Water Stewardship Information Sources
| Citation | English, KK, Glova, GJ and Blakely, AC. 2008. An upstream battle: Declines in 10 Pacfic salmon stocks and solutions for their survival. Davide Suzuki Foundation. |
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| Organization | David Suzuki Foundation |
| URL | https://www.watershed-watch.org/publications/files/DSF_UpstreamBattle.pdf |
| Abstract/Description or Keywords | his report profiles the current status and trends of 10 examples of salmon stocks in British Columbia that are considered to be in a severe state of decline. (There are many others.) These stocks were selected because they are geographically located within a region where a number of stocks of that species are in decline and the available data provide a reliable index of stocks status. They include four stocks of sockeye (Lakelse, Long, Nimpkish, and Cultus lakes), three of coho (Middle North Thompson, Brunette, and Cowichan rivers), and one each of chinook salmon (Nimpkish River), chum salmon (Viner Sound Creek), and steelhead (Keogh River). For each of the stocks, the available data on escapement, catch, and harvest rates are presented graphically since the early 1980s (or earlier, if data available). We have assessed the impact of human-related activities on fish-spawning and rearing environments in these watersheds, as well as changes in salmon survival at sea, for each stock. The abundance of these stocks has declined by 70 to 93 per cent since the early 1990s. The decline appears to have been precipitated by poor marine survival. Estimates for South Coast chinook, coho, and steelhead indicator stocks show evidence of a major decline in marine survival rates in the early 1990s. Continued high harvest rates through the mid-1990s resulted in substantial declines for some of these stocks (e.g., Nimpkish River chinook, North Thompson River coho). By the late 1990s, harvest rates had been significantly reduced for most stocks, but abundances remain low due to poor marine survival and degradation of freshwater habitat. |
| Information Type | report |
| Regional Watershed | Province |
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| Project status | complete |
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