Bay Area Lawmakers Unveil Disaster Assistance Legislation for Salmon Fishing Community

Bay Area Members of Congress unveiled disaster assistance legislation today for West Coast salmon fishing communities that will be impacted by this year's slashed salmon season. Reps. Mike Thompson and Lynn Woolsey announced the bill in front of hundreds of salmon fishermen at a rally on San Francisco's Pier 47.

“The Bush Administration's gross mismanagement of the Klamath River has led to this year's and last year's shortened salmon season,” Thompson, the bill's author, said. “Yet, the administration isn't offering any assistance to the affected fishing communities nor do they have a plan to restore the salmon. That is why tomorrow we will be introducing legislation that would offer $81 million dollars in federal assistance. It will also contain measures to revive the Klamath salmon and hold this administration accountable to ensure they cannot manipulate the river for political gain ever again.”

The bill has three components:

·It would provide $81 million in emergence appropriations for impacted commercial fishermen and related businesses in the region. The Department of Commerce would distribute the assistance through the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission.

·It would direct the Department of Commerce to complete a Klamath salmon recovery plan within 6 months of the bill's passage. After the completion of the plan $45 million would be allocated for conservation projects such as stream gauges and monitoring equipment, fish passage projects, and additional NOAA fisheries staff and resources to better track and study Klamath River salmon.

·The Department of Commerce would be required to report to Congress on the progress of the Klamath on a yearly basis.

In 2002, the Bush administration's water diversions on the Klamath River resulted in a record fish kill that claimed 80,000 adult salmon the next fall. Experts have directly attributed the adult fish kill and a parasitic infection affecting spring juveniles, resulting from poor federal management of the river, as being responsible for the low salmon returns estimated for this year.

“Without the emergency disaster assistance provided in this legislation, the near closures this year will force many fishermen to tie their boats up for good and never fish again,” said Rep. Lynn Woolsey. “It's not too late to safe Klamath salmon and its not too late to save our fishermen.”

Leader Nancy Pelosi said: "The oceans are under siege - all around the world, fish populations are dropping sharply. We must bring back the fish, river-by-river, and region-by-region. Here in California and Oregon, we must all work together-fishermen, tribes, scientists, farmers, and political leaders at the local, state, and federal level. I am proud to be a co-sponsor of Congressman Thompson's new legislation, which will provide disaster assistance and ensure funding for the recovery and restoration of the Klamath salmon."

The Pacific Fishery Management Council recommended on April 6, 2006, that the 2006 commercial salmon season be drastically reduced. The decision will severely affect ocean and in-river salmon fisheries along 700 miles of coastline, from Point Falcon, Oregon to Big Sur, California. The economic impact to coastal communities is expected to be devastating.

“The bill we're introducing in Congress will greatly help the Klamath River and its tributaries,” Rep. George Miller said. “When you have a healthy river, you have fish, and that's good for local communities, the commercial fishing industry, recreational anglers, tribes, and the entire West Coast. Those of us who care about the Pacific coast's salmon -- and about the fishing communities of the coast -- face a number of serious challenges, but if we work together, we can fix this situation.”

“I share the outrage of commercial and sport fishermen up and down the Pacific Coast. In Half Moon Bay in my Congressional District, members of the small commercial and sport fishing fleet are fighting for their livelihoods,” Rep. Anna Eshoo said. “Along with my colleagues, I'm with them in this fight. We're going to stay on this until we have a resolution for the long term.”