Congrads to WSC and their many supportors! By using the system to their advantage they have successfully achieved their adgenda. Now that WSR has been put on the shelf for at least 2 years perhaps some of the passion devoted to that issue can be focus on any of the many that would actually benefit our rivers and the resources they support.

Todd -
Not sure that the statement "the Quillayute is the ONLY river that is on an upward trend in population size." is a true statement - you and I were looking at some graphs on Wednesday that showed increasing trends in the last several years. In addition several of the Puget Sound summer run populations have increased since the mid-1990s.

If the theory is that popualtions have been limited by harvest then WSR release is not the best tool to rebuild those population - complete closure is. WSR continues to allow some impacts. In nearly every case where a population has been limited by harvest the population abundance rebounds when that harvest pressure is removed. Virtually every Puget Sound steelhead population has not rebounded when the harvest pressure was removed (closed) or reduced (WSR and shorter seasons) - ergo the major limiting factor of abundance has not been harvest.

Eddie/FishNg1 - Based on your avatars it is too bad that your passion for conserving wild steelhead doesn't extend to our other anadromous fish.

Rich G - While you may wish for the tribes to try for forgone opportunity I would not like to roll those dice in Federal Court - I believe the State is something like 0 for 98 in court and it would appear that we can expect similar results if they go there again.

Sure Catch -
In 1980 and continuing today wild steelhead are legal to retain in some areas of BC - It is another urban legend that wild steelhead release is required thoughout BC.

While it would be easy to believe that mis-management is the cause of most of 50% of our salmon and steelhead being extinct or federally ESA listed the truth is that the majority are so because we as a society choose cheap power, water, etc over fish.

Cowlitzfisherman -
The WDFW mandate is to provide recreation - to some that is equated to harvest and to others it means a chance to fish.

Salmo g.
On the Skagit from 1977 to 1980 the system was not closed to wild harvest. The spring fishing was shortened. CnR season began in the early 1980s not to rebuild the runs buyt rather to provide low impact recreation while the runs did rebuild. The hatchery smolts were not all clipped up the 1983 release with WSR reguired on most Puget Sound rivers beginning in 1983/84 by using fin cards.

The large runs seen on the Skagit in the mid-1980s was primarily due to the unusually high smolt to adult survivals seen regionally at that time. The Koegh River research showed the highest smolt to adult sruvival in the last 25 years occurred during that period. Those survivals were nearly 10 times what has been seen recently.

Tight lines
S malma