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SUMMARY AND mOHUGHTS: ENDANGERED SPEQES PETITION FOR COHO SALMON 



PACmC RIVERS COUNCIL 



SUMMARY: A niiinher nf fBctnn, most noubly the desinicUon of habiUU and mismanagement of 

 flshcrics. has put the echo (silver) salmon at risk of cxiincilon throughoui lis range in the lower 48 states. 

 TWs is not jusi an ecological tragedy - in addition it represents billions of dollars of lost rcvcnue to the 

 people of the Pacific Northwest, and creates significant social and cultural losses. As such, the steps 

 required for the recovery of the region's once abundant and famous coho salmon runs do not Involve 

 issues of "jobs vs. the environment," hut rather some short-term sacrifices for long-term economic gain. 

 Some localized economic impacts may occur in order to recover the coho, but much more has already 

 been lost economically and much more is at stake unless recovery actions arc rapidly put into place. Since 

 past efforts to protect or recover coho itave failed, and since current regulation and conservation efforts 

 remain inadequate, the last viable option to stop the hemorrhaging, so that a process to recover the coho 

 salmon and their ecosystems can begin, is to secure protection under the Endangered Species Act 



Nehlsen et al., in the .seminal article entitled Pacific Salmon at the Crossroads (1991). identified 35 stocks of coho 

 salmon at risk of ncar-tcnn extinction in Washington, Oregon, and California. The authors idcnUflcd habitat loss 

 and adverse interactions with hatchery production as important contributors to ttiesc declines. An additional 15 

 stocks of coho from California, southern Oregon, and the Columbia Basin wcrc documented to be already extinct 

 Prissell (1993) mapped coho salmon and estimated that the specie.s is extinct in the eastern half of its range, and 

 imperiled throughout the southern two-thirds of Its range in the lower 48 states. By other similar estimates coho 

 salmon populations arc extinct in about SS.S% of their historic range in the lower 48 states, endangered in about 

 13% of ttieir range, threatened in about 20%, and of special concern in 5% of their historic range. Coho 

 populations not known to be CAilnct declining, depre.<»ed, or facing imminent threat comprise Just 6Ji% of thl.s 

 historic range, all located in northwe.st Washington. 



As recently as the 19708. coho salmon supported a direct income stream to commercial fishermen of $60 to $70 

 million dollars a year. This is the direct value, with no multipliers, indirect or induced effects. The indirect 

 economic importance of the coho salmon commereial fishery on the coastal economy was even larger, in all the 

 gear, boats, supplies, fuel, housing, and all the other infrastructure required in the salmon fishery. As with other 

 salmon species, Uie value in the recreational fishery adds a signiflcanily larger amount The recreational angler 

 is willing to spend a great deal more per fish than tlic commercial angler, and in that sense, each coho salmon 

 caught iccrcatJonally contributes more to the regional economy than the commercial fish. The recreational fishery 

 and associated tourism industry is bigMy signilicani. 



It is only reasonable to conclude - very conservatively - that eflbrts to return the coho fishery to even 1970 levels 

 In Northern California, Oregon and Washington would produce a direct income stream to the region averaging 

 wen in excess of $100 million a year. 



The economic toss to many paru of the coast has been substantial. In poor years the income stream to the troll 

 fishery has been reduced to less than $200.(XX) for California or Oregon, and. under cuncnt conditions, the 

 commercial catch over wide reaches is Tew. The net economic impact of the demise of coho salmon has been 

 substantial and pcrslsicm - roughly $1 biUion a decade. As the loss of the coho is primarily attributed m habitat 

 destmction. the region has essentially been favoring one kind of economic activity -- extractive Industries -- over 

 another involving the fishery. As such, the issue is not "Jobs vs. llie enviroranem," but jobs vs. jobs, or, said 



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Coho Petition: Summary 



