(Los Angeles) Salmon fishing will be banned for a second year in a row off the Californian coast, American authorities announced, due to the dramatic decline of the species, worsened in recent years by climate change.
This is a hard blow for the sector, which is still paying the consequences of a drought which prevented “Chinook” salmon, a typical California species, from reproducing.
“While we have enjoyed rainy and wet winters this year and last year, the salmon that will benefit from these conditions are not expected to return to California until 2026 or 2027,” explained Charlton Bonham, director of the California Department of Conservation. fisheries and wildlife, in a press release published Wednesday.
“This year’s salmon season has been affected by the harsh environmental factors present three to five years ago,” he added.
California has experienced chronic droughts over the past twenty years, made worse by global warming.
They have made rivers, already riddled with dams, too low or too hot, depriving salmon of their natural habitat.
In these inhospitable conditions, fish struggled to swim upstream to reproduce, and their offspring often died before reaching the Pacific Ocean.
As a result, only 6,100 salmon were counted in 2023 in the upper part of the Sacramento River, a major breeding ground. Between 1996 and 2005, there were more than 175,000 per year.
The fishing sector accuses the authorities of poor water management. Fishermen believe in particular that salmon are victims of the growing needs of Californian agriculture, with very water-intensive crops such as almonds, pistachios and walnuts.
“We can’t just sugarcoat the situation or blame it all on the drought,” said Scott Artis, head of the Golden State Salmon Association.
“Our water, our natural resources, the resources that all Californians and the entire salmon industry depend on, are being stolen right before Governor (Gavin) Newsom’s eyes,” he added. , in reference to the governor of California.
In a press release published Thursday, the governor announced that he had asked the federal state for new aid to compensate for the cancellation of the fishing season.
More than $20 million was allocated for last year’s season, an amount the industry says is grossly inadequate.
Normally, salmon fishing generates $1.4 billion a year and supports 23,000 jobs, according to the Golden State Salmon Association.