Sound herring are denied Endangered Species Act protection

Tuesday, June 7, 2005

Sound herring are denied Endangered Species Act protection
Cherry Point stock ruled similar to others

By ROBERT McCLURE AND LISA STIFFLER
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTERS

Even though its numbers have plummeted, Puget Sound's largest herring stock doesn't deserve protection under the Endangered Species Act because it isn't sufficiently different from other groups of herring, the National Marine Fisheries Service decided yesterday.

Environmentalists quickly vowed to appeal the decision, noting that the reasoning behind it mirrors the government's justification for failing to protect the Sound's killer whales -- a decision later reversed by the courts.

The herring decision is potentially far-reaching because the small fish form a key link in the estuary's food web, which scientists say has been battered by overfishing, pollution and other problems. Killer whales and salmon are among the creatures that depend on herring.

"Herring are the manna of the Sound. This was the state's largest herring stock," said Fred Felleman of Ocean Advocates, one of seven environmental petitioners.

"This was a chance for NMFS to show they were really serious about the recovery of salmon and the killer whale," he said, "and instead they put up a bad show."

Why the Cherry Point stock has shrunk remains a mystery.

While environmentalists blame nearby oil refineries for at least part of the decline, federal officials didn't delve into that question.

Because Cherry Point herring are not a "distinct population segment," they can't win protection under the Endangered Species Act, the agency said.

The Fisheries Service noted that the Cherry Point herring stock is one of about 40 herring groups in the region. "If Cherry Point herring disappeared, it would not have a negative effect on the overall stocks," said Brian Gorman, spokesman for the Fisheries Service.

Environmentalists counter that Cherry Point herring are different genetically. For example, while most Puget Sound herring spawn in the winter and early spring, the Cherry Point stock is finishing its spawning near Bellingham now.

Although the Cherry Point stock has shown some signs of revival over the past four years, its overall historical decline is huge, from about 15,000 tons in 1973 to about 1,600 tons this year.

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