Haley Stevens: “The chairman of the Agriculture Committee is correct. Fisheries managers try to ensure that salmon returning to spawn…”

“The chairman of the Agriculture Committee is correct. Fisheries managers try to ensure that salmon returning to spawn reach their escapement goal, which is the number of spawners needed to return a healthy population of juveniles to the streams and oceans. Historically, managers can accurately estimate how many fish are expected to return based on the lifespan of the salmon and the escapement numbers from previous years. Fisheries managers also track historical trends, which are often linked to long term weather cycles, and their relationship to escapement numbers. The State of Alaska in particular uses in-season management to ensure its pre-season escapement goals. However, occasionally the fish do not return. For example, chum salmon runs in areas of western Alaska were at all time lows in 1997 and 1998. The low chum runs have had a devastating effect on the western Alaska economy. This exactly the type of crisis that could be alleviated by making crop insurance available to salmon fishermen. Fishermen are the farmers of the sea, and they deserve the same protections we afford to our farmers in the inland states.”