25 things vanishing in America, part 2: Wild salmon
I didn't expect to be crying reading a food book, but there I was, reading Alisa Smith and J.B. MacKinnon's book on local eating, Plenty. I was reading of the times that inspired the book's title, in the 18th, 19th and turn of the 20th centuries. The authors wrote touchingly of the Salish Sea around Vancouver, B.C., teeming with the same sorts of wildlife that must have once crowded the rivers, streams and hills of my hometown, Portland, Ore. So it was this that had me in tears. In 1907, MacKinnon writes, the coal baron James Dunsmuir anchored his steamship on the North Pacific coast and, with four men, shot a dozen bears in a morning. "Those bears would have gathered for the coming of the salmon. Until the salmon have been considered, nothing has been considered. The Pacific coast is a salmon landscape, salmon rivers and salmon forests, and in a "big year," the peak of a four-year cycle, 50 million sockeye may once have moved upstream... just so much life, such exuberance of life."MacKinnon goes on to write about how abundant was the wild food of the Pacific Northwest in centuries past, how an anthropologist wrote, "frequently [food] was so abundant that with the most extravagant feasting they could not use it all up." And then, he writes, "that is exactly what happened. We used it all up." And no more so than the salmon.
The salmon is deeply, deeply in trouble.
Early in the summer of 2008, as I was eagerly awaiting my first season of fresh fish in my recent commitment to eat local, Oregon and Washington canceled the commercial Chinook salmon season. It was the first time in 160 years; and all evidence points to more moratoriums in coming years. Wild salmon are vastly overfished; Norwegian-owned companies sit offshore all over the West Coast with long net-cages. And the habitats where young salmon spawn are troubled; in the Snake River, where Oregon salmon spawn, dams impede the wild fish; Californian cities are draining water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. The 2008 ban was blamed on a temporary decline in plankton and small fish. But what caused the decline? Some environmentalists think the problem is larger than a "temporary" once-in-a-hundred-years aberration.
New York Times writer Taras Grescoe says he's no longer eating salmon, pointing to the grocery stores of America, where 90% of the salmon is farm-raised and, he believes, unhealthy both to the eater and the environment; there's evidence that parasites in the enormous net-cages run by salmon farms are treated with pesticides, and that salmon are being fed soy.
In the Sacramento River Basin, officials have already been weighing -- and probably will agree to -- canceling the Chinook fishing season again this year. Options are currently being considered in Washington and Oregon, though most of the options look bad for wild fish.
As for me: I'm not eating fish, but for the occasional can of sardines or anchovies. I'm getting my "good fats" from Oregon walnuts and hazelnuts, and mourning the loss of the king of wild fish. Perhaps a decade or more of abstinence -- and huge changes in global fish farming policy -- will bring back the times of plenty. Until then, I'm sadly sticking to food raised on solid ground.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
4-03-2009 @ 6:26PM
Ledbetter said...
You will want to take a look at my web site http://maxledbetter.moved.in , where I say, "Research indicates that purse seiners caught 80%-90% of the vulnerable migrating salmon present in Johnstone Strait during what were commonly 48- or 72-hour fishing openings."
http://maxledbetter.moved.in summarizes some of my past research.
Reply
4-06-2009 @ 1:55PM
Rhoda Cook said...
Then why is it the Wild Alaskan Salmon I buy is from American waters and fine print says Thailand ?
Reply
4-06-2009 @ 4:03PM
Laura Fleming said...
Alaska produces 90-95% of the nation's wild salmon, and its abundant salmon runs are managed sustainably. It is an eco-friendly choice, as noted by The Monterey Bay Aquarium, Seafood Choices Alliance, National Audubon Society, Environmental Defense, Natural Resources Defense Council and many other conservation organizations. If you are concerned about the environment, you can enjoy wild Alaska salmon with a clear conscience, from the seafood case, the frozen case, the supermarket shelves where you can find it canned and pouched (boneless and skinless pouches often processed in Thailand hence the origin label), and at your favorite restaurants.
I work for Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute, a partnership of the State of Alaska with the fishing families and processing companies of Alaska, but don't take my word for it, look for yourself!
Reply
4-06-2009 @ 6:52PM
Trish said...
I am a big fan of salmon. I was just about sick reading this article. Thank you Laura for restoring my faith in the salmon I buy. I will continue to love my salmon.
4-26-2009 @ 3:48PM
Mary said...
The Monterrey Bay Aquarium can suggest that its safer/sustainable to eat Alaskan salmon, but the fact that its carried all the way to Thailand to be "processed" makes me less likely to purchase it (huge ecological footprint). Besides, salmon dosent taste too good to me, all the more reasons to not eat it. Plus, as beau adds, we are likely eating the endangered salmon that just happens to be caught in Alaska.
4-06-2009 @ 5:43PM
Dave said...
Great information, Laura! Thanks!
Reply
4-06-2009 @ 7:51PM
Cearralyn said...
Sarah Palin wants to drill in the sockeye salmon beds and destroy them. People like her are not helping things any. She absolutely does not care about our wildlife and our environment. I say that, even though I am a conservative Republican. All she is for is her version of "progress" and getting money, and she does not care what is in the way. The wolves of Alaska are a good example of her stupidity and cruelty. I hope poster Laura Fleming is right about the salmon there, but I am also right when I say that Palin wants to destroy the sockeye salmon beds.
Reply
4-26-2009 @ 9:26PM
bob said...
there no salmon in anwar you idiot
4-09-2009 @ 11:42AM
Truth About Alaska Salmon said...
In response to Laura Fleming's post above;
Laura is purposely omitting some important information. 1 in 3 Alaska salmon are not 'wild' at all. 1 in 3 salmon caught in Alaska are born in hatcheries, raised in net pens (for a short while) and then let go into the ocean to compete for food with wild salmon. I would seriously questions her statemement that Alaska salmon is "abundant" and "managed sustainably". It's no coincidence that since "ocean ranching" started 30+ years ago that the annual catch of salmon has exploded from 20 million to 200 million. But, a lot of hatchery born salmon competing with wild salmon for food doesn't translate into "sustainability".
It's simply a marketing game - attack the competitors (in this case farm-raised salmon) and don't tell anyone what you actually do.
Laura is righ on one thing - don't take her word for it - see for yourself!
http://alaskasalmonranching.wordpress.com/what-is-salmon-ranching/
Reply
4-09-2009 @ 11:45AM
Truth About Alaska Salmon said...
Hey Dave;
I have filled in a few holes in the 'great information' Laura Fleming has provided you.
See below.
Reply
4-17-2009 @ 1:06PM
beau said...
Don't feel so "correct" in the purchase of "Alaska Wild Salmon". Salmon and Steelhead born in rivers from the Columbia all the way up the coast to Alsaka migrate through Alaskan waters. That means individual species from within the general categories of Steelhead,Chinook,Silver that are listed as endangered are caught and sold as Alaska Wild Salmon. They were caught in Alaska ,but they were returning to spawn in their birth rivers in British Columbia,Washington,Oregon. So as young fish just starting their journey they must navigate the through the sea lice infested salmon farms on the British Columbia coast. Those that survive must come back through the net infested Alaska waters to complete their life cycle.
4-19-2009 @ 12:50PM
Dorrie said...
What is the bottom line? I buy salmon from Vita Choice. Is that good or not? Is it sustainably harvested wild salmon or not?
Reply
4-26-2009 @ 3:34PM
Mary said...
Nobody in my house likes salmon, I dont either. Also, I dont think I can EVER eat any fish, wild or farmed with a "clear conscience" as Laura Fleming suggests.
Thank you to those who filled in the gaps on Laura's info.
Without you, people like Trish will continue to believe biased info.
Reply
1-10-2010 @ 5:01AM
Kabes said...
People will continue to believe the most strident voices, not necessarily the most persuasive or the least biased. When you hear value laden terminology, suspect bias one way or another. When you see a simplistic argument, suspect bias. Unfortunately, it seems the American public prefers to listen to sound bites rather than nuance; would rather gossip than seriously discuss issues.
4-26-2009 @ 7:39PM
Pete said...
Until people acknowledge that the real problem is the unsustainable human population growth we will continue to see these kinds of issues. We simply cannot continue to populate the planet at the rate we are. Natural resources will be a very serious problem in the near future.
Reply
4-28-2009 @ 9:31PM
lee said...
It has and always will be about greed!! MONEY! Nothing else. If it's not natural, it's altered and not good for you.Years ago manufactures were selling dolphin meat calling it tuna fish!
4-26-2009 @ 9:27PM
bob-g said...
Seals are destroying the salmon but they are protected by all the idiot environmentes--
Reply
4-27-2009 @ 1:19AM
Lin said...
Bob, if anyone is an idiot, it is you, not me. I did not mention Anwar in my post, and there IS salmon in Alaska!
Reply
4-27-2009 @ 1:18AM
Lin said...
Mary, I am absolutely amazed you do not like salmon...the only explanation I can come up with is that you have never had it cooked correctly. Salmon is wonderful, as is most fish. I know you won't agree, but you and your family are really missing out.
Reply