Author Archives: scottveirs

Seattle Metropolitan on orcas raising their voices

Posted on October 28, 2009 | Leave a comment

WhalesInteresting to see the Holt et al, 2009, paper still in the popular press.  This article provides a nice summary and connects the study to the proposed orca-vessel regulations.

http://www.seattlemet.com/issues/archives/articles/orcas-salmon-1109/

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The dawning era of dam breaching

Posted on October 12, 2009 | Leave a comment

This story makes it clear to me that Oregon is WAY ahead of Washington on dam removal.  Whether it’s breaching of small dams like Savage Rapids or open discussion of lower Snake River Dam removal, Oregon is setting an inspirational pace in the 21st century.

All this is coming from a region/State where the spotted owl listing had economic effects on many communities involved in the timber industry.  It makes positive change for orcas and salmon in Washington rivers seem possible, but probably only after there are much more concerted efforts by many stake-holders, and often drawn-out legal battles.  Or maybe the lesson here (and implicitly in King of Fish) is that humans don’t conserve salmon until economic and ecological values are concisely quantified and definitively on the side of dam-removal?

In the Northwest, there are some 20th-century precedents for dam removal, but they are rare and not very inspirational because they were drowned out by the waves of dam construction sweeping through the Western landscape.  Here are two examples from a history of dam impacts by the Northwest Power and Conservation Council:

Although dams were known to impact salmon, few dams ever were removed. One of the first, if not the first, to be removed over salmon impacts was one across the Wallowa River in northeastern Oregon. The dam was constructed in 1904 at the Minam Fish Hatchery, and on June 4, 1914, in a late-season snow storm, the dam was dynamited.

The dam had been in place since 1905, when it was constructed with the hatchery to trap salmon returning to spawn. Eggs from Wallowa River salmon were incubated and the smolts released from the Bonneville Fish Hatchery at Eagle Creek to feed the commercial fishing industry, but the dam had decimated the Wallowa River fishery.

Two weeks after the dam was blown out, the Wallowa County Chieftain newspaper of Enterprise, Oregon, reported: “It is hoped that the removal of the dam, by opening the river to migratory fish, will make angling better than ever in streams and lakes of this county.”

But the hope never was realized. By then, sockeye in Wallowa Lake had lost their migratory instinct and become adapted to the lake environment. Three years later, when a screen at the outlet of Wallowa Lake was removed to allow an estimated 5 million fish to migrate to the ocean, most of the fish later were discovered in irrigation ditches short distances downstream. Ironically, another dam was built at the outlet of Wallowa Lake just four years later, in 1918, and it, too, stopped fish passage. The elevation of the privately owned dam was raised in 1929. The 35-foot-tall concrete dam, which lacks fish passage, is owned today by the Associated Ditch Companies, Inc., a non-profit corporation. In 2000 the Oregon Water Resources Department declared the aging structure a “high hazard dam,” which meant it could be condemned if it is not rehabilitated. Associated Ditch Companies sought funding for the needed repairs, which could include fish passage facilities to allow coho and sockeye salmon to migrate freely into and out of the lake, something the fish were not able to do for most of the 20th century. State and federal money was appropriated in 2006 for rehabilitating the dam.

In 1927, Inland Power and Light Company completed Lewiston Dam on the Clearwater River four miles upstream from its confluence with the Snake. The dam included a fish ladder, but it was inadequate. Lewiston Dam virtually eliminated Chinook salmon runs into the Clearwater Basin. Steelhead were able to negotiate the ladder, but their numbers declined dramatically, too. In 1937, Washington Water Power Company of Spokane acquired the dam, and in 1939 built two additional fish ladders. Improvements were made to all three ladders in the mid-1960s. Lewiston Dam was removed in 1973 to make way for the reservoir behind Lower Granite Dam about 40 miles downstream on the Snake, and also to facilitate barge traffic to Lewiston. In May 1999, a federal judge approved a settlement that required Avista Corp., formerly Washington Water Power, to pay $39 million to the Nez Perce Tribe for fish losses caused by Lewiston Dam and another dam that also was owned by Avista’s predecessor. That one, the Grangeville Dam, was built by Grangeville Power and Light Company in 1903 and also was acquired by Washington Water Power in 1937. Grangeville Dam operated until 1963, when it was demolished.

Of course, other States deserve credit for instigating the new era of dam breaching.  The removal of Edward’s Dam in Maine set a precedent for FERC dismantling a dam on purely ecological grounds.  A 1999 report on Dam Removal Success stories by American Rivers shows that Washington was not on the map in the 20th century:

…until 1999, states with the most recorded removals were Wisconsin (73 dams), California (47 dams), Ohio (39 dams), Pennsylvania (38dams), and Tennessee (25 dams).

Will we be on the list in the 21st century, or even at the top of it?

latimes.com

Oregon dam’s demise lets the Rogue River run

By Kim Murphy

October 10, 2009


Savage Rapids Dam destroyed

On Friday, a platoon of bulldozers and earthmovers tore away at the last of the temporary earthen berms holding water behind the dam. The Rogue River rushed free, flowing through its historic channel for the first time since 1921.

Across the U.S., the era of dam-building that characterized the early 20th century has given way to a new era of dam breaching.

Here in the Pacific Northwest, where some of the biggest battles over fish and concrete have raged, the Marmot Dam on the Sandy River near Portland was demolished in 2007. An agreement was reached last month to remove four dams on the Klamath River in California and Oregon in what is described as the world’s biggest river restoration project. Two dams on Washington’s Elwha River are slated for removal in 2012.

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Wireless buoys take pulse of the Salish Sea

Posted on October 9, 2009 | Leave a comment

I recently learned about a new initiative that is wirelessly networking environmental sensors on buoys around the Salish Sea.  Developed by a wireless company called Intellicheck/Mobilisa in Port Townsend, most of the buoys provide real-time weather data, video, and/or surface water measurements.  The NPB-1 buoy, however, offers real-time profile data from north-central Puget Sound (temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, horizontal current velocity, chlorophyll a, turbidity, and transmittance from 5-70m, off Point Wells, near Edmonds).  I’m also finding it useful to get live video from the north Marrowstone buoy when I’m trying to figure out what’s making an unusual sound on the nearby hydrophone at the PT Marine Science Center.

Click here to zoom...More information:

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Klamath follows Elwha and leads Columbia on dam removal?

Posted on October 6, 2009 | 1 Comment

Interesting news of an agreement about dam removal by ~2019 on the Klamath River. The cooperation exhibited by disparate stake-holders mimics what happened with the Elwha, but might inspire hope for more complex basins like the Columbia because the cooperation occurred across a interstate border (OR/CA).  Let’s hope CA manages to come up with the public funding that was anticipated, or that they are lucky enough to encounter Federal funds like the stimulus money that became available for shovel-ready Elwha projects.

EDITORIAL: A Klamath deal — maybe | Questions remain on plan to restore river and its fish

Appeared in print: Tuesday, Oct 6, 2009

Last week’s tentative agreement to remove four Klamath River dams was a welcome breakthrough on an issue that in recent years has divided local, state and federal officials, farmers, fishermen, Native Americans, environmentalists — and a disputatious host of others.

But much work remains if the fish-killing dams are ever to be removed from the ailing river. Critical questions also remain about who will pay for the dams’ removal and whether the breachings, if the deal is finalized and they occur as scheduled a decade from now, can save the Klamath’s imperiled salmon runs.

If the dams come down, more than 300 miles of the Klamath in Southern Oregon and northwestern California would be open to fish for the first time in more than 90 years.

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NOAA vessel rules rejected at Seattle Aquarium

Posted on September 30, 2009 | 13 Comments
Comment crowd and Lynne

Audience, Lynne, and the big tank of fish

<More photos>

Just back from the meeting in which NOAA invited the public to comment on the proposed rules for vessel-orca interactions.  Before a captive audience of Pacific salmon and rockfish, the 2.5 hours of public comment was dominated by the commercial whale watch, recreational and commercial fishing, and kayaking industries.  It seems like a repeat of the Anacortes meeting, described in this Anacortes Now article, except that tonight NOAA’s facilitator kept nearly everyone abiding by the ground rules.

Overall, there were strong objections to the entire suite of alternatives — from the 200 yard viewing distance to the no-go zone.  People for Puget Sound went on record saying that a no-go zone was a step too far.  And Ken Balcomb voted for no action.

I was left with a profound disappointment that so many felt so unfairly burdened by the proposed rules.  If the people who most intimately and consistently share the southern resident’s habitat aren’t willing to make a sacrifice to preserve the basis of their livelihoods, how can we expect the public to act selflessly for our regional icons: the orca and the salmon?

From the captains and operators of the whale watch fleet I heard dire forecasts of impending economic doom, though they would be unlimited by NOAA in 100’s of square kilometers of critical habitat, including areas that might conceivably have been included in a no-go zone: Hein and Middle banks and the rest of the west side of San Juan Island.  From the recreational and commercial fishers I heard that the west side of San Juan Island is sacred salmon fishing ground, though NOAA did not ban them from Eagle Point, Salmon Bank, or Turn Point.  And from the kayakers I heard dismay, when I can imagine trips around Henry Island or through Cattle Pass that offer adventure and orca-viewing on par with what the central west side offers.  While some speakers had delved deeply into the text of the rules and the scientific literature, many made specious assertions about the underlying science and countered with unconvincing anecdotes and generic concerns about correlation not implying causation.

I failed to finish my comments in the allotted 2 minutes.  Those that I fit in are below within the notes I took during the comment session.  But my closing thought was this: What could we humans accomplish on the tough problems of salmon and pollutants if we first succeeded in sacrificing together to reduce this most-tractable extinction risk — vessel interactions.  On a night when I expected suggestions for how to do more to help the whales, I heard only selfish whining.

For those unfamiliar with the extant and proposed regulations, here is a wiki of rules guiding vessel interactions with killer whales.

Live blog from Seattle Aquarium

These are rough personal notes (not quotes!) taken on the fly during the meeting.  NOAA has the complete record.

19:15 Overview by Lynne Barre

19:30 Public comment begins

19:31 CCA opposes impacts on recreational fishers

19:34 Bob Franks, commercial fisher from Gig Harbor: In 1989, there were 72000 boat hours/year and SRKWs were fine.  Now we’re at 1200 boat hours/year and SRKWs are in decline.  Where are the data that implicate commercial fishing vessels?

19:37 Frank, Fidalgo Chapter Puget Sound Anglers: 1/2 mi standoff will have dire consequences for recreational fishers.

19:39: VP of Puget Sound Anglers: While fishing on west side I’ve seen orcas foraging all around us without concern.  Sport fishers are the eyes and ears of the salt water.  They carry on as if we’re not there.  Recreational fishing has no adverse impact on these wonderful marine mammals.

19:42: Ken Balcomb: We noted KWs swam down sound past all fishing vessels twice per year and came down for Sea Fair (4000 boats).  In all these years there has been no evidence of a boat hitting a killer whale.  “My vote is that we take no action, alternative one.  I think we should collectively shelve it somewhere between Alice in Wonderland and Don Quixote.”

19:45: Mark Anderson: There is a scientific consensus that the orcas are starving.  The three legged stool has only two legs now: lack of fish and vessel interactions.  UW study showed mortality goes up with boat concentration.  Economic impact is likely bigger than in the rule’s analysis.

19:48: Bob Keiko, Purse Seine industry rep, Fraser sockeye/pink fishery rep: This no-go zone is a prime fishing area.  Fraser Pink and sockeye migrate through the Straits and their first land impact is the west side of San Juan Island.  The commercial fishery is limited to ~5 days/year.  It’s wrong to assume that the fleet can just go somewhere else to fish.

19:51: Larry Carpenter, owns 2 boat dealerships, spent 1000s of days on west side San Juan Island.  Chinook returns are adequate for fishers and killer whales due to 30% reduction of Canadian catch on outer Vancouver Island.  Foraging and pollution conditions are improving.  We in the recreational fishery are a huge part of the solution.

19:53: Roland Skogley, citizen:

19:56: Cedric Towers, Vancouver Whale Watch operating 7mo/yr; Pacific Whale Watch Association wants to stick with 100yd global standard.  Educational value from professional naturalists is lost at 150-250 yards.  We’ve been experimenting all summer.  I’m going to be out of business.  Customers say they aren’t interested in watching from 200 or 250 yards.

19:59: Speaker for the sea kayak fleet: The no-go zone eliminates nearly all kayakers from west side San Juan Island.  Kayaks are the only silent vessels and our viewing is comparatively brief.

20:00 Rick Thompson, Canadian whale watcher for 10 yrs, 30 yrs commercial fisherman: I don’t see many changes and they seem well-fed this year by the spring returns of this year and last.  My company has 25 people and our oral survey suggests 80% of our customers would forego whale watching at >100yds.

20:03: Ann individual kayaker

20:05: Kayaker for 17years west side San Juan Island: Ban of kayaking isn’t fair

20:11 Rain, Seattle resident

20:17 Peter, whale watch operator: This is onerous.  We educate 10’s of 1000s of people per year.

20:18 Troy, 30 years fished west coast, fought rock cod fishery closures in CA: you’ve managed to pull groups together that don’t like each other.

20:21 People for Puget Sound: restoration of salmon run, reduction of toxins, countering of sonar-like noises.  We agree that vessels are a risk.  We support 200yd, but think no-go zone is too far.  Where is the orca in the orca recovery plan?

20:23 Anna Hall biologist and Prince of Whales captain for 15 years: I’m in full support of species protection as well as the public education that happens on the whale watching boats.   Consider the PWWA proposal.

20:26 Eric Shore, owns Anacortes Kayak Tours and has 20yrs on west side of SJI, about 1000 days with whales.

20:27 Alan McGilvry: “The science is anecdotal, it’s not reproducible, and doesn’t follow scientficic method.  The whale watch industry is part of the solution and we’re here for you.”

20:30: Another whale watch Captain for 25yrs in Floriday, Hawaii, NW 129 people/day

20:32: Dan Kukat, owner of Springtime Charters for 15yrs, charter fishing for 20years.  Canada commends U.S. fishery conservation: Unless there’s food on the table, none of us can live.  Basic economics and passenger testimony say these rules will raise impacts on killer whales by diminishing public education and awareness of the real risks.

20:35 Ken, Seattle Resident: Gas works park contamination sample.

20:36: 20yrs boating interactions mostly with J pod: J pod increase since 1970s.

20:38: Works for Clipper Navigation and long career on water: Please don’t restrict others from seeing them up close.

20:39: Darrel Bryan, CEO Victoria Clipper: How were oral comments in Anacortes not fully recorded?  Why was procedure changed during the meeting?  Did NOAA leave the rule open to legal challenge by altering the rule-making process?

20:42: 47 yr WA resident, sport fisher on west side every summer: What scientific proof do you have that killer whales are not getting enough food on this route.  Orcas are operating in no-go zone because that’s where the fish are.  Pinks come in on in-coming tide and are often scattered by killer whales.  What impediment do few sports fishermen pose if orcas can operate during commercial openings.  In 1962 there were no salt-water fishing licenses!  We have less fish than in 1962 and all we have is more and more restrictions.

20:45 James Dale, 5 star whale watching: I’ve supported recovery planning process for 15 yrs, but am concerned we’re going to get distracted by these regulations from truly meaningful actions.

20:47 Dan, Save our wild salmon

20:51 Shane Aagergard, owns Island Adventures

20:54 Angler expert: economic impacts on recreational fishers may be underestimated

10:56 West side resident: supports 200yd, why is acoustic

10:58 Fred Felleman, west side home-owner and orca biologist: Now there are more boats than whales.  Clearly marine education on the water is a contributor.  Congratulations to NOAA on attracting substantially more public comment than in recent Navy EIS comment meetings.  Go slow, not no go.

…

21:08 Peter Henke: Enforcement is lacking and enforcement boats have been wreckless.

…

21:21 WW operator: I’m torn because sometimes it is a zoo out there, but I see a lot of good educational value.

21:23 Annette sea kayaker

21:25 Commercial non-treaty fisherman supports access to no-go zone

21:25 Kowichan Bay operator:

21:27: Peter, Westcott Bay resident: supports all aspects of rule; easy to document inappropriate

21:31; Shane Elwin: Illegal to pursue so supports limits on commercial whale watching.  Relax rules re kayaking.

21:34: Sarah sea kayak guide:

21:36 Thomas Star, Water Trail: We need better enforcement.

21:38: Derrick Mitchell, kayaker

About 5 others, including me.

~21:46 Scott Veirs, WA resident for 15 yr, PhD oceanography, 5 seasons running Beam Reach, co-author of “KWs Speak up”: Will provide written comments, but want to speak as father of 2 young children who love the orcas.  Who is speaking conservatively for the whales?  Whale watch and fishing interests are clearly much better organized than orca-advocacy community!  Why not support a refuge for SRKWs?  Though Beam Reach may be impacted as a business, I support 200 yard limit and no-go zone.  In fact, I ask why the no-go zone does not include the Eagle Point to Salmon Bank, a region which many consider a foraging hot spot along the west side. BR has not joined the PWWA because the Association does not strike an acceptable balance between (what appears tonight like) economic greed and ecological value, and does not take a precautionary approach.

21:53: Finished with public comment.

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SRKWs need priority in chinook managment

Posted on September 28, 2009 | 1 Comment

In a bit of press coverage related to a new publication by John Ford et al. we orca advocates are again getting the confusing message: southern residents need a place at the table where Chinook salmon management is derived, but it’s sure to be nearly impossible to represent them.  I say it’s time to stop nay-saying and start representing!

In yesterday’s Oregonian, Ford is quoted as saying: “It’s going to be important to work with the salmon managers to make sure there are enough chinook for the whales.”

But then a representative of WDFW (the government agency that sets sports fishing regulations for Washington State) sets up the conundrum:

Gary Wiles, a wildlife biologist with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, says Ford’s study provides strong evidence that the survival of the killer whales depends largely on restoring chinook salmon runs.

“The case they make here is quite compelling,” says Wiles, co-author of the federal recovery plan for the endangered southern resident whales. But he says figuring out a way to divide up the fish among so many interests won’t be easy.

“With the overall decline of chinook stocks,” he says. “it really becomes a problematic thing to throw into the mix.”

The prudent thing seems to be to find ways to alter commercial and recreational fishing by humans to optimize the southern residents ability to feed themselves during the winter months. This might be as simplistic as fishing bans (they should at least be on the table if we’re discussing the extinction of regional icons), but could probably be much more innovative and acceptable to human fishers. And as an Oregon fisherman points out, there’s still room for orca and salmon advocates to collaborate to recovery Chinook by problem-solving around the other H’s: hatcheries, hydropower, habitat, heat, and history.

Darus Peake, a fisherman in Garibaldi and chairman of the Oregon Salmon Commission, says bans on fishing are politically easy, but less effective than removing dams, cleaning up decades of pollution and stopping logging and development along rivers.

“While I feel for the plight of the orcas, we’re both in this together,” Peake says. “Until we as a society go back and fix these rivers where the problem starts, we’re all in trouble.”

Fishery managers say figuring out how to allocate salmon to the killer whales would be enormously complicated. Because the whales prey on chinook that spawn in rivers from California to British Columbia, decisions would have to include two countries, numerous tribes with treaty rights to the salmon, as well as commercial and sport fishermen.

Obvious calls to action I’ve seen recently:

  1. Attend the Wild Salmon Rally in Seattle on Wed 9/30

    2. (This is conveniently right before the 7-9pm public comment mtg re the proposed rules for orca-boat interactions at the Seattle Aquarium.)

  2. Comment on recreational fishing regs proposed for 2010-2012 In person mtgs around the State Sep 28 – Oct 13; Written comments by Dec 1.

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Ground-down teeth imply offshore KWs eat sharks

Posted on September 15, 2009 | Leave a comment

Offshore Killer Whale Teeth

Here is a great close-up of the teeth of an offshore killer whale from Rachael Griffin’s blog.  Can you imagine the orca-shark battles and chewing that might have caused such incredible wear on so many huge teeth?!

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Slippery Snake: Too little too late?

Posted on September 14, 2009 | Leave a comment

This oregonlive.com article presents some great factoids for the orca conservationist.  These are my favorite excerpts:

The total spent by the agency [BPA] since 1978 is about $12 billion. That spending shows up in your power bill. About 15 percent, or $11, of the average Nortwesterner’s monthly electricity charges goes towards salmon, according to the Northwest Power and Conservation Council, which develops the regional strategy to balance fish and power needs.

Over 20 years ago, the council set a goal of doubling the number of salmon and steelhead entering the mouth of the Columbia River from the 2.5 million it was then to 5 million, still only a third to a half of historic runs, estimated at 10 to 15 million.

But the region is no closer to that goal now. And there is still no monitoring program in place to tell whether all the money we’re spending and work we’re doing is helping.

More recently the council set a deadline for doubling fish runs of 2025, and they are working on developing a uniform monitoring plan for fish across the basin.

It’s flabbergasting to read of the Council’s failure to meet such moderate long-term goals, and then re-setting them!  These people should be shamed along with responsible actors at the BPA and Army Corp.

And in the end, it all still sounds like small peanuts.  I remain unconvinced that many of the Columbia and Snake River dams are worth keeping around.  Give a cogent analysis of the costs/benefits of the dams and I’ll bet you that if the power/salmon/orca connection was made loud and clear to citizens of western Washington citizens, a majority would opt to pay much more to preserve our regional icons and reputation natural beauty and abundance.

Take last minute action: write to ex-WA-Governor Gary Locke, now Secretary of the Interior.

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OR salmon and climate change

Posted on September 10, 2009 | 2 Comments

I’m not convinced it is worth worrying much about climate change and northwest salmon when there is so much we can do to assist their recovery on shorter time scales and locally.  While the effects on water temperature and runoff could be huge, I’ll place my bet on the oceanographic variations exerting the strongest control on salmon through primary productivity in the NE Pacific.

Oregon Public BroadcastingElk River

The Future Of Salmon In Denmark

BY CHRISTY GEORGE

Denmark, OR  September 9, 2009 4:13 p.m.

The emerald green Elk River winds down from the Coast range mountains, past tree-shaded banks. And riding the Elk’s currents to the sea are Chinook salmon.

Wild Chinook, and Chinook from the Elk River Hatchery.

….

Bill Peterson: “If there’s one thing we can expect from climate change, it’s variability. If there’s more variability, how can you predict anything? And the fact is, that you can’t.”

Bill Peterson says there are other climate cycles – like one called the Pacific Decadal Oscillation, which cycles from warm phases to cold phases about every 20-25 years.

At least – until recently.

Bill Peterson: “So we’ve had three phase changes from warm to cold, warm cold, cold warm in the last ten years. Which has never happened before. This is kind of what you’d expect from climate change, and if salmon have to deal with this on a year by year basis, they’re in big trouble. If you think they can maybe adapt to this, there’s no way. It’s really kind of sad.”

Robin Crisler says salmon are good at adapting to change.

Robin Crisler: “I cite the example of the Toutle River off of Mt. St. Helens – a complete disaster, and the river was ruined, but today, within far less than our lifetimes there are salmon and steelhead in the Toutle River again.”

Bill Peterson wants to believe.

Bill Peterson: “They’re tough, they’re resilient, and if there’s an animal that’s going to survive and make it in climate change, it’s the salmon. I mean they will find a way. I really firmly believe that. But we’ve got to help them any way we can. And hope for the best.”

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Insight into Fraser failures

Posted on August 29, 2009 | Leave a comment

It seems a crisis is emerging on the Fraser River.  For those of us in the U.S. working to restore salmon runs, this article provides a glimpse into the complexity of Fraser River management and science (and politics).

Where have all the salmon gone?

And where on Earth are our public watchdogs? Scientists tipped them to this tragedy in 2007

By Stephen Hume, Vancouver SunAugust 25, 2009

Approximately 130 million baby sockeye from the Chilko, Quesnel and other interior river systems — the largest producers of the most valuable commercial stocks on the Fraser system — appear to have vanished during their annual migration to the sea in 2007.

This season’s shortfall in predicted returns of sockeye salmon — fewer than two million of the predicted 10.6 million are now expected to return — actually points to something really troubling, a possible ecological catastrophe on a vast scale somewhere in the lower Fraser or the Strait of Georgia.

….

Have we so degraded the Fraser that we are now in the early stages of an Atlantic cod scenario for British Columbia’s iconic wild salmon? Is there something else going on in this enormous ecosystem that has implications for us humans who are perched atop the food chain, perhaps more precariously than we like to think?

….

Most important, why aren’t we talking about this astonishing, colossal event in these broader terms instead of listening to Indian bands, sports anglers and commercial interests squabbling endlessly over the tattered remnants of what should have been a tremendous return while stunned fisheries managers blather about the difficulty of making the predictions they routinely make and try to calculate how many dwindling sockeye it will be OK to kill as by-catch in other fisheries?

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