Smoke Signals
January, 1992
Page 2
Sockeye Salmon Joins Ranks of Endangered Species List
WASHINGTON, D.C (AP) The government on
November 14 declared the Snake River sockeye salmon
endangered, a move expected to affect people through
out the Northwest who use the region's water and power
resources.
The National Marine Fisheries Service said in a
statement obtained by The Associated Press that efforts
would begin immediately to develop a plan to save the
fish from extinction.
Only four Snake River sockeye are known to have
returned to their spawning grounds in Idaho this year
three females and one male, NMFS said.
"At one time, these fish were so abundant that Native
Americans and early miners depended on them for food
in several locations within the Snake River basin,"
NMFS said.
"These four hardy survivors have sparked an intensive
federal, state and Indian tribe effort to ensure they are
given every opportunity to perpetuate their population."
Rollie Schmitten, NMFS' northwest regional director,
scheduled a news conference the afternoon of Novem
ber 14 in Seattle to detail the announcement. The AP
obtained the formal statement from a congressional
office the morning of November 14.
The costs of protecting the fish will remain unknown
until the government adopts a formal population
recovery plan, but efforts to save the sockeye probably
will require increasing river flows by diverting water
from current uses such as hydroelectric power genera
tion. During the listing process, utilities officials predicted
an endangered listing for sockeye could increase electric
rates by between 2 percent and 10 percent.
NMFS spokesman Roddy Moscoso said the agency has
determined the sockeye is not yet extinct because of the
four fish that returned to their spawning grounds in
Idaho this year. None completed the trip last year.
Moscoso acknowledged the sockeye's troubled status
. has brought it close to extinction.
"If you have four back, how close are you? You are
close," he said the night of Nov. 13.
Bill Bakke of Oregon Trout, who has petitioned for
other salmon listings, said the decision is good news.
"What this means now for the region is that the region
is going to be held accountable for protection of the
sockeye salmon and that is a legal accountability," he
said.
U.S. Rep. Jolene Unsoeld, D-Wash., said the same
logging practices that caused the northern spotted owl to
become threatened also have damaged the region's river
system.
"We definitely need the federal agencies to have a
broader view," she said. "If the spotted owl and the
marbled murrelet and the snowy plover weren't enough
to jar us into realizing that we have to have ecosystem
wide approach to managing our resources on a sustain
able basis, then this listing should."
Thousands of sockeye used to complete the 900-mile
trek from the Pacific Ocean to Idaho's Redfish Lake
Creek in the Sawtooth Mountains, but that was before
eight hydropower dams were constructed on the river.
In proposing the endangered listing in April, NMFS
cited the dam construction as the primary cause of
degrading the sockeye's habitat and leading to its
decline.
The dams, initiated in the early 1900s, create hurdles
for salmon migrating upstream. More importantly, they
slow the water flows that once carried young salmon
downstream from Idaho to the Pacific Ocean in about
two weeks.
Now the trip takes much longer and the smolts' gills
begin their adaptation from fresh to salt water before
they reach the ocean.
Historically, more than 11 million salmon and steel-
head annually swam the Columbia system, but the runs "
hnve dwindled to about 25 million fish, with wild runs
accounting for only 2 percent of their former levels.
The decision had been expected since NFMS proposed
the sockeye be protected in April.
In Helena, Mont., two members of the Northwest
Power Planning Council said Wednesday they were not
surprised at the decision. They said it will have no effect
on the council's efforts to develop a plan for preserving
salmon in the Columbia River basin.
Both Ted Bottiger of Washington state and James
Goller of Idaho said they hoped the fisheries service will
base its plan for sockeye recovery on the blueprint being
developed by the council.
The fisheries service also has proposed protection for
two other troubled species of Snake River chinook
salmon, but has yet to take final action on those.
"This decision... is really just one small step in a long
process. The real challenge is to solve the problem for
all potentially threatened and endangered salmon," said
Rep. Sid Morrison, R-Wash.
"This is just the first of a series of critical decisions
NMFS will make that will be telltale of how they are
going to handle the Endangered Species act in general,"
added Bob Doppelt of the Oregon Rivers Council. .
Doppelt and other proponents of the action argue that
restoring native fish habitat in the region will carry a net
economic advantage by helping save a fisheries industry
that brings the region in excess of $lbillion annually.
But altering water flows could shorten water shipping
seasons as well as mean less water for farms in the
Columbia River basin, where 8 million acres of land is
irrigated to support more than $5-billion worth of crops.
. But the biggest impact is expected to fall on the users
of electricity. About half of the Northwest's power
comes from dams in the basin.
Tribal Member's Dream Blossoms Into Reality
McKnight's Flowers & Deli officially opened its
doors to the public on December 14, 1991 m
Willamina.
Owners Richard and Vivian McKnight have
worked with the Tribal Economic Development
Department on planning the business since May.
The business offers deli sandwiches, soups and
salads, floral arrangements for all occasions, 4
flavors of yogurt and service with a smile. :
More than 30 people showed up for balloons,
drawings, ice cream samples and lunch specials
during the grand opening.
Vivian McKnight is looking towards eventually
expanding the business into a full-fledged restau
rant. As for now she and her daughteremployee,
Leanna, are busy satisfying the increasing number
of cuslomcrs.
"The compliments I get are that my prices are
comparable to other floral shops and deli's, my
sandwiches are good quality because there is a
variety of items to choose from and they are very
filling," Vivian said.
She offers the advice to other tribal members who
are trying to start their own business to contact the
Economic Development Department for informa
tion on how to do it.
"They have everything you need to get started,"
Vivian said. "They are really good about sitting
down and explaining everything to you."
The McKnight's offer a special "Thank You" to
the Economic Development Department for all of
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work together on a flower arrangement . Wkxo y duty cune
their help. "1 have always wanted to have my own business,
but didn't quite know how to go about it," she said. "They
were excellent in helping us get started."
Bush: Tribal Jurisdiction to
Incorporate Non-Members
(NANS) - President George Bush has signed into law a
bill that reverses the U.S. Supreme Court decision in
Duro v. Reina, permanently restoring the authority of
tribes to prosecute non-member Indians for misde
meanor crimes.
Passage of the law resolves a jurisdictional crisis for
Indian tribes created with the Supreme Court's decision
last year. No other entity had the authority to prosecute
misdemeanor crimes committed on a reservation, so the
high court in effect had created a jurisdictional void.
The bill hit an unexpected snag earlier this fall when
U.S. Sen. Slade Gorton (R-Wash.) a member of the
Senate Indian Affairs Committee, refused to support a
permanent solution to the Duro dilemma. Gorton, who
built much of his political career battling Indian tribes as
Washington state's attorney general, complained that
tribal courts often violate the rights of tribal members.
Gorton would only support a two-year extension of the
legislation extending tribal criminal jurisdiction over
non-member Indians. Gorton finally dropped his
opposition to the law providing a permanent solution
after Indian Affairs Committee Chairman Daniel K.
Inouye agreed to hold hearings to address Gorton's
concerns over the operation of tribal courts.