California Implements Statewide Fishing Ban to Protect Threatened Salmon Population
Salmon fishing has been banned by officials of California anywhere along the state’s coast for the remainder of the season, as the state’s yearlong drought is still taking its toll on the once-abundant fish population.
The California Department of Fish & Wildlife said that salmon fisheries that were originally scheduled on April 1 would remain closed through May 15.
The decision came as part of a broader effort, involving state agencies in Oregon as well as the National Marine Fisheries Service, to cancel ocean salmon fishing along much of the coast, from Cape Falcon, Oregon, to the US-Mexico border.
Owing to multiple atmospheric river storms in California, rivers on land are roaring, but the effects of years of drought are now being seen on the salmon population, CBS Bay Area reported.
Last year, just 60,000 of the adult fish returned to the Sacramento River to spawn, last year, officials said. According to the Fish & Wildlife Department, this was a small fraction of the 196,000 fish expected there & approached a record annual low for the area.
Wildlife officials said the Pacific Fishery Management Council has proposed additional policies to regulate salmon fishing off the coast of California through the spring of 2024.
The CBS Bay Area reported that this is the second time in history that California has canceled fishing season, with the last ban taking place between 2008 & 2009 in response to another prolonged drought period.
John McManus, president of the Golden State Salmon Association, said, "Fishery managers have determined that there simply aren't enough salmon in the ocean right now to comfortably get a return of adult salmon to reproduce for 2023."
Alaska wildlife officials were prompted to cancel the winter snow crab season in the Bering Sea near the end of last year, for the first time in the state’s history.
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