September 2008
On California's Coast, Farewell to the King Salmon
Smithsonian Magazine
By Abigail Tucker
October 2008
For the first time there's no fishing for chinook salmon on the California coast. The search is on for why the prize
catch is so scarce.
The salmon-boat cemetery in Fort Bragg, a fishing port tucked into shaggy pines about 150 miles north of San Francisco, is full of bleached and peeling hulls. Over the years many California vessels have landed in Bruce Abernathy's front yard, pitched at steep angles among the weeds, some still rigged with trolling poles. The Anita II, the Dag. Eventually Abernathy's son David takes them apart with a tractor and chain saw and sells what he can for parts. Sometimes all that's left is a scrap with a painted-on name: My Pet.
Sea turtles are back, noshing on jellyfish
San Francisco Chronicle
By David Perlman
September 29, 2008
Endangered leatherback sea turtles, unseen off the central California coast only two years ago, have returned and are once again gobbling their favorite food: huge jellyfish that are swarming by the zillions from Monterey Bay to Point Arena.
The leatherbacks were spotted during a monthlong survey cruise aboard a government research vessel and repeated aircraft observations. Researchers said they were seen diving for meals close to shore and snacking now and then in deeper waters much farther out.
Survey shows fisheries with bounties are less likely to fail
The Washington Post
By Juliet Eilperin
September 24, 2008
Survey of 121 fisheries worldwide finds that those with a ‘catch share' are half as likely to fail as those without
Amid the collapse of once-rich fisheries around the world, policymakers, fishermen and environmentalists have been debating a controversial question: Can a fishery be saved by giving those who harvest the sea a guaranteed share of its bounty, rather than having them compete to see who can extract the most the fastest?
Tiny aquatic pest hits North Coast
Lake County News
By Elizabeth Larson
September 15, 2008
NORTH COAST - While quagga and zebra mussels are a major concern for state and local officials, it's another invasive aquatic pest that recently was discovered on the North Coast.
Late last week, Mendocino County Agricultural Commissioner Dave Bengston reported that a biologist conducting a weed survey in the Russian River discovered the tiny New Zealand mud snail.
USGS: Freshwater biodiversity collapsing in North America
Truth and Progress
by Melvin
September 19, 2008
Nearly 40 percent of fish species in North American streams, rivers and lakes are now in jeopardy . . .
The 700 fishes now listed represent a staggering 92 percent increase over the 364 listed as "imperiled" in the previous 1989 study . . . .
They're not pretty, or good swimmers, but we need lamprey
The Oregonian
by Michael Milstein,
September 14, 2008
A fish ladder deep within the concrete buildings of the Bonneville Dam complex isn't designed for salmon. It's a mockup of a fish ladder entrance, part of a little-known but urgent drive by federal and tribal agencies to make Northwest dams friendlier to an odd and ancient fish that draws scarce attention and less love.
Once, like salmon, a staple of Native American tribes, the eel-like lamprey are rapidly disappearing. Fewer adult lamprey have passed Bonneville Dam on their way upriver to spawn this year than any year since records have been kept. The number is so low it startles some biologists.
Upgrade Of Columbia Fall Chinook Return Estimate Leads To More Fishing Days
Columbia Basin Bulletin
September 19, 2008
A lower Columbia River mainstem prohibition on chinook salmon retention didn't last long enough for anglers to get their gear stowed away for the winter.
After a closure of just three days they'll be back on the river Saturday thanks to a steady and strong pulse of spawners that has prompted an increase in estimates of the size of the fall chinook salmon run.
Weather forecasters predict S.J.'s dry spell will likely last all winter
The Stockton Record
By Alex Breitler
September 22, 2008
For once, officials wish their crystal ball was cloudy.
Early forecasts suggest we're in for another dry winter - or, at best, average - and California won't get enough rain or snow to pull itself out of a damaging drought.
Stockton has seen less than one-tenth of an inch of rain since the end of February. Such an extended dry spell has not occurred here since at least 1850.
DRY TIMES AHEAD?
New strategy targets abundant salmon runs
The Register-Guard
By The Associated Press
September 15, 2008
PORTLAND - As it rushes through Oregon's southwest corner, the Illinois River is far removed from the bigger, tamer Columbia up north.
It is famous for its rapids and has no dams, fish hatcheries or urban development. For much of its 75-mile run, it's surrounded by mountains.
Wild fish such as winter steelhead, coho salmon and chinook love it.
They're not pretty, or good swimmers, but we need lamprey
The Oregonian
by Michael Milstein,
September 14, 2008
A fish ladder deep within the concrete buildings of the Bonneville Dam complex isn't designed for salmon. It's a mockup of a fish ladder entrance, part of a little-known but urgent drive by federal and tribal agencies to make Northwest dams friendlier to an odd and ancient fish that draws scarce attention and less love.
PFMC Hears Progress Report On Analysis Of West Coast Salmon Stock Decline
The Columbian Basin Bulletin
September 12, 2008
An analysis of potential causes of an unprecedented collapse of salmon stocks returning to the Sacramento River and elsewhere remains a work in progress though some suspected causes have been eliminated.
Members of the scientific team carrying out the analysis presented a progress report Monday at the Pacific Fisheries Management Council's weeklong meeting in Boise.
This Year's Colder Ocean Conditions Off NW Coast Good News For Salmon Growth
The Columbian Basin Bulletin
September 12, 2008
The physical and biological ocean conditions that greeted young salmon flooding from the Columbia River this past spring have never been better, at least since monitoring began in 1996.
That bodes very well for future returns of coho, spring chinook and sockeye.
Ice Core Studies Confirm Accuracy Of Climate Change Computer Models
The Columbia Basin Bulletin
September 12, 2008
An analysis of the global carbon cycle and climate for a 70,000-year period in the most recent Ice Age shows a remarkable correlation between carbon dioxide levels and surprisingly abrupt changes in climate.
The findings, published this week in the online edition of the journal Science, shed further light on the fluctuations in greenhouse gases and climate in Earth's past, and appear to confirm the validity of the types of computer models that are used to project a warmer climate in the future, researchers said.
New Washington-Oregon Panel Aims To Recommend Commercial-Sport Harvest Allocations
The Columbia Basin Bulletin
September 12, 2008
A new bi-state advisory group created by fish and wildlife commissions in Washington and Oregon will attempt to settle early the often contentious apportioning of lower Columbia spring and summer chinook salmon harvests between sport and commercial interests.
Smelt again at center of water conflict: Environmentalists want 3 dozen contracts canceled or reworked.
The Fresno Bee
By John Ellis
September 11, 2008
Environmentalists want the federal government to cancel or renegotiate more than three dozen long-term water contracts in the Central Valley because they say they were drawn up using flawed data.
If the request is approved by U.S. District Judge Oliver Wanger, agricultural users both north and south of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta say it would likely mean less water for them.
A Strategy for Coping with Climate Change: Amid rising seas, a California modeling effort recommends abandoning land tracts in the Sacramento Delta.
MIT Technology Review
By David Talbot
September 11, 2008
A new multidisciplinary modeling effort concludes that certain tracts of land in California's Sacramento Delta should be abandoned the next time they flood, and that major California water-supply inlets in the area should be rerouted. The study indicates the kind of land-preservation and infrastructure triage that will become increasingly necessary in the face of rising sea levels and climate change.
Yuba River algae blooms worst in 20 years
The Grass Valley Union
By Laura Brown, staff writer
September 11, 2008
Warm temperatures combined with a low water year have encouraged an unwelcome green visitor to infest popular swim holes on the South Yuba River.
Algae blooms are a normal occurrence in rivers and lakes during the summer months and typically do not pose health risks to humans. Some years are worse than others.
Cold water rings dinner bell for West Coast salmon
The Associated Press
By Jeff Barnard
September 10, 2008
A federal oceanographer says a flip-flop in atmospheric conditions is creating a feast for salmon and other sea life off the West Coast, reversing a trend that contributed to a virtual shutdown of West Coast salmon fishing this summer.
Bill Peterson of NOAA Fisheries in Newport, Ore., said Tuesday the change in cycle of an atmospheric condition known as the Pacific Decadal Oscillation last fall has brought cold water flows from the Gulf of Alaska, which are carrying an abundance of tiny animals known as copepods that are the foundation of the food chain.
Ocean conditions signal West Coast salmon rebound
Associated Press
By Jeff Barnard
September 9, 2008
NEWPORT, Ore. - A federal oceanographer says changing ocean conditions are generating a feast for salmon and other sea life off the West Coast, reversing a trend that contributed to a virtual shutdown of West Coast salmon fishing this summer.
Bill Peterson of NOAA Fisheries in Newport says the change in an atmospheric condition known as the Pacific Decadal Oscillation has generated cold water flows from the Gulf of Alaska.
Water: Get over the dams, toward efficiency
Sacramento Bee
By Peter Gleick
September 9, 2008
As California politicians continue to argue over developing comprehensive solutions to the state's water problems, eyes are inevitably turning to the agricultural sector, which uses 80 percent of the water consumed by Californians.
Agriculture is important to our economy, culture and environment, but it is subject to mounting pressure from uncontrolled urbanization, global market pressures and threats to the reliability and availability of fresh water. A new Pacific Institute report demonstrates that we can support a more sustainable and profitable agricultural sector while substantially decreasing agricultural water withdrawals. Not only can we do more with less; we must do more with less.