Halt sport fishery to save sockeye: Crey
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Updated: August 06, 2009 4:10 PM
Sport angling on the Fraser River should be shut down quickly to prevent a catastrophe for returning sockeye salmon, says Sto:lo fisheries advisor Ernie Crey.
Anglers on the river mostly target chinook salmon, but some also catch sockeye either accidentally or by deliberately snagging them.
Crey says the species can't afford to take any more hits this season in light of what's already shaping up to be a low return, coupled with dangerously high river temperatures that may kill many of the sockeye that do arrive before they can spawn.
"DFO should, with some reasonable notice, tell anglers to get off the water until we get a better understanding of the sockeye numbers overall," Crey said.
Biologists had forecast a healthy run of 10.6 million sockeye this summer, but so far the Pacific Salmon Commission says the runs are all coming in much lower than expected.
The commission warned the hot dry weather and low stream flows in the Interior may prove deadly to returning sockeye.
The river reached a temperature of 20.7 degrees on July 30 – 3.4 degrees higher than normal and above the 20-degree threshold that triggers high death rates in salmon.
And it's projected the water temperature may climb further to 21.7 degrees by Aug. 5.
The last time the water got this hot, Crey says he witnessed disoriented sockeye swimming around in circles that could easily be picked up by hand.
"They made no effort to swim away," he said. "Their instinct for survival was completely sapped by the warm river water."
Commercial fishing has so far been blocked and aboriginal food fisheries remain closed after a very brief opening earlier in July.
Crey said he doesn't believe there can reasonably be new opening for any sector unless counts of returning sockeye improve dramatically.
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