A recent report by CalTrout and U.C. Davis–SOS II: Fish in Hot Water—describes the status of California’s salmon and other species and then offers important and practical “return to resilience” strategies.
Although the report at first blush appears to be very pessimistic, a closer read reveals a more optimistic view that “most of these fishes can continue to persist if appropriate actions are taken.” The authors have stated that they “are optimistic that positive change is imminent and that if the solutions are fully implemented, many of the species reviewed in the…report will thrive in the future.” Importantly, “the time to act is now” according to CalTrout.
Fortunately, in the Sacramento Valley, water resources managers have already been taking actions over the past several years to pursue and advance various strategies to help recover salmon as suggested in the report. Many of these actions have and will be pursued in partnership with CalTrout and other solution-oriented conservation organizations. To borrow from the report, these strategies have fully embraced reconciliation ecology and there is a concerted effort to improve habitat connectivity through the magical connection of land and water. This includes a suite of Modern Flows for the Sacramento Valley and various other projects designed to help every life stage of salmon in the Sacramento Valley. We invite others to join us in the Sacramento Valley Salmon Recovery Program and the ongoing efforts to improve the conditions for salmon in the Sacramento Valley.
In sum, the leaders in the Sacramento Valley fully embrace the call to action by CalTrout Executive Director Curtis Knight to use the report “to work together to reverse the trend toward extinction and return California’s native salmonids to resilience.” The time to act is now!
For a summary of the report, see: California Water Blog – The Future of California’s Unique Salmon and Trout Good News Bad News. The full report is available at: CalTrout – SOS II: Fish in Hot Water.
