Thanks to Senate, Greenland won’t be intercepting sa

On July 26, the U.S. Senate approved spending $500,000 to continue the buyout of the West Greenland Atlantic salmon fishery through 1995. It didn’t come easy. In fact, the Senate Appropriations Committee recommended no funding for the program.

But thanks to Senators Patrick Leahy and Joseph Lieberman, who succeeded in having the funds reinstated on the Senate floor, and to Senators George Mitchell, Bill Cohen, and Robert Byrd for their support, the bill was moved to a joint House-Senate conference committee. Perhaps you recall that, in a milestone effort to conserve Atlantic salmon stocks by eliminating interceptory commercial fisheries, the Greenland netters were compensated for not fishing in 1993-94.

One morning back in the early 1950s, I watched a fisherman in a double-ender boat hook and land a salmon at the Bangor Salmon Pool. There was an aura about that salmon – it was the first I ever saw caught – that actually influenced my life. I learned later that the fisherman was Horace Bond, founding father of the Maine Atlantic Salmon Commission.

David Clark, president of the Atlantic Salmon Federation, was quick to credit the people who were instrumental in landing the buyout. Included were: Amos Eno, executive director of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and the ASF’s funding partner in the Greenland buy out; Charles Gauvin, president of Trout Unlimited, Orri Vigfusson, director of buyouts of interceptory Atlantic salmon fisheries, Andy Stout of the New England Salmon Association, and Dave Egan, a U.S. commissioner to the North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Association.

I was fishing off the shore at the salmon pool one day when Guy Carroll showed up. After I helped him get his boat into the water, he asked me to fish with him. I couldn’t believe it. Guy didn’t have any luck that day but I sure did. Not only was it my first time on the pool in a double-ender, but I was fishing with a man who caught the presidential salmon four times. By then, though, few, if any, salmon were ascending the Penobscot River.

Hal Lyman, a U.S director of the ASF was cautiously optimistic about final approval of the $500,000 for the Greenland buy out: “I’m elated, but celebrations will have to wait until after the House-Senate conference and final passage of the conference report by Congress.”

It took a lot of time, effort, and money to bring salmon back to the Penobscot. But when the fish began showing up in good shape, the excitement generated was unbelievable. One evening a big run came in with the tide. Between 5 and 8 o’clock, 25 salmon were caught in the Bangor Salmon Pool. Joe Floyd netted most of them. I can’t remember if Joe caught a fish himself, he was so busy scrambling around with the net.

U.S. directors of the ASF expect that the $500,000 funding will have a positive impact on New England rivers. Bill Townsend of Canaan, former president of the Maine Council ASF and a U.S. commissioner to NASCO, commented, “The termination of the commercial fishery finally gives promise of achieving the goal of restoration of Atlantic salmon.” NEWS publisher Rick Warren, a public member of Maine’s Atlantic Salmon Commission, said, “This funding will help ensure that over 100,000 salmon will return to spawn over the next two years.”

One morning before work, Rick and I went onto the Pipeline Pool in my double-ender. The fog was thicker than smoke from a smudge and when he started casting I said, “Y’know, there’s a theory that salmon won’t take when there’s fog on the water.” When Rick asked me what I thought about it, I said, “I think we’re going to find out.” A few casts later he hooked and landed an 11-pounder.

Joe Cullman of New York, president emeritus of the ASF-U.S., attributes the foundering New England Atlantic salmon-restoration programs to the Greenland fishery: “While the U.S. government has expended millions on restoring and stocking rivers, the Greenlanders have harvested more than 1.5 million pounds of Atlantic salmon on average every year.”

The return of salmon to the Penobscot created a lot of salmon fishermen. But the sad part of it was they were killing too many fish. At first the limit was two a day and some guys were killing 20 or more fish a year. That was a sin. They screamed like hell when the season limit of 10 fish was put into effect and they screamed each time it was reduced after that. Now it’s grilse only.

According to David Clark, the Canadian government may initiate a conservation stamp that would be sold with fishing licenses. “If acted upon,” he said, “the stamp initiative will serve to complement the support for a Greenland buyout already given by the U.S. Congress. This type of government involvement is essential if a long-term solution is to be found for net fisheries which intercept salmon.”

God must have been proud of Himself when He put the finishing touches on the Atlantic salmon. But He must be god-awful disappointed in the way we’ve mistreated that magnificent fish. I think a man who testified at the Basin Mills said it best: “The Atlantic salmon is no more just a fish than the bald eagle is just a bird.”