November 29 at 4:08 PM ·
Well, well, the airwaves are finally abuzz with the Thompson steelhead saga. To all of those sounding off in the past week, I ask where have you been?
The status of those magnificent, one-of-a-kind fish has been well understood for a long time. The reference period commonly cited by voices of today does not begin to tell the story though. Look up a book readily available on Amazon if you want a more complete accounting of the Thompson steelhead history.
The BC Wildlife Federation has done all that could ever be asked of it with respect to highlighting the Department of Fisheries and Oceans’ denial and coverup of its responsibilities surrounding listing Thompson steelhead as endangered under Canada’s Species at Risk Act. More recently, Watershed Watch has added its voice in that respect. Several media outlets have now climbed on the Thompson steelhead awareness train.
Dare I point out to all the latecomers that every other species of salmon “managed” by DFO is addressed in an exhaustive document called an Integrated Fisheries Management Plan. Its formulation is supposed to involve all stakeholders. The bottom line is forecasts of abundance are made and measures applicable to conservation concerns identified……before a net ever goes in the water. And what do we have for steelhead? An annual, carbon copy 27 day rolling window closure on in river net fisheries all along the lower Fraser (but only downstream from Sawmill Creek which enters just upstream from Yale; there are no such measures anywhere upstream from Sawmill). The closed period represents exactly 1/3 of the steelhead run timing window. Within and outside that time and space we have self-monitoring and self-reporting of steelhead catches. Surprise, surprise, the number has been 0 or nearly so for a decade. Steelhead don’t warrant anything other than that same old, same old 27-day (partial) relief. It doesn’t matter if there’s 19 Thompson bound steelhead (i.e. the estimate for this fall) or 200 times that many, there’s no adjustment to the plan.
The experts of the moment who blame predators, ocean conditions, atmospheric rivers and even what little remains of commercial fishery interception never dare speak of the single greatest factor that screams for attention – the in-river fisheries prosecuted by the dozens of individual First Nations along the Thompson steelhead migration route. Failure to acknowledge and deal with that will never result in anything but extirpation of those fish. Anadromous genes retained by Thompson resident rainbow trout is a pipe dream in terms of any realistic expectation of a steelhead population recovery. And, what about all the other Interior Fraser Steelhead stocks that are in even worse shape than the Thompson? Yes, targeting First Nations’ net fishing is walking on broken glass but ask yourselves how serious we are about conservation?
Well of course paying no heed to what was said decided I would wade the tail out of the Grease hole( named correctly of course) in my miner waders no belt... lol my buddies should have filmed it 
