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<DIV><FONT face=Tahoma><STRONG>Klamath-Trinity coho are officially listed as
threatened under CESA.</STRONG></FONT></DIV>
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<DIV><FONT face=Tahoma><STRONG></STRONG></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Tahoma><STRONG>FISHERIES PROTECTION</STRONG></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Tahoma><STRONG>Northern California's coho salmon now on
endangered species list</STRONG></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Tahoma><STRONG>Associated Press - 8/6/04</STRONG></FONT></DIV>
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<P>SAN FRANCISCO - Northern California's struggling coho salmon population will
get an extra layer of protection from the state's Endangered Species Act. </P>
<P>The state Fish and Game Commission voted Thursday in Bridgeport to place coho
salmon from San Francisco to Punta Gorda in Humboldt County on the state's
"endangered" list. Coho from Punta Gorda to the Oregon border will be designated
as "threatened." </P>
<P>"It was time to bite the bullet here and list the species as endangered,"
said Sam Schuchat, commission vice president. "We're down to thousands of fish.
If we hadn't done what we did today, the species is going to wink out of
existence and be gone forever." </P>
<P>Environmentalists who pushed for the listing hailed the vote, which now
mandates that loggers, farmers and other developers seek special permits before
embarking on projects that might harm the once-abundant fish. </P>
<P>From San Francisco to Oregon, the coho population has plunged 70 percent
since the 1960s, and is estimated to be just 6 percent to 15 percent of its
1940s level despite the release of millions of hatchery-raised fish, according
to the commission. </P>
<P>Commercial harvests dropped off dramatically in the 1970s. </P>
<P>In 2002, the state Department of Fish and Game released a comprehensive
review on the coho, warning of impending extinction and recommending the
protections. </P>
<P>In February, the commission approved a $5 billion, 25-to-30-year plan to
revive the species and restarted the process to seek protections. </P>
<P>The massive recovery plan included more than 1,000 recommendations intended
to boost the salmon population to the point that it can sustain recreational,
commercial and tribal fishing, eventually resulting in its removal from the
endangered list. </P>
<P>"Recovering the species is a question of fixing thousands and thousands of
little things across the state that add up to one giant thing," Schuchat said.
</P>
<P>Groups representing logging and farming interests have opposed the listing,
saying it creates additional regulatory burdens and questioning whether the
situation is as perilous as wildlife regulators describe. </P>
<P>Farmers and ranchers monitoring the issue are "counting a lot of coho out
there," said Pam Giacomini, director of natural resources and commodities at the
California Farm Bureau. "That doesn't tell us that the coho are at risk of
extinction." </P>
<P>Federal protections already exist for the species, and Thursday's move will
allow the state to request federal money for the recovery plan. </P>
<P>Coho south of San Francisco Bay have been under state protection since 1995.
</P>
<P>- On the Net: Read the report: <A
href="http://www.dfg.ca.gov/nafwb/CohoRecovery/"><U><FONT color=#0000ff
size=4>http://www.dfg.ca.gov/nafwb/CohoRecovery/</U></FONT></A><FONT size=4>
#</P>
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