MLA Contact Program |

The plight of steelhead in BC is not well known to the general public. Some Fraser River system steelhead are in particularly bad straits.

What are termed “Fraser River late-run summer steelhead” is actually 10 different spawning stocks that utilize the Fraser watershed upstream of Hell’s Gate. A sub-group referred to as “Thompson and Chilcotin Steelhead” comprises 6 out of these 10 stocks. Although the label “Thompson and Chilcotin steelhead” has been hitting the news fairly regularly for the past few years, the problem is still not well enough understood.

If you do a quick Google search of the term and click on the “News” option you will see headlines like:

Fisheries Official Denies Coverup allegations over research into endangered BC steelhead
DFO Sup[pressing Research on steelhead
Thompson, Chilcotin steelhead trout in danger of extinction

The bad news goes back years and years.

This year we got some good news. On October 19 Robert Bison, Fisheries Stock Assessment Biologist, Fish and Wildlife, BC Ministry of Forests, released some numbers:

Total population forecast for spawning steelhead in the Thompson/Chilcotin systems is 505 (great news);
The population forecast for spawners in the Thompson is 339 (again, great news);
The population forecast for spawners in the Chilcotin is 166 (again, great news).

Here’s the problem: steelhead have been down so long that *everything* looks like up. That “great news” that I’m referencing? As Rob Bison points out, those numbers qualify as “Extreme Conservation Concern”. The spawner abundance for the Thompson ranks 40th out of a 44 year monitoring timeframe. The Chilcotin is just as bad – it ranks 44th out of a 52 year monitoring time frame.

For those who like graphics to demonstrate what’s up, here are two:

Thompson steelhead. The graph should go up and to the right, not down. This is so bad it’s hard to believe. Granted, 1985 was a good year, but numbers were estimated to be 3,510 for the Thompson.

Chilcotin steelhead. This graph is even worse than that Thomson steelhead graph. Again, 1985 was a good year, but estimates then were 3,149.

You can find Rob Bison’s release here. If I understand his release properly these numbers are spawners that return in late 2022, but will spawn in 2023.

What does this mean? Simple. It means we have to pull all the levers to save these fish, that we have to pull them hard and we have to pull them now. Habitat destruction, pinniped predation and unsustainable bycatch needs to stop. BCWF has been championing this issue and you can get some good background from the BCWF website. (North Shore Fish and Game is a BCWF member club and proud of it). You can find lots more info about the plight of steelhead on the web as well – for example at Steelhead Voices.

What should you do? The simplest thing is to contact your MLA and let them know that you care about steelhead. It’s really simple. Click the appropriate link below and send an email. You can use my text or put in your own.

“Dear [insert your MLA’s name]

I live in your constituency and you are my MLA.

Interior Fraser steelhead are on the brink of extirpation. Something must be done. We need an immediate COSEWIC listing for IFS as well as a SARA listing (something the BC Ministry of the Environment has pressed the Feds for in the past). I am very concerned about this issue and want you to take some kind of action. Please let me know that you support saving these fish by return email.

Thanks and regards”

If you’re on the North Shore here are quick links:

If you’re not on the North Shore you can find your MLA here.

Sending these emails isn’t hard but it is very helpful. Take a minute and give it a try It’s a great habit to develop.