Thursday
May062010
Filleting Wild Steelhead Runs
Thursday, May 6, 2010 at 12:02AM 
As we all know, most rivers on the Olympic Peninsula and throughout the Puget Sound region are experiencing radical declines in wild steelhead populations. So given that Pacific Northwest wild steelhead populations are collapsing, it is total BS that the fish chuckers at Seattle's Pike Place Fish Market offer wild steelhead for purchase. By selling wild steelhead, the Pike Place Fish Market, one of the most well known fish retailers in the world, is sending the wrong message to its customers and contributing to the demise of these magnificent fish.
Send a comment to the market and urge them to stop selling...... and throwing wild steelhead.
Reader Comments (34)
Done. Though I live in Texas, far from Seattle, I appreciate you giving us a heads up on this issue.
I never did like that place. A bunch of meatheads if you ask me.
What is the alternative for them? PETA would suggest all of us to stop fishing as it causes harm and some level of mortality even with C&R. Fuck it, lets just sit on the banks and pray for these fish. Maybe we can bring fish pellets with us.
Blow it out your ass Jack. The alternative is to not sell wild steelhead at all. Have you ever been to the place? They have plenty of variety when it comes to species. Take your retarded PETA crap (completely irrelevent) somewhere else. You obviously dont know dick about wild steelhead and what is going on.
It shows they don't care. Jack a good fishermen cares about the enviorment. That doesn't make us a bunch of Peta supporters. I don't want to be a part of a generation that is responsible for wiping this species off the map. What will your children fish for JACK when the fish are all gone. No one say's we shouldn't fish . But we have a responsiblity for the species if we want to keep fishing it. Conservation is about sound mangement of the land & it's species. That doesn't makes us a bunch of puppy humping PETA supporters.
Done. I'll let you know if they reply.
I tried to email and this is what happened when I hit send.
http://www.pikeplacefish.com/messageerror.html
Looks like they may have shut down their email?
Their reply:
I have received your email and will forward it to the owner. Please know that we don't buy any illegal or endangered steelhead. The Native Americans pretty much run the commercial steelhead industry in Washington and are highly regulated by the state. It is not illegal for them to catch and or sell wild fish. The fish are coming from rivers on the Olympic Peninsula, and if you check the link I sent you, you can see that the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife are not concerned with Steelhead populations in this area. Thanks for your concern.
the link they sent that I accidentally ommitted:
http://wdfw.wa.gov/wlm/diversty/soc/soc.htm
done
Yep, I got the same reply.
done
In my email, I pointed out WDFW's stance on this topic is strictly political, and is not scientifically based. They'll hide behind their "legal" right to harvest and sell these fish; it's our job to point out that the reasons for its legality are flawed.
Done, But I had to email pikeplacefish@pikeplacefish.com the link was down for sending emails
Shouldn’t we be writing & focusing the debate to Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife, instead? If they are following the law, adhering to the catch limit, and operating a business based on those laws – is it really fair to ask them to stop part of their business/livelihood based on what we think is “correct” because we (and our future generations) want to sport fish? And even if we sent them a billion emails, isn’t it more effective to get the law/ regulation changed? And yes, there is a difference between the PETA argument, but isn’t that only a matter of degree? I don’t understand why the focus isn’t where it’s going to actually make a difference.
Rich,
It boils down to the supply versus demand debate. If there is no demand there will be no Supply. So if Pikes Place quits selling it, the Natives won't have any buyers therefore not making it profitable for them to catch it. There are plenty of hatchery fish to catch if they want to sell it...
A fucking OUTRAGE!l!! All special fisheries privileges for naltives should be abolished.
I've seen thirty-pounders on ice at the market. Makes me so sick. I have a post ready to roll on my site that says I wish George Boldt would have died on February 11, 1974. That's where the whole damned demise began. The market's response shows they don't have a grasp of the situation. To say that the Washington Department of Fish and Game isn't concerned is a crock. They're concerned, and they are hamstrung. As a group, I've found Washington biologists, at least on the west side of the state to be the least informed and dedicated group in the West. I wonder if they even care about fish. I wonder if they even fish. I've interviewed hundreds of biologists in Montana, Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, British Columbia and Alaska. I just get the feeling that the Washington boys collect their paychecks and keep their mouths shut despite the archaic regulations they are forced to enforce by the politicians above them. Sport anglers in Washington want their half. And if the natives are going to take half and kill that half at the mouth of the rivers, the sports are going to bonk their half upstream.
I don't pretend to have the greatest grasp on the subject right now and I live in Montana. But my heart is with those fish and this is off the cuff so I'll probably piss some people off, but the fact is Washington's regulations and this 50/50 split is a sham and it does nothing for native steelhead. Look south to Oregon. Look at their fisheries. What's the difference?
We need new regs, a combined effort from jerkers and fly guys, and some kind of penetration into the native psyche. And for those biologists who are doing good work and care, I'm sorry to have included you in a broad statement here. Keep up the good work wherever you are.
There.
greg thomas
www.anglerstonic.com
Kick ass sight Greg. Stay out of my water.
Johnny Mc
Rich,
The reason what we are going after the sellers of the fish is that's our only real way to get anything done right now.
WDFW doesn't care, the public doesn't care because it isn't informed, our politicians definitely don't care, and the native netters would net every last one of these fish if given the chance.
Our only option is to go straight to where the fish is sold and cut them off there. If consumers stop buying, they will stop netting.
people will buy out of ignorance to the issue no matter what. If there was bluefin and blue whale they'd buy that too. If the entire seattle area markets (never been) banned together and agreed not to sell any of the fish and made it known that they won't support those fisheries, then almost everyone would at least hear about it. at least they would make a point and raise awareness
I'm not a Steelhead fisherman. With that said, I am entering week 4 of the 2010 Steelhead Survey on the upper Salmonberry River in Oregon. This is a joint effort between individuals from a number of local organizations.. no need to name names. It requires 7-8 hour hikes into very in-accessable terain to count fish, reds, take note of changes in conditions, set temperature monitoring equipment, etc.
I do this out of the respect I have for all species, more importantly the ones who are struggling. 2 Points here are the lack of Education about a particular species and it's place in the environment, and the emphasis on the dollar and it's place in society.
Each Angler, 2 times a year to join some type of program to help fisheries or increase understanding about fisheries. If we could get that kind of commitment from all, both men and women, huge changes could be made.
Thats all....easy ya?
Drug dealers don't care where they get their stash, neither do fish markets apparently.
"Highly regulated" by the state. You have got to be kidding me!!! The State can't even get the numbers of fish caught by the Indians.
If the Indians ever release the numbers which is not in their interest too, it will show they take well more than 50%. The Numbers on the Quiliyute are upwards of 80- 90% in the tribes favor.
My question is where is our 50%???
to be fair - there are 2 fish markets at Pike Place selling wild steelhead - not just the "famous" one listed above. Double the jackassery