Yes, its a tragedy that the supposed "CO"managers do not cooperatively manage out of the same playbook. Without mutually agreed-upon objectives, the resource is ultimately made to suffer.

QIN does NOT acknowledge/accept that GH chinook stocks should be segregated as separate Hump stock and Chehalis stock.... simply that they are an aggregate GH chinook stock. Nor do they acknowledge/accept that weak stocks with no harvestable surplus should be managed with a 10% impact cap. These are the most basic conservation-minded principles built into the GH Advisory's vision of a responsibly-managed salmon fishery in Gray Harbor.

The Tier Plan directs the state fishery be managed by the lesser of
1) half the harvestable surplus of the WEAKEST harvestable stock or
2) half the allowable impact (5%) on the NON-harvestable stock(s).

In contrast, the QIN basically targets half of the STRONGEST harvestable stock, all other stocks be damned. In 2012, they fully asserted their guaranteed treaty right to take half the harvestable surplus of an abundant Tier 4 coho run-size, irrespective of casualties to chinook and chum.

This is the very reason they were so willing to fish Chehalis kings more than 2400 fish into escapement.

The way the co-managers spend paper fish is like a financially dysfunctional couple sharing the same checking account. Without a mutually accepted budget plan, one spouse's irresponsible spending can't be kept in check by the other..... and the account is chronically overdrawn.
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"Let every angler who loves to fish think what it would mean to him to find the fish were gone." (Zane Grey)

"If you don't kill them, they will spawn." (Carcassman)


The Keen Eye MD
Long Live the Kings!