10 Fall/Winter 2020 psf.ca
CURRENT CHINOOK
STOCK STATUS
Chinook salmon are called "Tyees"
(meaning Chief ) and "Kings" for good
reason. They are the largest of the seven
species, on average growing to three feet
and 30 pounds. Chinook are a food and
cultural staple for Indigenous people in and
around British Columbia – the "Chinook"
tribe in Washington and Oregon is named
for this great salmon. Chinook are also
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prized by the public fishery so much so that
a fishing club in Campbell River, the Tyee
Club, was established in 1924 dedicated to
the pursuit of the 30-pound-plus Chinook.
As a result, concerns about the current
poor status of many Chinook salmon stocks
in B.C. are widespread and deeply held. The
impacts on the overall decline of this species
are far reaching, and affect First Nations
communities along the coast, the public
fishery, entire ecosystems and more. Several
Chinook stocks that return to the Fraser
River in spring and early summer are nearing
extinction. The Big Bar landslide has added a
significant amount of stress and uncertainty
to the growing concerns surrounding these
fragile populations and has been coined
a major conservation factor for this year.
Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) data
indicates that Chinook escapement in 2019
decreased between 48 to 85 per cent for four
of the five Chinook "management units" that
FERNANDO LESSA
TAKING ACTION TO RESTORE ONE OF B.C.'S
MOST AT-RISK SALMON POPULATIONS
THE PLAN TO
SAVE
CHINOOK
