. What if... it could eliminate commercial harvest in the columbia.
Let the ideas fly. If they did a year round egg box program of one species, would they have silvers or chinook come back all at once or throughout the year for that type of commercial harvest?
Keep in mind, the tulalups have two hatcheries on the reservation. I guess they net the bay, but as long as they leave wild fish alone in the rivers, it seems like a win, if they dont interfere in the sport fishery on those tribs.
I think there are enough rivers to go around, that designated rivers could go a long way to eliminating harvest conflicts with the tribes and the sport fishery, thereby maximizing interest in sport fishing(in combination with a workable recovery plan. We might even have the option of switching rivers over from hatchery supplements to wild fish only, on a gradual basis, to transition sport harvest to other rivers, rather than eliminate four or five rivers in a geographical region, putting pressure on other systems, or killing business in a no fish zone.
So, we would need stream candidates and look at the ramifications of a wild run remaining or not, or nearby river, that would generate a lot of strays. Look at hatchery facilities not being used now, or due to close and methods of harvest. Perhaps beginning with the criteria, needed to make a project work.
Im guessing the alternative is more of the same, with more restrictions and allocation fights in the midst of shrinking budgets.
they dropped it, because of preharvest by sport and commercial boats.
if we had a goal... To maximize commercial harvest in specific rivers, while not competing with tribal or sport harvest. Hopefully the tribes would go along with splitting the harvest with sport only fishing.
Although this might never get to a viable point, I have wondered for a while about using creeks, or small tribs to use as a commercial harvest open farm style operation, similar to the weyerhauser approach or the Tulalup tribe set up, that operates two hatcheries on their reservation. If the creek or river has no viable wild run to damage, and we could make this work on a multi river arrangement, you get the nets out of salt and you make it a non tribal commercial operation and keep the sports on other watersheds.
Instead of clipping, they just put a small tag, to identify strays. Have a spring, fall or continuous run whatever species, kings or silvers. Then run a trap or weir, nets near the mouth and let the commercial harvest take it all, and run the facilities. In some respects, a processor could do the entire operation, cutting out the independent harvest. But make it private with state oversight. Work it into the Canadian Alaska US treaty where commercial harvest at sea would be eliminated for [at least these] salmon, so they arent preharvesting each others fish. (future operations might form in BC and Alaska given similar extinct runs). Other factors would have to look at limiting number of licenses and methods for commercial boat harvest if any were to continue in Alaska waters. But, one goal would be to work around losing 60 plus percent of the columbia river fish to alaska and Canadian commercial harvest. Would have to eliminate harvest of herring and sardine, but not limited to those species to increase food supply. Sport harvest of herring or smelt etc like in the cowlitz etc would be ok, so some bait needs would be met.
Now, instead of saying it wont work or just saying no, lets brainstorm the various factors that would make it work. If its done well, it could compete with farms and relieve wild fish from commercial harvest, reduce state subsidies for multiple hatcheries to support the commercial fishing industry. What if... it could eliminate commercial harvest in the columbia.
Let the ideas fly. If they did a year round egg box program of one species, would they have silvers or chinook come back all at once or throughout the year for that type of commercial harvest?
Keep in mind, the tulalups have two hatcheries on the reservation. I guess they net the bay, but as long as they leave wild fish alone in the rivers, it seems like a win, if they dont interfere in the sport fishery on those tribs.
I think there are enough rivers to go around, that designated rivers could go a long way to eliminating harvest conflicts with the tribes and the sport fishery, thereby maximizing interest in sport fishing(in combination with a workable recovery plan. We might even have the option of switching rivers over from hatchery supplements to wild fish only, on a gradual basis, to transition sport harvest to other rivers, rather than eliminate four or five rivers in a geographical region, putting pressure on other systems, or killing business in a no fish zone.
So, we would need stream candidates and look at the ramifications of a wild run remaining or not, or nearby river, that would generate a lot of strays. Look at hatchery facilities not being used now, or due to close and methods of harvest. Perhaps beginning with the criteria, needed to make a project work.
Im guessing the alternative is more of the same, with more restrictions and allocation fights in the midst of shrinking budgets.
