267 



The Ones, Fives, Tens and Twenties That Got Away 

 The "Export"of Washington's Recreational Fishing. 



In uJiiio^C every Issue. Washington's fishing 

 publications feature articles and advertisements 

 on salmon fishing In British Columbia and 

 Alaska. Boat dcjilers Jiround f*uget Sound orga 

 nize yearly salmon derbies in British Columbia 

 for Lhclr boat-buying customers Boat and out 

 door shows feature workshops on fishing trips 

 outside the state of Washington. While these 

 events seem relatively Innocuous, statistics on 

 (he lllghl of Washington residents to fish In Brit- 

 ish Cohiinbla and Alaska demonstrate an alarm- 

 ing trend that threatens the health of recreational 

 fishing businesses In our own state 



In piixt, tlic problems of recreational salmon 

 anglers have become muted. While commercial 

 salmon anglers gain press coverage and sympa- 

 thy due to shortened seasorLs, fewer fish, and in- 

 creased unemployment In Washington stale, rec- 

 reiiUonal angers only grumble a bit as they go to 

 lirltlsh Columbia or Alaska Despite the crisis 

 surrounding Washington's salmon, the recre- 

 ational angler can still find salmon somewhere. 

 Bui it's haird for people li\ Olympla to hear the 

 complaints of Washington anglers who are all the 

 way up In Campbell River or Barkley Sound. 



Left to sit at home, however, as their usual cus- 

 tomers flee to more fruitful fishing grounds, are 

 the thousands of recreational fishing businesses 

 In Washington. Tackle shops, charter boats, 

 sporting good stores, boat dealers, and marine 

 accessory stores depend on Washington residents 

 who equip themselves, and fish, at home. The eco- 

 nomic connccUon Is not a difficult one to sec. 

 instead of owning a boat and using It In Wash- 

 ington, an angler will use a boat furnished by a 

 Qslilng lodge or guide company in British Colum- 

 bia or Alaska. 



Lack of fishing opportunity in Washington 

 means tliat state residents have one less reason 

 to buy a boat. Many of the fishing purchases will 

 occur near out-of-state fishing grounds as an- 

 glers purchase fresh bait and whatever else the 

 l\sh are biUng on - and of course, purchase things 

 Ihey could have picked up at home. 



liic dilficulty In reversing the northern migra- 

 tion of Washington anglers comeu Uirgely because 

 of Ihc multitude of Issues, both political and bio- 

 logical, that have caused it to occur. In many 

 cases. Washington anglers travel to Canada and 



Alaslca to catch salmon of Washington origin. 



As an example, consider the h^irvest of Skagit 

 River and Hood Canal coho over the three year 

 period 1988 - 1990. 58% of the Skagtt and 41% 

 of the Hood Canal coho were harvested In Canada. 

 Pugel Sound commercial nets. Tribal and Non- 

 Tribal, took approximately 4 1% of Hood Canal 

 and 25% of the Skagit coho harvest. Washington's 

 sport fishery harvested about 1 0% of the fish from 

 each system. 



In part. Canadian Interceptions of Washington- 

 origin salmon are allowed In exchange for the 

 fiarvest of Canadian -ongm sockeye and pink 

 salmon by Washington commercials. But also, 

 Canadian harvest of Washington salmon helps 

 correct the Imbalance caused by the Alaskan 

 harvest of Canadian fish . The U . S ./ Canada Treaty 

 recognizes two countries, not two states and prov- 

 ince. 



The most pressing problem lacing recreational 

 anglers In Wsishmgton is not who gets the fish, 

 but how many fish there axe to get. Another sltu- 

 auon exacerbating the flight of Washington an- 

 glers northward are feeding conditions m Puget 

 Sound and the Pacific Ocean. Warm ocean cur- 

 rents, known commonly as El Nino, have dis- 

 rupted the food chain. 



Salmon have suffered not only from the scar- 

 city of food but from the need to travel further 

 north to find it. In addition, warm ocean cur- 

 rents have increased the population of predatory 

 fish that target salmon. While El Nino sltuaUons 

 will return periodically. It has unfortunately re- 

 appeared when habitat loss has made 

 Washington's salmon population most vulner- 

 able. 



Washington's recreational anglers are also part 

 of the food chain. As salmon travel north, so do 

 families, vacation days, and dollars. 



The Increase in Washington residents purchas- 

 ing British Columbia and Alaska fishing licenses 

 demonstrates this "export ' of Washington's rec- 

 rcatiorud nshli\g economy: 



Yeu^ British Coltuabla 



1987 29.227 



1988 31,688 



1989 38,014 



1990 44.148 



1991 47.567 



