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SALMON RESTORATION: FORMULATING GOALS WITHIN A REALISTIC SCIENCE AND POLICY CONTEXT
Citation:
Lackey, R T. SALMON RESTORATION: FORMULATING GOALS WITHIN A REALISTIC SCIENCE AND POLICY CONTEXT. Presented at Seminar at Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, April 29, 2004.
Description:
Throughout the Pacific Northwest, since 1850, all wild salmon runs have declined and some have disappeared. Billions of dollars have been spent in a so-far failed attempt to reverse the long-term decline. Each year, hundreds of millions of dollars continue to be spent in various restoration programs. How can nearly everyone be in favor of restoring wild salmon, according to polling surveys, while the long-term prognosis appears to be so grim? Fisheries biologists and other scientists continue to help craft restoration plans, but these technocrats are unable to offer any easy, painless approaches that will actually restore wild salmon runs. Restoring most wild salmon runs in the Pacific Northwest to anything resembling historic levels will be arduous and will entail substantial economic costs and social disruption. There are restoration options that are likely to be ecologically viable and appreciably less socially disruptive than current strategies, but these options also have more modest restoration objectives.