Here comes the judge......
Thursday, January 30, 2014 at 12:01AM 
The Pacific Northwest wild vs. hatchery fish debate has ramped up a bit recently as a result of some advocacy work on behalf of wild fish.
A plan for wild steelhead gene banks in SE Washington, a recent successful Native Fish Society lawsuit on the Sandy, and a Wild Fish Conservancy notice to file a lawsuit against the hatchery programs in the Puget Sound basin has lit a fire under the pro-hatchery base.
What the Native Fish Society and Other Radical Groups Do Not Want You to Know
Why The Wild Fish Conservancy Needs To Rethink Its Threatened Lawsuit
There is even a well organized media campaign around polishing the hatchery turd.
Unfortunately the hatchery vs. wild fish debate resembles the debate around global climate change. Chances are nobody is going to change the other sides opinion, no matter what the science says, and you pretty much know which side of the political aisle each side resides.
So this should add a little more fuel to the fire.
Four conservation groups are seeking an injunction in federal court to stop hatchery coho and steelhead from being used to boost the Elwha River salmon run and to stop the removal of wild salmon to use in hatchery breeding.
LINK (via: The Peninsula Daily)
We're on the precipice of squandering a once in a lifetime opportunity on the Elwha. No matter which side of the hatchery fence you sit on we should be able to agree that we can give this one up for wild fish.
Reader Comments (1)
From my perspective.. Wild Species advocates don't want it bad enough. Drop in on a meeting, last one I attended about 50 showed up...5 were for Wild Fish. Numbers like that don't get the shit handled. Vast majority love the rubber fish, they build businesses around it, buy property and boats because of it, hell they feed it to their families.
That said, DFW (no matter what state) thinks they can do whatever they damn well please, and they would be right. Majority Rules! THAT'S Reality, like it or not.
Look, sitting at home and signing on-line petitions is all fine and good, but if you want real change, then you HAVE to become involved. It's all about commitment, what you truly believe in. Wild Fish Species have been here long before we showed up, and they did just fine all by themselves. When Man came into the equation, things went South.
The Wild Fish can't speak for themselves...but if they could, I bet they would be asking WTF???
Hatcheries are dinosaurs, average age in OR is 70 years (discounting the 4 that were built after 79) its time for them to go.
C'mon, were burnin daylight..tick, tick, tick.