Farmed Salmon...Yikes! Obsessed, you are dead on when you say that higher consumption of farmed salmon drives the market for wild fish into the dumper. However, I have to put my two cents worth in on the commercial netting issue.

While I believe that commercial salmon (and in the tribes cases, steelhead) netting is a dead horse and isn't economically, or evnvironmentally feasable in the lower 48 anymore, it still is a well managed and viable business in certain regions (ie. Bristol Bay, Copper River,) where the controlls on the commercial fleets are very tight. While everyone has their opinion and right to do as they please in most matters, I don't agree with promoting the consumption of pellet-raised, foriegn farmed salmon with the idea that it will ultimately put all commercials out of business. I understand the concerns and urgent need to do everthing possible in the name of protecting andromous fish runs that need help, but there are runs healthy enough and closely monitored enough to justify viable commercial fisheries. In most cases, adequate harvest is needed to prevent over-reproduction of a certain species of salmon. Bycatch also, is tightly monitored and if the managing agency has even a slight notion that a questionable run of fish mingling with the targeted healthy run is in danger of failing to meet expected spawning goals the entire fishery is shut down till more data is available... regardless of economic impact on the commercial side.

In addition, controlls on aquaculture regarding disease, genetics and retention of fish in pens seems sub-par. How many times have we recieved reports in the last few years of an alien species of salmon migrating up one of our rivers. At what cost would it be to our native salmon if a run of Atlantics was able to take a foothold in Pacific rivers. Competition for food, disease, genetic mingling, spawning bed competition...endless snafus in my opinion. I know net raised fish are supposed to be triploid and sterile, but they so far, have found the wits to muster up the instincts to travel up our rivers and behave like a species bent upon procreation. Did you read the artical in Time about the genetics lab in New Zealand that successfully created "Frankenfish", 500 lb. king salmon clones. The government ordered the fish destroyed but milt from the fish was retained for future "research". How about that monster competing with our puny Hoh springers?

In my opinion that alone poses a far larger threat to our native species than the now basically defunct non-tribal commercial salmon fisheries. Their fishing time is so minimal and their short openings fall to one side or the other of the peaks of runs that impact on salmon runs is minute. Honestly, I believe that commercials in the lower 48 are beating a dead horse by continuing to fish, but it still is their right just as it it the tribes right by law to net our rivers. Our government would do all of us a favor by putting a moratorium on all salmon netting. But in the same mode, outlawing fishing with bait or fishing in any river with a questionble run of fish should be stopped also. You can't put blame on one sector when addressing the issue of whats happened to our fish. The propaganda put forth by sportsmen's organizations paints the commercials as the main ill affecting our fish while they fail to put all their cards on the table. How many wild steelhead and salmon are kept every year in our local river systems by sportsmen (ie. 7000 on the peninsula rivers this year) How many fish are C&R'd by fishermen only to die of stress or fatigue? How many native fish suck down a sand shrimp or gob of eggs and die from hook wounds even if they are released?

So Obsessed, while I respect your right to your opinion that eating more farmed fish would enentually put the skids on all commercial fishing I think consideration to healthy and well-practiced commercial fisheries needs to be given. I am a Bristol Bay salmon fisherman of 15 years and am a participant in an extremely well-managed fishery that ensures that new generations of wild salmon will allways have the opportunity to reproduce in sufficiant numbers...Ultimately generating enough numbers of a new generation to venture into the ocean and face what trials we can't controll. If those runs were in jeapordy they would be fished at all. Besides, farmed, hormone, pellet, and drug raised fish taste like crap!

[This message has been edited by Chuckn'Duck (edited 04-18-2000).]