Future of salmon sports fishery in Juan de Fuca

[ratherbefishin]

The federal governments recognition or commitment to the salmon sports fishery on Juan de Fuca is virtually non existent .The so called ‘wild salmon’ policy as merely an excuse to do nothing and watch while the numbers of Chinook dwindled along with the average size. A good sized salmon was in the 30 lb range and abundant,now if you get one it is in the teens or mid 20’s. The once predictable winter spring fishery with fish in the 8-10 lb range is hardly worth going out for ,and a good fish is now 3 to 5- If you can land one without a seal taking it.This is nothing new,the sports fishery advisory has been trying to get the Feds attention for years,but the only response has been most re closure and restrictions-anything but the obvious solution- put more fish on the system combined with predator(seal) control.Only now they are waking up to the fact their ‘wild salmon’ policy has failed by the plight of the resident orcas who it appears are getting the attention while the whole sports fishery is allowed to die on the vine.For the first time in over 20 years I’m not sure if I’m even going to book my 10 trips with a guide next year..I love getting out and I don’t mind spending the money for a $300 charter,if there is at least a chance at getting a trophy Chinook,but that appears to be a fading memory.I note the volunteer Sooke sports fishery has been putting smolts in the harbour to try and boost the numbers ,but that is a drop in the bucket,if the sports fishery is to survive,they need massive intervention from Ottawa who so far seems only interested in collecting the revenue from licences.As it now stands it looks like I will never be able to take my grandchildren out off Sooke for a trip to go salmon fishing with grandpa ..a case of pure neglect by the federal government who it seems are incapable of being proactive

[Jack Russell]

Correct and its happening all over BC's coastline, north to south. Serious declines in all fisheries. DFO consistently scrapes fish off the bottom of the barrel for commercial and FN interests.

No consideration for recreational angling.

No consideration for future fish stocks.

SFAB/C process is repugnant, and a waste of time and energy - its simply DFO's "infomercial".

[ratherbefishin]

There a huge infrastructure that supports the recreational salmon fishery from tourism hotels to gear and that’s not only not recognized by the federal government but being sacrificed,all they do is give it lip service

[Island Idiots]

For Decades and decades growing up and in my prime, fish and wildlife belonged to the people. Gradually as commercial harvesters strength grew, especially in political cirlcles, the table was turned and fish and wildlife no longer belonged to the people. It was given to the business sector, who in all there wisdom, knew the real fishing would eventually not be viable, came up with Fish farms to create more profit and continue and ensure the existence of big business in the Salmon industry for decades and decades to come.

[tomahawk]

The difference in the size alone of the average Chinook in the last 20 yrs should be alarming enough and reason for changes to the DFO's version of regulation, let alone all the others that are also being neglected and they turn their back on.

[ratherbefishin]

First to go was the commercial trollers ,and with it the lifestyle with healthy communities where people could make a decent living and raise their kids .Now the recreational salmon fishing industry is going the same way. It’s not unusual to see charter boats worth upwards of $100,000 catering to people paying $300 to 500 a trip.I spend $2500 a year chartering ,but if I have little expectation of getting a Chinook, it’s just a boat ride.We got shut out of fishing west of Otter point ,including halibut ,so that means running to Jordan river or even in the bay off gordon beach for a halibut is not an option anymore .And now I see they are planning even more restrictions,it’s getting to the point it’s just not worth chartering anymore.Looks like all that’s left is the pink run every two years...

[303savage]

Protecting seals is like a farmer trying to grow a crop without controlling the weeds.

[ratherbefishin]

Good letter to the editor in this mornings Times Colonist....seems that the much publicized ‘endangered resident orca ‘population has actually remained stable since first being counted back in the 60’s,78 animals never more than 96 in 1996 and now falling back to average historical population numbers ( the figure used to raise the alarm about imminent extinction) But despite the actual record indicating the resident killer whale population is within normal variation numbers the sports fishery is now the scapegoat and being severely cut back...meanwhile Ottawa ignores the obvious solution- put more Chinook back in the system....bit of trivia for you,the money allocated to these ‘endangered’ killer whales now amounts to about $840,000 for each and every southern resident orca...

[weatherby_man]

DFO is negligent in its duty and has been for years. Hamstrung by the courts by various user and special interest groups they cannot control anything and youre right, the wild salmon policy is just a way out for them to do any kind of resource management of the fish.

[ratherbefishin]

Oregon and California were faced with a similar decline in both Chinook and coho( silvers) but the dferance was they spent the money and embarqued on a massive hatchery/ stream enhancement program and 20 years later enjoy a healthy recreational salmon fishery,while the Canadians did virtually NOTHING ,claiming the ‘wild salmon’( do nothing) policy....today the RESULTS are evident,and quite frankly,without the US hatchery fish,the Sooke recreational salmon fishery would be non existent...( last summers study based on tissue samples proved that,we are catching american hatchery fish)

[Sundance1972]

Almost at the point where I'm considering selling my boat. Grew up fishing Port Renfrew with my Dad and have a lot of good memories of limitting out before lunchtime and feasting on crab at the old dryland sort. Pretty sad that I can't pass it along to my kids....
Remember a few runs of northern coho (around 1990) that were actually seen from the air. Had 3 around 15lbs in the boat before Dad could even get his rod put together!!

[ratherbefishin]

I know...This is the first year I’m seriously considering not booking my annual charter ( 10 trips) off Sooke. I blame DFO for totally mismanaging the fishery,they are reactive,not proactive.Theres a ton of bait out there,so it’s not feed but very few Chinook and what you do get,many are unclipped hatchery fish ( only about 10%of hatchery fish are actually clipped) which have to be released,or outside the size restrictions....And even if you do get a decent fish on,you have to get it in the boat before a seal beats you too it...a good fish will run several times,and the seals follow your boat( unknown when I was a kid,you couldn’t get within a quarter mile of a seal,they had a bounty on them...) October northern coho didn’t materialize we got a few sockeye this year,generally by the time we get an opening off Sooke they are all through..pretty discouraging situation and I’m not sure DFO is even listening to the recreational salmon fisherman anymore,adding insult to injury,running to Sheringham west for halibut is now closed ...it wasn’t so long ago you would see hundreds of boats out off Sooke but that’s dwindling fast and the empty spaces at the marina docks and empty parking lots of boat trailers prove that ....looks like losing the salmon fishing tourism dollars doesn’t matter either ...even if they embarked on a massive hatchery/ stream enhancement program,it would take years to rebuild the fishery but at 71,I’m just plain out of time..pretty sad when nobody is listening

[ratherbefishin]

I see by this mornings paper they now admit they have a serious problem with the decline in Chinook salmon,with some runs considered close to extinction....this is no surprise,fishermen have been seeing this for some years now,while the DFO did virtually nothing but collect licence fees...I don’t buy the ‘wild salmon ‘ initiative fir one minute,that was just an excuse to play the fiddle while Rome burned.Its not rocket science,we need more hatcheries,stream enhancement and we need preditor control...

[40incher]

It's sad to say but there is not even one positive thing I can think of going on with the BC West Coast fishery.

A weak and ineffective federal bureaucarcy, an elitist and dysfunctional provincial bureaucracy, and a domineering culture of well-funded environmental anti-use groups will ensure the complete closure of the public food fishery.

Special interest groups dominate every aspect of fish and wildlife management in BC (California North as I have called it), and that's not about to change under our present elected governments. We are simply tax-paying pawns in a destructive and idealistic experiment of social engineering.

My family shares the opinions of those on this thread. We all know what the answers are … but "we can't get there from here". It is very sad to say that, truly!

[sawbill]

Add to that the dwindling halibut allocation and the prospect of prawns going down to 100 per person, it’s turned into going out to hopefully get a meals worth. What we give up is allocated to whales and other sectors. On the bright side the Chinook fishing has been excellent in the Georgia straight for numerous years now.

[Jagermeister]

Being an inlander near the once former largest sockeye salmon spawning river, I can attest to the decline of both sockeye and chinook. In 2010, the shores of Little Shuswap Lake were virtually littered with the carcasses of thousands of sockeye. Not so in 2014 and even lesser this year. The Chinook returns appear to be smaller also, however, the main returns on that species occur next year presumably.
Another problem that I perceive could be the amount of plastic floating in the oceans that the fish may be consuming thinking it is something edible. If this is so, it would eventually result in high levels of mortality. And of course, the ever expanding seal population. Not enough orcas eating seal I think.

[ratherbefishin]

Even if the DFO realized the problem,and moved immediately to put more fish in the system( it’s not rocket science) it would take YEARS to rebuild the fishery.( the east coast cod fishery is an excellent example)and at 71,I don’t HAVE ‘years’.seems a terribly shame to wipe out west coast traditions by sheer neglect...and the realization that nobody is listening and nobody cares..an example if the sheer idiocy is when they destroyed the small dam on the salmon producing creek out in Sooke built by volunteers to regulate water flow and create good spawning habitat ,because if an earthquake hit,the dam could give way and cause flooding downstream -nobody stopped to think that an earthquake of that magnitude would level Victoria..

[tubby]

The only that our salmon and interior have a chance of recovering is if we get the nets out of the rivers and take care of the seal problems. The last 10 years the increase in netting has wiped out returns and some are beyond salvaging! Doesn’t take much to get rid of the seals in problem areas and choke points.

A perfect example of how f-caked the net fisheries are...its December and they are still netting the Squamish!
https://www-ops2.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fraserriver/firstnations/HTMLs/CommunalOpeningTimes.html

The salmon on the Fraser have zero chance with the amount of netting going on. Take a look at the past 12 months of the netting schedule on the Fraser. This isn’t ev n counting the economical openings either
https://www-ops2.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fraserriver/firstnations/HTMLs/CommunalOpeningTimes_Previous.html

Weird how the Chinook stocks that aren’t going through the nets on the Fraser in the inside of the straight are actually rebounding...must just be an odd coincidence....not

[dougan]

Stop fishing hearing.......

[guest]

Ive fished our coast lines and rivers from north to south for dam near 60 years. Guided in many different locations also. Ive personally seen the demise of many many stocks first hand.
What is truly troubling to say the least is when our leaders, those in charge of the various federal decisions on Fisheries litterally turn a blind eye to the dealings and going ons.
Their repeated caving to FNs demands is sickening with uncountable runs of fish being minimized or destroyed from its lack of monitoring and acvountablility.
Another huge concern for all is when our officials those making the big decisions dont even listen to their own biologists and their recommendations.
The boom in Predators at inlets, river mouths and estuaries is OUT OF CONTROL.
The Seal and Sea lion boom is absolutely crazy, every where. Yet the bleeding heart antis again win this war. With almost zero done to the growing populations of these critters, unless its some one dealing with it on their own, the problems will continue to get worse.
DFOs head officials should hang their head in shame of their lack of Management for many many years past and present.
Pathetic really.
In the mean time, FNs continue to pound away in numberous areas unmonitored and unregulated. Fish farms continue to increase. The rich keep getting richer off our Herring fishery, the life blood of our local coast. Yet its the sport fisher that takes the biggest hit.
Check out who holds the largest licenses for our coastal fisheries and ask yourself .... What are They putting back into the fisheries itself. Again its take take take......
But its the Sports fishers, that are the real conservationists, trying to restore fisheries, volunteers giving endless time trying to operate hatcheries, stream and habitat restoration. etc etc. Not the main big business owners of our numberous Siene fleets.
Sportfishers contribute more to this economy than any other stake holder related to fisheries......yet are penalized the most.

I M O........ Control the Seals and Sea Lions, limit monitor and make FNs accountable like every one else. Minimize the Herring fishery. And above all. For the fishes future of sustainability.....Listen to the experts, stop turning a blind eye to those in the know.

Lets hope some day we can take our grand children Salmon Fishing. The way its going and has been for nany years, its simply NOT sustainable.

[Ourea]

Hundreds of tonnes of cattle crap seeping into the Fraser aint helping....
Decades of Victoria dumping raw sewage into the ocean.......aint helping.
Everyone fighting over who gets how much of a shrinking resource......aint helping.
No one really trying to make more fish........aint helping.
Gov decisions in an attempt to be perceived as making a difference while in reality it has zero impact (fin fish closures).......aint helping.
Seal populations breaking 300,000 and growing.......aint helping.
Non sustainable runs being netted......aint helping.
A premier who is aligned with eco organizations yet flushes his toilet right into the ocean yet preaches healthy eco systems, protect the environment etc.

Other than that.......all good
Insanity.

[ratherbefishin]

Small west coast Communities are already struggling to survive and slapping closures on salmon fishing will just add to their woes .The recreational fishery is worth about $1 billion and that is being sacrificed to ‘save the whales’ by simplistic closures and restrictions that quite frankly are meaningless without more salmon being put into the system.....the ‘wild salmon’ policy was merely an excuse to do nothing.The volunteer sports fishermen in Sooke have been pen raising and releasing Chinook smolts in an effort to put more Chinook into the system,and been rewarded by even more restrictions ...What’s really discouraging if even if the Feds FINALLY work up,it’s too late for me ,restoring the fishery would take a minimum of 10 years to reverse the course of government neglect and I just don’t HAVE 10 years..the loss of my 10 charters will not make any difference to the industry,but if you multiply that 1000 times over it will

[ratherbefishin]

I see the US has approved a sea lion cull in an effort to help spawning salmon return unmolested.The sea lion population has increased tenfold and preditor control must be part of the overall plan to restore Chinook populations Will the DFO have balls to stand up to the politically correct ‘save the seals ‘ wacko’s ?

[Sundance1972]

I see the US has approved a sea lion cull in an effort to help spawning salmon return unmolested.The sea lion population has increased tenfold and preditor control must be part of the overall plan to restore Chinook populations Will the DFO have balls to stand up to the politically correct ‘save the seals ‘ wacko’s ?

They might, but most likely wait until it's too late.....

[ratherbefishin]

I know,it’s disheartening ...seems nobody has the balls to actually DO something,other than ‘study’ it and reducing preditors is such an obvious factor that has to be included in the solution... they’ll ‘study’ it unto the last salmon has gone. Not much point in increasing the salmon if preditors are picking them off at the rivermouth.

[New Bow Hunter]

I am all for save the whales as they bring in tourist $$. I am also an advocate of saving the Chinook salmon. If this means cutting back on the commercial harvest (look who owns the licenses), controlling predators, limiting river nets and increasing hatchery output, I am all in.
But when we have a Provincial Government whose mandate is all about green stuff and a fishery managed from Ottawa, who don't really care, then the story ending has been all but written.
I agree with much of what has been stated previously, let the people in know share advice on management.

[tigrr]

No worries guys. The word around the LML is you can buy salmon for $12 to $15 a piece from the FN. Put in your order and it could be delivered right to your door. Why pay big charter fee's?
Ask around and there might be moose and deer available too.
Wonder why there isn't any fish left for whitey's. Sad day it is.

[ratherbefishin]

I don’t object to a sustenance fishery or even hunt( providing the species is in abundance and. Not at risk) but I strongly object to selling fish or meat for profit.But before we scream too loud,remember who is buying...

[338win mag]

I don’t object to a sustenance fishery or even hunt( providing the species is in abundance and. Not at risk) but I strongly object to selling fish or meat for profit.But before we scream too loud,remember who is buying...
Exactly right^^^^^
The public needs to be enlightened on what they are supporting if they are buying fish from those that are assisting in destroying the Salmon fishery (and others) in this province, maybe they wouldn't buy the fish.

[ratherbefishin]

Heard yesterday that the DFO gave a thumbs down to putting in Chinook smolts into Victoria harbour because the returning fish might try to spawn in the Colquitz river and compete with the existing fish( not that there are many) same went for pen raising pinks to enhance the recreational fishery in Esquimalt harbour.It seems every time somebody comes up with a practical solution to put more fish back in the system some bean counter quashes it.Face it,the ‘wild salmon’ initiative just didn't work...

[ratherbefishin]

Heard yesterday that the DFO gave a thumbs down to putting in Chinook smolts into Victoria harbour because the returning fish might try to spawn in the Colquitz river and compete with the existing fish( not that there are many) seemms every time somebody comes up with a solution to put more fish back in the system some bean counter quashes it.
of course,what the recreational fishermen are also facing is the agenda of the so called animal rights wackos posing as ‘environmentalists’ who would dearly like to see all hunting and fishing banned..

[scott h]

Quick and effective fix in couple steps...
Make it against the law to lease out fishing quota (you own it , you fish it) and at the same time make any license sale be directly to the government and that license then gets retired.

[Wild one]

Quick and effective fix in couple steps...
Make it against the law to lease out fishing quota (you own it , you fish it) and at the same time make any license sale be directly to the government and that license then gets retired.

Not a bad idea but that does not solve even a fraction of the issues and it’s going to take way more then 2 steps

[dougan]

Stop fishing hearing!!!!!!!!!! Pretty hard to guess that more hearing for big fish to eat would possibly save more smolts from being eaten + more food =more fish .... shoot the sea lions..... less fish getting eaten = more fish. 2 step fix...

[scott h]

Every single license bought back would be thousands of fish not caught commercially. The waste associated with by-catch alone would save a ton of fish for the sport fishing industry and for stock rebuilding.

[ratherbefishin]

At some point the word gets out that it’s not worth spending $3-500 for a fishing charter and that is going to hurt a lot of charter guys-plus the hotel industry that caters to sport fishing.Remember what happened to the coho fishery up island a few years ago ,dried right up and along with it the motels where people stayed .it can happen right here in Sooke

[boxhitch]

So.........40 concerned folk showed up at a salmon meeting in Pt Alberni............40


The council was appointed in June by Premier John Horgan to develop strategy for restoring and sustaining wild salmon.

“The premier essentially said, ‘Grow more fish,’” said Nanaimo MLA Doug Routley, inviting input from about 40 people at Echo Centre Thursday night (Dec. 6). “It is the foundational species in our province.”


One of their proposals is to reinstate a B.C. government ministry dedicated to anadromous fish species, a portfolio that was scrapped by the Campbell Liberal government shortly after it came to power, he said. The council endorses Bill C-68 — a modernization of the Fisheries Act expected to pass into law before year’s end

[srupp]

Every single license bought back would be thousands of fish not caught commercially. The waste associated with by-catch alone would save a ton of fish for the sport fishing industry and for stock rebuilding.

Except that quota would be handed over to indian band...they will find a wsy to keep screwing it up..
Srupp

[scott h]

The amount of wasted fish associated with commercial is astounding and trying to rebuild stocks while they continue to decimate them makes zero sense. Lowering the amount they are allowed to harvest doesn't work because it doesn't count the vast number of fish killed and thrown over board as by-catch.
Anyone think there may be a bit of a coincidence with the increase in the US hammering pollock stocks, and the worsening salmon stocks ????

https://www.ktuu.com/content/news/Alaska-leads-nation-in-seafood-catches-new-fishing-report-shows-502729501.html
https://www.alaskapublic.org/2014/06/11/as-pollock-season-begins-bycatch-debate-looms/
https://www.seattletimes.com/business/dumping-of-halibut-sparks-fight-within-north-pacific-fishing-fleet/

[steel_ram]

Coincidence that we had a good return a couple of years after the Japan Tsunami wiped out much of their fishing fleet?

[Piperdown]

Well at least one govt is putting the money into fish, http://nwsportsmanmag.com/governors-budget-proposal-includes-unprecedented-1-1b-for-orcas-salmon/