Photo: The Oregonian
NOAA today turned on the green light again for Washington, Oregon and Idaho authorities to kill sea lions that swim up the Columbia River and feast on salmon at the base of Bonneville Dam. As Spring Chinook and Steelhead congregate to navigate fish ladders to continue upstream to lay and fertilize their eggs, the sea lions also gather to gorge themselves on the fish which are still considered endangered. It’s estimated that the sea lions consume up to 4% of an annual harvest.
But the Humane Society of the U.S. is examining NOAA’s decision, pointing out that there doesn’t appear to be great hordes of sea lions at the base of Bonneville Dam at the moment and so they question NOAA’s urgency in their authorization to have sea lions killed.
More from the Oregonian. Click here.
I’m not any sort of animal “rights” extremist and I realize agencies like NOAA and Fish & Game have specific knowledge to determine if these sort of killings are necessary. But it does seem cruel. These sea lions eat “UP TO 4%” (so maybe not even that much?) Is that a big deal? Why the rush to slaughter? Does man think he really knows better than Mother Nature? Could we pause and hold our fire a bit and see if these things balance out?