eventually securing $20.6 million in February 2024<\/a> to offset losses. California officials and industry representatives stressed it was not enough.<\/p>\nAbout $90 million in revenue was lost from the first two closed seasons, according to estimates in aid requests from the Governor\u2019s Office, which emphasized that far more funding is needed.<\/p>\n
Salmon stocks have weathered sharp declines amid waves of drought, shifting ocean conditions and longstanding effects from dams, river diversions and other development that have decimated their spawning runs.<\/p>\n
The NOAA announcement last week unveiled a total of $123.6 million in disaster aid for West Coast salmon fisheries, including the $21.3 million for California\u2019s fleet and related businesses.<\/p>\n
\u201cFinally, we are seeing movement from the administration and a commitment to allocate these desperately needed funds,\u201d Rep. Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael, said in a statement. \u201cBut let\u2019s be clear: it should not take years of congressional oversight, repeated inquiries, and public pressure for an administration to deliver disaster assistance that was reviewed, approved, and awaiting release.\u201d<\/p>\n
With the funding now allocated, California has 120 days to submit a \u201cspend plan\u201d outlining how the money will be used, according to NOAA Fisheries spokesperson Michael Milstein. Funding will be awarded via grant by NOAA Fisheries within 90 days of the plan submission. Responsibility then shifts to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to distribute the funds.<\/p>\n
With the federal commitment now made, the state will begin its work on that plan, according to Chester Lindley, senior environmental scientist supervisor with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.<\/p>\n
The blueprint will likely follow a similar approach to the 2023 plan, according to Lindley. The prior plan focused on assisting affected fishery sectors, dedicating 92% of the funds to direct payments.<\/p>\n
Though the allocation of funds is a step forward in the relief process, many are concerned about the speed at which funding will be distributed.<\/p>\n
Commercial fisherman Dick Ogg, president of the Bodega Bay Fisherman\u2019s Marketing Association, voiced hope for an expedited process that would speed money to those who need it right now.<\/p>\n
Many in the fishing business have been forced to shift or shut down operations that have weighty costs, including boat maintenance, equipment and permits.<\/p>\n
\u201cDisaster relief is something that should supplement the industry when there is a disaster, not five years later,\u201d Ogg said.<\/p>\n
You can reach Staff Writer Kyle Garcia Takata at kyle.garciatakata@pressdemocrat.com.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"California\u2019s troubled commercial salmon fleet, fishing this year for the first time since 2022, is in store for…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":372242,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[7,15313,9,8,150770,4899,28416,10609,150769],"class_list":["post-372241","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-california","tag-california","tag-california-department-of-fish-and-wildlife","tag-california-headlines","tag-california-news","tag-dick-ogg","tag-disaster-relief","tag-jared-huffman","tag-national-oceanic-and-atmospheric-administration","tag-salmon-fishery"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/372241","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=372241"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/372241\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/372242"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=372241"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=372241"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=372241"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}