SAPPHO — Thousands of coho salmon were caught on Washington’s north coast and rivers last year.
Months later, state Department of Fish and Wildlife officials want to deplete future runs — and the money they generate — by closing the state Sol Duc River hatchery.
Coho won’t be the only victims if the Fish and Wildlife plan is carried out.
The Pacific Ocean and rivers of the Quillayute system will also have less steelhead and chinook.
And jobs will be lost.
Lowland lakes will likewise be affected — their large populations of stocked trout are raised primarily at the Sol Duc hatchery.
“It would be ridiculous to shut it down,” said Peter Becker, president of the North Olympic Chapter of Trout Unlimited.
But Gov. Gary Locke — who last October asked state agencies to reduce general fund spending by 15 percent — is ready to say “so long” to Sol Duc.
The rest of this Sunday Showcase special report appears in today’s Peninsula Daily News. Click on “Subscribe” to get the PDN delivered to your home or office.
