In discussions with steelhead anglers, conservationists and concerned citizens we have fielded a number of thoughtful questions about a Trout Unlimited-led, range-wide wild steelhead conservation effort. This document is intended to present and answer those questions to fully make the case for such an effort and to explain why it should be led by Trout Unlimited.
Answer: We believe that steelhead angling opportunity – defined both in terms of time on the water and the quality of the experience -- will be much greater if rivers with potential to support substantial wild steelhead populations are protected, reconnected and restored and fish management (hatcheries and fishing regulation) prioritizes the health of wild steelhead. This belief is based on the clear and growing scientific evidence that locally adapted, diverse wild steelhead with sufficient habitat are much more productive than hatchery fish, and that hatchery fish reduce the productivity of wild fish through genetic and ecological pathways. While there may be a need to reduce fishing opportunity in the short- term on some rivers to give wild populations an opportunity to rebuild, we believe that short-term sacrifice will be more than justified by the long-term increase in fishing opportunity. In addition, we support the use of responsibly managed steelhead hatchery programs on select rivers where habitat degradation or decades of hatchery dependence make restoring fishable populations impractical, in order to provide fishing and harvest opportunity.
Answer: There are several organizations working to conserve wild steelhead in California, Idaho, Oregon and Washington. Those organizations are doing great work and some have substantial expertise, particularly with regard to science, but none of those organizations span all of the steelhead states or have a large grassroots membership. TU is the only group with the organizational capacity to: (1) employ a multitude of strategies and tactics (ranging from local habitat restoration to federal and state policy advocacy); (2) do so at the federal, state and local levels; and (3) sustain efforts over time. TU has an interdisciplinary professional staff that includes scientists, policy experts, grassroots organizers, lawyers, and communications experts who operate in all of the western steelhead states. Moreover, it has over 160,000 members nationwide and is growing. The powerful combination of expert, experienced staff with passionate, dedicated volunteers has enabled TU to achieve major conservation victories across the U.S. Simply put, TU has the capacity to effect change at a large scale, and can amplify and coordinate the work of other groups working on steelhead conservation to maximal effect.
Answer: There is absolutely no reason to choose between existing organizations and TU. TU’s Wild Steelhead Initiative is about building capacity to achieve the big wild steelhead conservation gains we all want, not to muscle out smaller groups. Ideally, members of existing groups doing steelhead conservation work will also join TU because they see the need for TU’s engagement to achieve the changes they desire, and the more members TU has the more likely success will be, particularly in the policy arena.
Answer: There are no guarantees that it will, but TU has played a leadership role in a number of country’s most notable trout and salmon conservation achievements of the last decade that speak to the organization’s potential. Those victories include: (1) removal of large dams on the Elwha, Penobscot, White Salmon, Sandy and Carmel rivers to reopen salmon and steelhead habitat; (2) permanent protection of over 10 million acres of high quality fish and wildlife habitat on public lands in Idaho and Colorado through protection of roadless areas; and 3) securing agreements that pave the way for removal of four large dams on the Klamath River, which will open up over 400 miles of salmon and steelhead habitat. In addition, though the battle is not yet over, the fact that the EPA is considering unprecedented action to protect the rivers of what is arguably the world’s greatest salmon system, Bristol Bay, Alaska, is a testament to TU’s ability to effectively lead a large, multi-faceted campaign in the face of well-funded and politically connected opposition.
Answer: If there is an opportunity to have significant impact on wild steelhead conservation in B.C., we will seek to engage. TU is currently a United States-focused organization comprised of American members with all of its staff in the U.S. Consequently, our ability to effect positive change in B.C. is limited because Canadian decision-makers are not responsive to the advocacy of our members. That said, we will explore the potential for partnerships with Canadian non-governmental organizations advocating wild steelhead conservation in which TU can add value, either through scientific and technical expertise or strategic and tactical advice. One matter on which TU is already engaged is proposed open-pit mining operations in the headwaters of so-called “transboundary rivers” that originate in northern British Columbia and flow to the Pacific through Southeast Alaska. Some of the potentially affected rivers, like the Nass, contain large wild steelhead populations. TU is working at both the grassroots level in Southeast Alaska and in Washington April 2014 Page 2 D.C. to apply political pressure on the Canadian government to ensure that any mining development that occurs minimizes harm to water quality and habitat.
Answer: TU is heavily engaged in protecting and restoring steelhead habitat from Alaska to southern California. This work is primarily supported by private foundations and federal and state government grants. The thousands of TU staff and volunteer hours already invested in steelhead habitat restoration, coupled with the large sums of money TU has raised for habitat restoration in those systems, means that we have “skin in the game”, which significantly increases our credibility with decision-makers. This Initiative will enable new habitat-focused steelhead conservation work and increase the likelihood that existing work will succeed, particularly those projects involving policy advocacy where engaged, informed volunteers are essential to success.
Answer: Steelhead management is largely a state affair once they enter freshwater, except to the extent that they are listed under the Endangered Species Act, where NOAA has jurisdiction as well. Given that many populations are ESA listed, that means that the states and NOAA have joint jurisdiction over steelhead in much of their range in the lower 48. Where NOAA has jurisdiction, decision-making at NOAA is still done in the context of specific states and regions. For example, NOAA staff working on Puget Sound steelhead are in the area and coordinate closely with WDFW and area tribes. The Steelheaders’ Alliance can influence decision-making regarding each of the Hs: habitat including hydropower), harvest and hatcheries. The primary decision-makers for hatchery and harvest management are the state fish and wildlife agencies and the state fish and wildlife commissions that set fish management policy. State legislation establishes general management direction for the agencies and commissions, but translating that general direction into specific policies and management actions is the crux of the matter and what the agencies and commissions do. April 2014 Page 4 To influence policy, wild steelhead advocates need to be able to consistently and effectively engage with the state fish and wildlife agencies and commissions and maintain that engagement over time. This requires building relationships with high-level agency managers and individual commissioners and stewarding those relationships through regular communication. It also requires building relationships with state legislators on relevant committees who wield significant power over fish and wildlife agencies because of their ability to control purse strings and use legislation to achieve specific outcomes. The best way to get heard by legislators is to have engaged constituents. Engaging in this way requires not only good political strategy but also engaged advocates. Achieving significant positive reforms in steelhead management will be much less likely without active involvement by both TU staff and committed grassroots leaders. As experience has shown, it is certainly possible to rally conservation-minded steelhead anglers to weigh in on a specific management decision that threatens to take away something they value, but there is no precedent for advancing a proactive, sustainable policy agenda at scale through purely volunteer efforts. Advancing such an agenda requires professional staff with experience working on issue campaigns and organizing skills. TU has such staff members in every state in the range of wild steelhead, and these staff members can organize, educate and mobilize members of the Steelheaders’ Alliance to achieve conservation goals.
We steelheaders share a common vision of the future of wild steelhead and we know what has to be done to bring them back. Together, we can make that vision a reality.
With millions of dollars, countless staff and volunteer hours invested in restoring wild steelhead habitat, Trout Unlimited is launching the Wild Steelhead Initiative to make sure those investments (along with the efforts of countless other organizations) pay dividends. For more information, go to tu.org.
