To reach their spawning grounds, Salmon complete a remarkable migration within Idaho’s Rivers. But, this ecologically vital species is under threat. This week on Sustainable Idaho, we speak to Rachel Brinkley and Camden Kay, who are both graduate student at Idaho State University, to explore the ecological challenges Salmon face, and why this issue should matter to every Idahoan.
This week on Sustainable Idaho, we are exploring the topic of Salmon in Idaho’s Rivers. Over the summer, Sustainable Idaho, hosted by Chris Brown, investigated the economics of this issue. Chris tackled how competing energy, transportation and business interests, have degraded salmon and steelhead populations. You can listen back to this episode within the Sustainable Idaho program link on KISU.org. But this week, we embark on a two-part journey to explore the ecological and cultural importance of Salmon in Idaho.
To investigate this topic, we spoke to Rachel Brinkley, a graduate student in Biology at Idaho State University, who has been working on Salmon projects for U.S Forest Service.
“A Chinook Salmon is Salmon that is native to Idaho. They are born in freshwater, migration to the ocean and then come back to spawn. Once a Salmon spawns, it dies. Idaho’s Salmon face the longest migration with the highest elevation gain of any Salmon population in the world, so they are extra unique and extra special. They are also extra unique in that they act as a pump, that will push nutrients, like nitrogen and phosphorus, from the ocean back upstream. They put on 95% of their mass in the ocean and then after they spawn and die, they release that mass (and all its contained nutrients) back into the freshwater system. Also, they serve as a food source for 137 different animal species.”
As Rachel Brinkley highlighted, Salmon are a crucial part of the ecosystem. So much so that they are even considered a key stone species - This means that scientists consider them vital for ecosystem functioning because many other species depend on them. Returning salmon transport millions of tons of nutrients from the nutrient rich marine environment to the comparatively nutrient poor fresh water ecosystems. This increases production at all levels of the food chain, from those at the bottom, like bacteria and algae, to those at the top, such as bears and humans. However, while this journey is crucial for ecosystem health, it is far from easy. We asked Rachel Brinkley more about the epic migration undertaken by Idaho’s Salmon.
“They complete a 900-mile journey within Idaho. But during this journey, they have to pass six hydroelectric dams and multiple reservoirs, before then they are finally back to spawn.
We asked Camden kay, Rachel’s colleague and fellow graduate student in biology, about how dams impede on salmon migration.
“The issue with dams is that impede travel for these fish. The salmon get stuck in these reservoir systems for a long time, where the water is too warm for them, they are exposed to predators, and it makes their already arduous journey, that much more difficult.”
We asked Rachel Brinkley about how dams and reservoirs may influence the downstream migration of juvenile salmon.
“Baby salmon face upstream. Historically, high water in the spring would wash the baby salmon down to the ocean in a couple of days. But now, with the dams, this journey is taking multiple weeks and even months. As a result, the salmon are exposed to higher water temperature, disease and greater predation.”
So this is really an upstream migration issue for adult salmon and a downstream migration issue for juvenile salmon. We asked Rachel Brinkley how all of this has impacted salmon populations in Idaho.
“In Idaho’s streams, Salmon populations have been reduced by 99%.”
It’s striking to hear that in Idaho, only 1% of the historical Salmon population is returning to spawn. As a result, Salmon in the Snake River are considered threatened under the endangered species act. We asked Camden why this should matter to the average Idahoan.
“Salmon are important for a number of reasons – they have existed in these ecosystems for years and years and years. They are a vital resource for indigenous peoples, who use them as a food resource. Also, they are incredibly important to Idaho’s economy, with small fishing towns and guide services. But from a biological standpoint, once you alter these ecosystems, it can cause dramatic changes that are not just directly involved with salmon – and this extends (from freshwater) all the way down to the ocean.”
Rachel Brinkley added to Camden’s comments, stating,
“Historically and before the dams, Salmon fueled a $3,000,000,000 industry in the Pacific Northwest. And that is substantial economically. But Salmon are also culturally important to indigenous communities. There was a tribe in Idaho called the Salmon eaters, who obviously got their name because they heavily relied on Salmon as a food resource.”
Both Camden and Rachel have been working with the US Forest Service in the Frank Church Wilderness, conducting salmon surveys and helping to identify Chinook Salmon Reds, which are basically underwater nests where the salmon had laid their eggs. I asked Camden about their work and what they hoped would be the benefits of identifying salmon reds.
“Nobody is out there deliberately trying to damage these reds, and a lot of it is based on a lack of awareness – we try to educate people on these issues. Indigenous people were able to co-exist and manage these resources for many years, but we seem unable to do the same.”
I continued by asking what Cam, what can people do to get involved with these issues.
“There are organizations that help people to get involved. One of them that does a great job is Idaho Rivers United (https://www.idahorivers.org/). They focus on conservation, by donating funds and by lobby legislators to make these issues relevant.”
I’d like to say, thanks very much to both our guests this week. Next week, we will continue to explore the topic of Salmon in Idaho’s River – but from a Native American perspective. We will be speaking to Diana Yupe, who is a Native American Interpreter for the U.S Forest Service, and is an expert on the tribal history surrounding the Middle Fork of the Salmon. Diana is also known as the Lady of the River and is a descendant of Chief Pocatello, after which Pocatello, Idaho is named. Join us for Sustainable Idaho, Tuesday morning at 7,35am.