As California’s Chinook salmon fishing season sits on pause for the third consecutive year, the future of the species dangles in the balance. The fish, historically abundant, now hover near record lows, with the adult population in coastal waters and Central Valley rivers representing about one tenth of late 20th century averages.
The precipitous crash has stakeholders on edge, and how to turn it around is an urgent matter of discussion among scientists, officials and the fishing community. Many experts say that reviving the state’s Chinook salmon runs is, in principle, a simple task: Restore the river and riparian habitat vital for migration and spawning, and the fish will return.
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