SALTWATER REPORTS :

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SALMON OUTLOOK

were declared overfished in 2018 and have not yet achieved a rebuilt status under the terms of the federal Salmon Fishery Management Plan . In 2022 , returns of Sacramento River fall Chinook fell well short of conservation objectives , and now may be approaching an overfished condition after being declared rebuilt in 2021 . In response , federal and state agencies are expected to take a conservative approach when approving 2023 salmon seasons

to provide additional protective measures to these stocks , and very limited or no fishing in 2023 appears possible . To access materials and information presented at the March 1 meeting or to learn more about the salmon season setting process , please visit CDFW ’ s Salmon Preseason Process web page . General ocean salmon fishing information can be found on CDFW ’ s Ocean Salmon Project web page or by calling the CDFW Ocean Salmon Hotline at ( 707 ) 576-3429 . Representatives of the Golden State Salmon Association ( GSSA )

commented on the dire salmon fishing season outlook in a press statement . “ I don ’ t think we ’ re going to see much if any salmon fishing this year ,” said GSSA director Ned Brown . “ This will hurt the tens of thousands of Californians whose jobs are tied to the salmon industry . It will also hurt every conservationminded Californian who wants to see balanced management of the state ’ s natural resources , something Gavin Newsom has decided to abandon . If the untenable situation facing our salmon continues its current trajectory , salmon as a renewable , invaluable , and iconic wild resource in California could disappear in the near future . If there was ever a time for urgency , it is now .” The decision about a 2023 salmon fishing season now goes to the Pacific Fisheries Management Council which will meet in March and early April . California Central Valley fall run salmon are also caught off the Oregon coast and fishery officials there told their

salmon industry that ocean fishing in most of Oregon for king salmon is unlikely in 2023 . Since Gavin Newsom became governor , salmon numbers have declined while acreage planted in ultra-thirsty almond orchards has increased more than 300,000 acres . Newsom ’ s appointed State Water Board has also bottled-up rules adopted in December of 2018 requiring more flows in San Joaquin Valley rivers to improve salmon numbers , GSSA noted . “ The bottom line is Gavin Newsom ’ s water policies have been a near carbon copy of the environmental destruction brought by the Trump administration ,” said GSSA president John McManus . “ We ’ re seeing it in this year ’ s forecast of a salmon run too small to support a fishery . This will hurt not only those who make a living tied to salmon but also the many Californians whose dinner tables would normally be supplemented

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