92 SALMON GEAR LIMITATION 



No one would quarrel with the proposition that the wise use of 

 a natural resource is a matter of utmost concern to the legislature 

 and to the people generally of a state, not only in alleviating prob- 

 lems which may have arisen with respect to that use but also in 

 affirmatively promoting and furthering that use in a way which will 

 benefit the welfare of those persons. It would be apparent, therefore, 

 that such concern could and should be felt by the legislature of the 

 State of Washington toward the salmon fisheries of Washington, both 

 from the standpoint of the consuming public and the very substantial 

 economic activity which it supports. 



Among the various aspects of the salmon resources with which 

 the legislature can, does, and should directly concern itself are at 

 least the following: First are the present uses for food, for recreation, 

 and for commercial exploitation. Included in the last item is not 

 only the commercial activity associated with the use of the salmon 

 resource within the state for food and recreational benefits, but also 

 the purely commercial aspect associated with the processing and 

 shipment out of the state of the salmon for consumption elsewhere. 

 Second are the long-term considerations: To enjoy the present uses 

 over an appreciable period it has become apparent that affirmative 

 steps have to be taken to insure a continuing supply of the salmon. 

 Also, choices have to be made occasionally, for as our civilization 

 becomes more complex, more and more of our structures, products, 

 and waste products will add to the difficulty of insuring a continuing 

 supply of salmon. Also, and closely related to this latter consideration, 

 is the evaluation of various alternatives. How much is it worth to 

 assure continued supplies of fish? 



It bears repeating that these are legislative concerns; they are 

 not the concern of the court. If any of these concerns has been the 

 occasion for legislation, it is not for the court to say that it would 

 have evaluated any of the factors differently or tried to achieve a 

 different result. 



With this suggestion of the possible legislative objectives, turn 

 now to the problems which have faced the legislature in the accom- 

 plishment of these objectives. Here, too, it should be noted, it is the 

 function of the legislature to measure the extent of the problem and 

 to form its idea of how to solve the problem. 



The first and most persistent problem stems from the acquisitive 

 nature of man: In the absence of some type of governmental control 

 over the fishery, there soon would be no fish. The basic reason for 



