February 13, 2019 — A decade after the Penobscot River was included in the expansion of Endangered Species Act protection for Atlantic salmon originating in Maine, federal officials have released the final recovery plan for those fish. The news isn’t good. Federal officials estimate that it will take 75 years — about 15 generations of fish — for Gulf of Maine Atlantic salmon to be delisted entirely.
That news dims hopes that any angler who enjoyed fishing for salmon in Maine rivers in the past will live long enough to do so again.
Additionally, the plan estimates that the annual cost of implementing recovery actions will be $24 million per year on top of recovery-based efforts covered by regular federal budgets.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service on Tuesday released their plan for the recovery of Atlantic salmon within the Gulf of Maine distinct population segment. The document will serve as the foundation for conservation and recovery efforts moving forward.
According to the plan, recovery efforts must focus on rivers and estuaries until threats salmon face at sea are better understood. In addition, the continued effort of fish hatcheries in the conservation is an essential piece of the recovery puzzle. Eastern Maine has two such hatcheries — Craig Brook National Fish Hatchery in Orland and Green Lake National Fish Hatchery in Ellsworth.
Read the full story at the Bangor Daily News