letter sent:
Dear Minister & RDG,
I am writing to express my concern for what seems to be an imminent closure / restriction on sportfishing for recreational anglers in and around the Strait of Georgia. I write as someone who has enjoyed recreational fishing in the Southern Gulf Islands for nearly 40 years. Have the opportunity to fish as a kid got me on the water and taught me about fish, conservation issues, and ecosystems as a whole. Like many BC residents, some of my fondest memories involve a boat and a fishing rod.
Recreational angers like myself spend countless hours volunteering for local stream-keeping groups, hatcheries, fundraising derbies, etc. We do this because we deeply care about wild salmon populations and want to see them around for our children to enjoy as we have. In my lifetime the salmon fishing in the Strait of Georgia has plummeted to a small fraction of what it was in terms of recreational harvest. Does rec fishing have some impact on salmon stocks? Yes. Is rec fishing the main reason for low chinook abundance? Absolutely not! Rec fishing pressure / effort in the early 1990's dropped off sharply and have not rebounded. If rec fishing was the main reason for low salmon returns and now rec fishing effort is but a fraction of what it was, why haven't populations rebounded? The fact is there are much larger and complex reasons this SOG fishery is in that state it is. Habitat loss in both fresh and marine waters; increased predation by growing pinniped populations, pathogen/disease transfer from open net pen salmon farms, and warming waters from climate change are all contributing factors.
The SRKW population are estimated to eat 500K-1M chinook salmon (typically larger ones as well) annually. The entire rec fishing sector in BC catches around 200-300K chinook annually!!! Out of that the SOG rec fishery harvests what? 50K max? That's not enough to sustain 2 SRKW dietary needs for the year and yet targeting certain swaths of rec fishing communities is 'the answer'?
Is closing / limiting rec fishing easy? yes. Is it politically expedient? yes. Will it accomplish it's intended goal of providing the SRWK with the food they need to thrive? No!
Real change is needed. Change that doesn't have a quick fix but will have a lasting positive impact. A few immediate action items that should be taken before any restrictions on rec fishing occur are:
-Invest a substantial ($50M-$100M/year for 10 years min) sum of funds in fresh water habitat/estuary restoration in SOG river systems. Have an arms length independent group of salmon experts handle/distribute funds based on area of need.
-Remove all salmon farms from the marine environment. Start with those on salmon migration routes immediately and phase out the rest over a few years while transitioning to land-based closed containment.
-Invest $50M/year in sea-pen grow out facilities at strategic locations for certain chinook stocks that are known to be critical to SRWK (Harrison, Thompson, Cowichan, etc). You might even be able to get a good deal on some used pens!!!
-Increase the value of the salmon conservation stamp by 5-fold (to $30) which will allow PSF to support more of the small scale habitat and enhancement work that their volunteer communities
As a federal government (who I voted for) who campaigned on science-based policy making this pending rec fishing closure is an assault on that ideal.
Thanks for your consideration. I look forward to your response.