September 26, 2013
Thursday PM

Mr. Muench’s contention in his 9/11/13 letter that intact watersheds are not essential to our salmon resources here in Southeast Alaska is based on dubious assumptions and flies in the face of considerable science.

There is no doubt salmon productivity in some previously logged watersheds has been good, but that provides no assurance salmon production will remain high in those watersheds in the future, as Mr. Muench would have us assume.  In fact, many fish biologists are concerned that past logging in the 1950s and 1960s is only now beginning to show impacts to sensitive salmon habitats.  The large wood left in streams after historic logging is now decaying and disappearing, while the old practice of logging riparian areas means there are no large trees left on the stream banks to provide new fish habitat.  This loss of large woody debris results in reduced pool habitat in streams and is apt to negatively affect salmon productivity.

Mr. Muench also asserts that new standards and guidelines, enacted after passage of the Tongass Timber Reform Act of 1990, are sufficient to maintain salmon populations.  Although those standards are an improvement over past practices, there have been no long-term studies on their effectiveness in supporting fish populations.  Additionally, both State and Federal standards and guidelines provide little protection for areas adjacent to Class II stream habitat, which has been shown to be critical in providing juvenile salmon refuge from both high-water events and predators in main-stem streams.  These same Class II streams are also important sources of sediment and wood for main-stem fish habitat.1

In their assessments of salmon habitat and population viability for our region, fish biologists Mason Bryant and Fred Everest conclude, “The presence, number and distribution of intact watersheds across the landscape of the TNF (Tongass National Forest) are critical elements for sustainable salmon populations in the face of habitat loss elsewhere in southeast Alaska and the Pacific Northwest. The prospect of sustainable salmon stocks in southeast Alaska is probable, but depends on a combination of factors.  The retention of existing intact watersheds is a key element.”2

It’s very convenient to think we can log, mine, and otherwise develop watersheds as we see fit and still have abundant salmon.  However, the current status and history of salmon in places like the Pacific Northwest and British Columbia should make us think otherwise.  This record-breaking salmon year underscores the importance of wild salmon to the economy of Southeast Alaska.  Let it also be a reminder we need to re-double our efforts to safeguard the economic underpinnings of the region by protecting still untouched fish habitat and restoring those salmon streams already degraded by past logging and road building.

Heather Hardcastle
Juneau, Alaska

About: "Heather Hardcastle, M.S., grew up commercial fishing with her family out of Juneau, co-owns Taku River Reds, and is an outreach coordinator with Trout Unlimited."

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