Salmon Steward

salmon Steward magazine 9 Building a salmon community Fast-forward almost a decade when then- Minister of Fisheries Tom Siddon decided to create the Pacific Salmon Foundation with an eye to engaging community organizations and volunteers in Pacific salmon recovery. Their vision was an NGO that provided seed funds to community groups, who could then leverage those funds through further fundraising at the community level. Through the Foundation, their vision worked. The Foundation coined the slogan "Bringing them back, stream by stream," which captured the focus of community organizations in local streams and rivers; and, since 1989, the Pacific Salmon Foundation's Community Salmon Program has granted $13 million to 1,655 projects, with a total value estimated at $90.3 million through overall leveraging of seven-fold. science to support community But through the 2000s, it became apparent that restoration of freshwater streams and hatchery supplementation wasn't able to maintain the abundance of our salmon. Pacific salmon populations coast-wide began to show fewer returns per generation and their returns ebbed and flowed with little understanding of why. In the Strait of Georgia, the fishery had diminished to a shadow of its historical abundance with a ban on wild Coho retention and Chinook catches at one-tenth of past peak levels. Though the Foundation's support for community groups hasn't wavered, we have had to adjust to better support the community volunteers by expanding work into the marine and nearshore environment. During the past five years, the Foundation has expanded its science agenda to better understand why the production of Pacific salmon in many areas was declining, even though fishing impacts had been greatly reduced. Some of these initiatives include: • Building partnerships to expand our reach and involvement, particularly in estuaries and nearshore habitats; • working with Genome BC and DFO on the Strategic Salmon Health Initiative to bring clarity to the questions about disease in Pacific salmon (psf.ca/what- we-do/strategic-salmon- health-initiative); • conducting our first independent industry review to see if Run-of-River Hydro projects are affecting salmon (psf.ca/ what-we-do/run-river-power); • developing the Strait of Georgia Data Centre in partnership with the Sitka Foundation and University of British Columbia, with thousands of data files freely available at sogdatacentre.ca; • and launching our landmark five- year Salish Sea Marine Survival Project with $10 million budgeted for activities in the Strait of Georgia (marinesurvivalproject.com). a stronger Voice for salmon In 2017, the Pacific Salmon Foundation will enter its third decade of work. As we near that milestone, we are conducting a strategic planning process that will ensure the Foundation maintains its voice for Pacific salmon amidst all the clatter about future climate change, major developments, reduced government funding, changes in First Nations powers and uncertain financial outlooks. Because what is desperately needed in British Columbia for Pacific salmon is the leadership to catalyze change through science, increased support for community volunteers and expanded vigilance against threats to salmon. Our view to the future will encompass all of these needs. We will maintain the Community Salmon Program and introduce an evaluation and monitoring component to determine the most effective use of funds for conservation and restoration. Slated for completion in 2018, the results of our Salish Sea Marine Survival Project will inform future conservation management policy and provide clarity on issues impacting the Salish Sea. Recognizing the increasing role of First Nations in resource management, the Foundation will develop a First Nations engagement program and will explore creating a community program for First Nations communities. To more directly protect Pacific salmon in the struggle between development and resource uses, we will dedicate human resources to government relations and public engagement. And, to address numerous other challenges to Pacific salmon, we will set an objective to "catalyze change" by engaging on big picture issues. Above all, we commit to maintain and improve our communication and outreach to you, our volunteers, supporters and donors; and build stronger networks through partnerships Our past was good, our recent period was better and our future can be great. Let's stick together and ensure a future for our iconic symbol of British Columbia, the Pacific salmon. Because we will likely have to develop an even louder voice for the future. The Foundation partners with Sts'ailes First Nations in protecting the Harrison Salmon Stronghold. Our past was good, our recent period was better and our future can be great. Eelgrass planting in a nearshore environment. text salmon to to make a $10 tax-deductible donation Take action now for Pacific Salmon

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