Salmon is life. Anyone who knows me will quickly attest to my long-standing obsession with catching, eating, studying and basically living salmon.
I am a lifelong resident of Juneau. I have spent much of that life plying local waters in pursuit of king salmon. I currently hold a Sportfish/Hunting/Personal Use seat on the Juneau-Douglas Fish and Game Advisory Committee and am employed by an underground, hard rock mine in northern British Columbia. The divisiveness that Ballot Measure 1 has spawned is truly unsettling. I have close friends on both sides of this very tall fence. Right now, most are occupied throwing stones at each other. These are intelligent people with good intentions who have simply lost the ability for meaningful discourse. I’m afraid to open my mouth in mixed company or log on to Facebook. This is not an easy letter for me to write.
My spiritual, mental and physical well-being are derived from salmon. My financial security comes from mining. Does this put me in a tough spot? I don’t think so; the two are not mutually exclusive. I will be voting no on Nov. 6 because I don’t believe that this initiative will, or was intended to, solve our salmon crisis.
No one will argue when I say that this resource is in peril. No one can argue with the fact that king salmon returns to Southeast Alaska rivers are at historic lows. No one can argue with Alaska Department of Fish and Game data that show many of our river systems have failed to meet king salmon escapement goals repeatedly over recent years.
If you want an argument, let some folks put together what they claim is a solution to this mess, and stand back.
I’ve thrown my stone, and I’d like to think I threw it at the metaphorical fence I referenced earlier. We all want healthy salmon runs. The first step is for us to come together to work toward that end. We do not have a habitat issue. Each year, despite poor returns, ample numbers of salmon are out-migrating to the ocean. They are simply not coming back. Let’s focus our energy on figuring out why and developing solutions to the actual problem.
Jesse Walker,
Juneau
My Turns and Letters to the Editor represent the view of the author, not the view of the Juneau Empire.
