There is no one size fits all approach. Each basin is different from the other and requires a different management strategy.

Simply not fishing would imply that harvest is the limiting factor for any particular stock, but this isn't really the case with many, if not most, stocks. Every river has a carrying capacity for a species, so putting more adults than the average adult abundance on the gravel may result in some benefits but it will not necessarily result in a larger population fish. The exception to this would be chum or pinks where their populations are not necessarily limited by in-river resources. The overwhelming majority of rivers are currently at their carrying capacity unless access to spawning and rearing areas are blocked or partially restricted below by human structures or natural barriers.

Many stocks in the PNW are heavily exploited and maintain stability, but it goes without saying there are severely depressed stocks that cannot tolerate harvest and every adult back to the gravel counts.

Increasing salmon and steelhead populations in the PNW will require drastic environmental policy change from the local to federal government that will require everyone who lives here to change their way of life. Few are prepared to do what really needs to be done to protect the environment and anadromous populations, so we'll keep putting bandaids on the hemorrhage and point fingers at hatcheries and harvest.