The Brief
- Over 100 years ago, Washington’s booming cannery industry discarded millions of pounds of salmon annually under the false belief that the resource was inexhaustible.
- The historical overharvesting laid the groundwork for today’s steep decline in wild salmon populations, now requiring millions of state dollars to mitigate through hatcheries.
- Overfishing is not the sole factor; environmental threats like dams, logging, and urban runoff continue to complicate modern recovery efforts.
Washington now spends millions of dollars trying to save salmon. But over 100 years ago, the state discarded an estimated 7 million pounds in a single year.
Today, returning salmon draw crowds to places like Issaquah Creek. Hatcheries work to sustain chinook and coho runs, but those efforts have roots in a darker chapter of the region’s history.
An industry built on seemingly endless salmon
The backstory:
When European settlers arrived, salmon appeared to be an inexhaustible resource. By the late 1800s, the fishing industry had expanded dramatically.…