14 February 28 , 2025 VOL . 44 • ISS . 2

SACRAMENTO - Despite the closure of salmon fishing in California river and ocean waters in 2023 and 2024 , the number of Fall Chinook Salmon returning to both the Sacramento and Klamath River Basins was well below the numbers forecasted by state and federal officials one year ago . Under the 2024 regulations , the projected spawning escapement in the Sacramento River Basin was 180,061 hatchery and natural area fall Chinook adults , according to the Pacific Fishery Management Council ’ s just-published Review of Ocean Salmon Fisheries . However , only 99,274 hatchery and natural area adult spawners were estimated to have returned to the Sacramento River Basin in 2024 . That number is only 55 percent of the 2024 conservation and management objective of 180,000 fish . The fishing closures resulted from the collapse of Sacramento

and Klamath River salmon populations . Whether there could be any ocean and river salmon fisheries in California this year won ’ t be known until the final numbers are in and the ocean abundance estimates are released at the CDFW California Salmon Informational meeting on February 26 . Then three options for ocean fishing seasons will be developed at the PFMC meeting in March and then finalized at their April meeting . What we do know is that fall Chinook returns to Sacramento River hatcheries in 2024 totaled 26,834 adults and 8,301 jacks ( two year-old fish ) while escapement to natural areas was 72,440 adults and 10,864 jacks , according to the document . Spawner escapement in 2024 of endangered Sacramento River Winter Chinook , an endangered species under both the state and federal Endangered Species Acts , was estimated to be only 789 adults and 578 jacks . Even after Shasta Dam was built , good numbers of winter-Chinook salmon ran up the Sacramento River to spawn below Keswick Dam . In 1969 , 117,000 Winter Chinook returned to the main stem of the Sacramento . However , the number of Winter Chinook showing in the Sacramento had declined to around 2,000 fish by the late 1980s when a group of us , including my former boss Hal Bonslett , showed up at Fish and Game Commission meetings and wrote many articles calling for the fish to listed under the California Endangered Species Act ( CESA ). Now we are back to square one with numbers lower than when we originally petitioned for the listing . The main cause of the winter-run Chinook ’ s demise was the export of big quantities of water from the Delta by the state and federal water projects to agribusiness on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley , according to then California Department of Fish and Wildlife biologist Frank Fisher . After a brief recovery of the salmon in the late 1990s and early 2000s , the population began to decline again as water diversions from the Delta pumping facilities increased with the expansion of almond tree acreage and other water-thirsty crops in the Central Valley . Escapement of Spring Chinook to the Sacramento River system in 2024 totaled only 2,646 fish ( jacks and adults ), with an estimated return of 176 to upper Sacramento River tributaries and the remaining 2,470 fish returning to the Feather River Hatchery . Most of those 176 fish

“ Fisheries and hatchery managers did their jobs to get salmon back to the rivers to spawn but our water was managed so poorly that baby fish couldn ’ t make it to the Golden Gate Bridge . This is the result of the Governor ’ s failed water policies .”

returned to Butte Creek , the last stronghold for wild Spring Chinooks . The estimated San Joaquin River Fall Chinook spawning escapement in 2024 totaled 31,045 fish ( jacks and adults ) in natural areas , and 11,789 fish ( jacks and adults ) to hatcheries . The majority of these fish returned to the Mokelumne River . However , the Mokelumne River is not included in the Sacramento River Index that helps determine ocean and river fishing seasons . Scott Artis , Executive Director of the Golden State Salmon Association ( GSSA ), responded to the release of what he called “ grim ” salmon numbers . “ When the Governor ’ s water policies favor big ag over healthy rivers , sadly salmon and the fishing industry pay the price ,” said Artis . “ Starving salmon of cold water means fewer fish , lost jobs , and devastated communities . This is a manufactured crisis , not a mystery — without enough cold water , there ’ s no future for fishing families or the environment . It ’ s a policy failure and it needs to stop .” He noted that over the last week , the Governor sent a letter to the State Water Resources Control Board urging changes to water rights permits to support the Delta Conveyance Project , known as the Delta Tunnel . It was also announced that a required Incidental Take Permit was granted to advance the project . “ The Governor ’ s plan is to divert large amounts of fresh water from the San Francisco Bay-Delta estuary to industrial agriculture and major cities south of the Delta , including areas outside the Bay-Delta watershed . The Bay-Delta ’ s health , along with its salmon and the commercial and recreational fishing industries , depend on cold water flowing into the Bay ,” he observed . “ Now I know what the Governor means when he says they are ‘ preparing to use every last drop ’ of water – that salmon and everyone who relies on the salmon fishery for their livelihoods and their culture are going to get the shaft ,” said Artis . “ There was no salmon fishing last year to have any impact on spawning adults .” “ The low return numbers don ’ t lie . Fisheries and hatchery managers did their jobs to get salmon back to the rivers to spawn but our water was managed so poorly that baby fish couldn ’ t make it to the Golden Gate Bridge . This is the result of the Governor ’ s failed water policies ,” Artis stated . The Sacramento River wasn ’ t the only river system seeing low numbers of the salmon return . Klamath River Fall Chinook ( KRFC ) numbers also returned in much lower numbers than originally estimated . The 2024 preliminary postseason river run size estimate for KRFC was 36,568 adults compared to the preseason-predicted ocean escapement ( river run size ) of 65,138 adults . The escapement to natural spawning areas was 24,032 adults , just 66 percent of the preseason prediction of 36,511 adults . The estimated hatchery return was 4,489 adults . Jack returns to the Klamath Basin totaled 7,085 including 5,959 that escaped to natural spawning areas . “ Spawning escapement to the upper Klamath River tributaries ( Salmon , Scott , and Shasta rivers ), where spawning was only minimally affected by hatchery strays , totaled 7,317 adults ,” the PFMC wrote . “ The Shasta River has historically been the most important Chinook salmon spawning stream in the upper Klamath River , supporting a spawning escapement of 27,600 adults as recently as 2012 and 63,700 in 1935 .” The escapement in 2024 to the Shasta River was 4,951 adults . Escapement to the Salmon and Scott rivers was 1,520 and 846 adults , respectively . The good news is that in 2024 , four dams were removed from the Klamath River , allowing salmon to move upstream from the site of Iron Gate Dam for the first time in many decades . “ Newly available mainstem and tributary habitats were occupied by salmon following dam removal ,” the PFMC reported . “ Substantial monitoring efforts Oregon and California provided age-specific spawner estimates for the 2024 run . The estimated run size in the Klamath mainstem and its tributaries from Iron Gate ( California ) to Keno Dam was 1,494 adults and 151 jacks in 2024 .” The California Department of Fish and Wildlife ’ s annual Salmon Information Meeting ( SIM ) took place via webinar on Wednesday , February 26 . The 2025 SIM provided informational presentations on topics including last year ’ s spawning escapement , estimates of forecasted ocean abundance , and management objectives for 2025 ocean salmon seasons . SIM marks the beginning of a two month long public process used to develop annual sport and commercial ocean salmon fishing regulations , and also informs the development of inland salmon fishing regulations later in the spring . The 2025 Sacramento River Index ocean abundance forecast is only 165,655 Fall Chinook , according to data discussed at the meeting . The 2025 Klamath River ocean abundance forecast is 67,056 age 3 Fall Chinook , 14,333 age 4 Fall Chinook and 1,283 age 5 Fall Chinook . The annual pre-season process involves collaborative negotiations between west coast states , federal agencies , tribal co-managers , sport and commercial salmon industry representatives , and other stakeholders interested in salmon fishery management and conservation . California representatives will work together to develop a range of recommended ocean fishing season alternatives at the March 5-11 , Pacific Fishery Management Council meeting in Vancouver , Washington . Final season recommendations will be adopted at the Pacific Fishery Management Council ’ s April 9-15 , meeting in San Jose , California . The range of inland salmon fishing regulation options will be discussed at the Fish and Game Commission meetings on Feb . 12-13 , and April 16-17 , in Sacramento , California with final inland season recommendations and adoption scheduled for the May 14 , Teleconference meeting . For a complete calendar of events and contact information regarding the salmon preseason process , including other opportunities for public engagement , go to : https :// wildlife . ca . gov / Fishing / Ocean / Regulations / Salmon /