Taylor Bachrach heads to Washington for the future B.C. salmon

Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP, Taylor Bachrach, is headed to Washington, D.C., on Oct. 20, to directly address the salmon crisis and talk about the future of endangered wild salmon and steelhead stocks in northwest B.C.

“The urgency of this crisis requires immediate action. That’s why I’ve come to Washington to make the case directly to decision-makers in Alaska that we need to be working together more closely,” Bachrach said.

The focus of the talks with Alaskan congress members, set for Oct. 21, will be for urgent cross-border cooperation, data coordination and fishery closures and openings, James Hammond, Bchrach’s legislative assistant, told The Northern View.

“The trip comes in the wake of the lowest return of Skeena River steelhead ever recorded and with numerous wild salmon populations in the Skeena facing very low abundance,” a press release stated. “Residents, stakeholders and resource managers have expressed that better data sharing and coordination with Alaska’s fisheries managers is an important aspect of stock recovery efforts.”

Bachrach will be proposing initiatives to improve conservation and cooperation, including a forum for future dialogue between legislators. He will meet with Alaskan senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, as well as congressman, Don Young.

“The Alaskan delegation has expressed a keen interest in the sustainability of transboundary watersheds. Fisheries management is an important part of that conversation and I’m hopeful we can have a productive exchange,” Bachrach said.