This will certainly take down the great bears and orca–
The irony is that B.C. did not dam its salmon streams like the United States did.
Silent Fall. Posted By: Chris Genovali. B.C.’s vanishing wild salmon means trouble for all. Monday Magazine.
. . . more Saving Wild Salmon, in Hopes of Saving the Orca. New York Times. By Cornelia Dean.
The culprit may the infestation of salmon farms the B.C. government has allowed to crop up spreading disease and parasites.
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Salmon are in trouble in Puget Sound too, and the orca there are perishing. These orca are not just hungry, but full of toxic chemicals.
“Orcas are a call to action on Puget Sound cleanup. We have to act now to protect and clean up the waters in and around Puget Sound before all of the orcas are lost forever.” By David Dicks. Special to The Seattle Times
Ralph Maughan
Dr. Ralph Maughan is professor emeritus of political science at Idaho State University with specialties in natural resource politics, public opinion, interest groups, political parties, voting and elections. Aside from academic publications, he is author or co-author of three hiking/backpacking guides, and he is past President of the Western Watersheds Project and the creator of The Wildlife News.
The real cuplrit, as usual, is the provincial government for the following reasons:
1) fish farms, yes there are many and not all that many owned by Canadian firms. They sit right in the middle of the spawning migration routes all through the inland passage.
2) commercial fishing where seiners are allowed to scoop up 50lb Kings and 20lb Cohos with their net load of 5 lb pinks for canning, as long as they throw the dead kings and cohos overboard once the deck is cleared.
3) Logging, where water warming of just a 1 degree change in average spawning river temperature can allow devastating parasits to survive. The amount of BC clear cut around spawning rivers and streams is mind boggling and destructive even if they do leave their token 100 yard strip around the waters edge so the cruise ships, kayakers and private boaters can’t really see it from shore level.
If you want to see whats wrong with BC’s salmon, just take a float plane ride up the inland passage…all this and more awaits the critical eye….
I’d say B.C. and Alberta have the two worst governments in Canada.
Mike Post has it right. Amazing that it is 2008 and we have not driven wild salmon into extinction 30 years ago. Resilient animals but not “superfish”. .