IS A hatchery-bred fish the same as a wild one? Yes, says the fisheries
regulator in the US, to the outrage of environmentalists.
“It’s at odds with the whole goal of the Endangered Species Act,” says Jim
Myron of conservation society Oregon Trout. “If hatchery fish are part of the
listed species, you don’t have to protect the natural habitat. You could turn
all of the rivers into concrete raceways.”
Last week the National Marine Fisheries Service announced that it would abide
by a district judge’s decision in September. He ruled that the distinction the
NMFS made between wild coho salmon and hatchery-bred fish was arbitrary, since
they are genetically the same. The decision means coho would no longer be listed
as threatened, even though the wild population has fallen to only a few hundred
in Oregon. The ruling has allowed logging to resume along rivers that are
important breeding grounds for the fish.
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The NMFS said last week it would reconsider whether around 25 other fish
species with large hatchery populations should stay on the list. But
environmentalists say hatchery-bred fish aren’t fit enough to sustain
themselves, but compete with wild fish for food.