Steelhead trout are a primary focus of the BC Federation of Fly Fishers and many of its members. Unlike most freshwater fish across B.C., steelhead face unprecedented declines. Steelhead are an indicator species: if a river or stream can support them, chances are it’s also a good place for resident cutthroats, Dolly Varden, and salmon.
Though habitat loss and predation are important sources of mortality, most returning steelhead die in fisheries. That’s why we’re using our position as a primary member of the Sport Fishing Advisory Board (SFAB) to introduce two motions that, if passed, would elevate the conversation within the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) about how to better manage B.C.’s most famous fish.
The Sport Fishing Advisory Board (SFAB) has been an advisory body to Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) since 1964. Made up of representatives of primary members (everyday anglers) and secondary members (vested commercial interests), the SFAB represents the interests of recreational anglers at the management tables that help shape DFO’s fishing plans. Both of these motions speak directly to that process.
Commercial Fisheries are the primary killer of steelhead
Despite the fact that between ten and fifty percent of the entire run of Skeena steelhead are killed in commercial fisheries from southeast Alaska to the mouth of the Skeena, and an unknown number of Interior Fraser steelhead are killed in south coast commercial gillnet fisheries, Pacific Salmon Treaty (PST) fisheries are not required to manage for steelhead. In fact, there is only one non-binding recommendation within the Treaty to “take into account the conservation of steelhead.” Our fist motion calling for a new Steelhead Chapter within the Pacific Salmon Treaty was submitted and passed at both the Skeena and Upper Fraser advisory committees. If adopted, it would force accountability, provide binding management direction, and compel the Province of British Columbia to be a more active participant within the Treaty and its management processes.
Selective fisheries can protect steelhead when they reach the river
Selective fishing is especially crucial for fisheries where the overlap of co-migrating species is concentrated, and risks to non-target species are extremely high. Today, one large-scale and many small-scale selective fisheries are operational in British Columbia. They represent a better fishing future and should be actively supported with funding to nurture their growth, just as funding has been supplied to all fisheries at one point or another. Our second motion asks DFO to integrate the success of existing fisheries, such as the Kitselas Fish wheel, into new programs to either transition to or maintain qualifying in-river selective fisheries.
Finding new tools to conserve steelhead and support recreational fishing
B.C.’s steelhead deserve a brighter future than what is currently in store for them. Healthy returns of steelhead are indicators of healthy ecosystems, capable of supporting recreational fisheries, which generate substantial benefits, with comparatively small impact.
The BC Federation of Fly Fishers is leveraging our role within the Sport Fishing Advisory Board (SFAB) to address the reality that the primary source of steelhead mortality is bycatch in commercial and in-river fisheries. Through two key motions, the BCFFF aims to shift the management paradigm from non-binding recommendations to mandatory accountability for steelhead within the Pacific Salmon Treaty fisheries, while simultaneously advocating for essential funding and integration of successful in-river selective fishing methods, like the Kitselas Fish wheel, thereby forcing DFO to adopt a more robust and conservation-focused approach to protecting B.C.’s favourite fish