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Guest Opinion: Are salmon really
endangered?
Sonya D. Jones, Pacific Legal Foundation, and John R. Lott Jr., author of
Freedomnomics and senior research scholar at the University of Maryland,
Statesman Journal 8/2/07
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Is a fish born in a hatchery a
different species from a fish of the same populations born in the wild?
Does it matter that hatcheries have been used to reintroduce populations
into ecosystems where they ceased to exist? Does it matter that the
offspring of a hatchery fish and so-called wild fish is considered wild?
There is a lot at stake in these questions, and even federal district court
judges in the Pacific Northwest cannot seem to agree. In 2001, Judge Michael
Hogan of the District of Oregon rejected the claim that hatchery and
“naturally” spawned salmon were different. Because of that, he then rejected
classifying the Oregon Coast coho as endangered.
But, in mid-June, Judge John C. Coughenour of the Western District of
Washington ruled that “human interference” and the “unnatural” way that
hatcheries maintain salmon populations was unlawful. Judge Coughenour then
ordered that the Upper Columbia River steelhead remain on the endangered
species list.
With these conflicting decisions, it is high time to finally figure out who
is right and today the Pacific Legal Foundation is filing an appeal with the
9th Circuit Court to do just that.
The ultimate decision will dramatically affect a lot of people living in the
Pacific Northwest. Protecting the salmon will make water much more difficult
to obtain and, without irrigation permits, many farmers and ranchers will
have to stop watering their crops and livestock. Large areas of private
property will have to be set aside for any species listed as threatened or
endangered. The commercial and recreational fishing industries in the
Northwest, which generate more than $2 billion annually, will also be
affected.
Promoting the survival of salmon is a worthy goal but does it really matter
if a fish’s ancestors are from a hatchery or are naturally spawned? As it
is, many so-called “wild” or naturally spawned salmon were all but gone and
brought back through the use of hatcheries. Given that hatcheries have been
around for over 100 years, it is extremely doubtful that any naturally
spawned salmon lack ancestors who were not from a hatchery.
The Endangered Species Act is clear: “to provide a program for the
conservation of ... endangered and threatened species.” But how do you
define hatchery and naturally spawned fish as different species? There are
no biological or genetic differences, the only way you can tell the fish
apart is a clipped fin on hatchery fish. Environmental groups claim that
some hatchery fish behave differently, but that is hard to take seriously.
Why ignore all hatchery fish just because some behave differently?
But think where that logic ultimately leads. By defining different species
based on behavior, how many different species of humans do you think that
there would be?
The claimed distinction largely stems from hatchery and natural fish
survival rates. Hatchery fish have a higher survival rate from egg to smolt,
but a lower survival rate from smolt to adult. Yet, that is hardly
surprising. Many of the weaker naturally spawned fish have already died off
so that there are fewer of them to die off in the next stage. In the past,
the government’s policies have lurched from one extreme to another.
The irony is that while the courts are today asking if the salmon are
endangered, in the late 1990s, the State of Oregon ordered mass killings of
salmon to dry up the food supply for predatory sea lions and drive them away
from the damns. The eggs from these salmon were shipped to hatcheries in
South America and the dead fish sent to canneries. Private land owners are
now facing the brunt of costly government mistakes in the past.
These two court cases highlight the importance of balanced environmental
policies. But if you are going to adopt policies that severely impact
farming and ranching, it should actually accomplish something. The Pacific
Legal Foundation’s appeal of Judge Coughenour’s decision will hopefully
bring some logic to protecting the salmon.
Sonya D. Jones is an attorney with Pacific Legal Foundation in Bellevue,
Wash. and represents the appellants. She can be reached at sdj@pacificlegal.org.
John R. Lott Jr. is the author of Freedomnomics and is a senior research
scholar at the University of Maryland. He can be reached at johnrlott@aol.com.
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