High seas drift nets were thought to be an issue in the mid-90s. Coast Guard and Sea Cops (privately funded patrol) found some, but it wasn't as big an issue as many thought. WDG/WDW looked into it and based on the available data estimated that high seas interceptions were responsible for a take of up to 3% of steelhead. But it's easier to blame a boogeyman like that than acknowledge that the ocean has become less productive, and that humans may have had something to do with it.