Okay.
My name is Matt Stabler. I'm a retired fisheries biologist with considerable experience, and now a recently forced-out retired commercial salmon troller in B.C. From my direct experience on the ground in both occupations and from published data, it is impossible to have any other determination than one that notes that our west coast salmon are in extremely serious trouble right now. The vast majority of their populations are depressed and growing rapidly more so each and every year.
While a myriad of issues are causing this, such as habitat loss and global warming, there are others. The most pressing at this point in time, and the only one we can act upon immediately, is the depredation by seals and sea lions. Current peer-reviewed and proven studies note that between 40% to 60% of outgoing coho and chinook salmon smolts from the Fraser and the vast majority of B.C.'s coastal freshwater systems are consumed annually by these predators. Furthering the reduction of their numbers is the fact that these pinnipeds also target all salmon species while they are at sea, and upon their return to their natal waters to spawn.
This is entirely unsustainable. If left unchecked, we will soon be bearing witness to the extirpation of salmon species overall in our west coast waters.
The science is in, folks. The science is conclusive. Calling for more studies in this regard, while the salmon populations plummet as they are, is basically a fool's errand. The time to act was yesterday. If we want our future generations to have access to salmon and many other fisheries, such as herring, etc., we must act immediately upon the one bottleneck we can in order to help these resources avoid extinction. That will provide us with the time required to address the other bottlenecks these resources face.
Should we not act today, the responsibility for the demise of these very precious resources is on us.
