By Sound News reporter Alexandra Garreton

Having grown up in Los Angeles, my connection to and awareness of the Puget Sound and issues relevant to its health were, for lack of a better word: meager.

And honestly, aren’t MUCH better now, but they have improved over the four years I’ve lived in Seattle.

Especially after taking this environmental reporting class. Being immersed in this world of journalism and environmental science majors has opened my eyes to issues I would never, in a kazillion years, have considered. From the levels of carbon excreted by livestock to phytoplankton survival in Hood Canal, my mind is boggled by the intertwined relationship of all creatures on earth.

Alright, before I get lost in my hippy thoughts, I’ll tell you where I’m going with this.

Salmon.

After taking a class field trip to La Connor on February 26th, I was tossed into the battle grounds of the salmon wars. It was remarkable to hear Swinomish Tribe Senators, the Skagit River System Cooperative and the Western Washington Agricultural Association speak about what exactly is going on with the salmon in the area, why it matters and what options for the future are. This week I’ll be doing a couple blogs discussing the different perspectives I was fortunate enough to witness.

It turns out salmon runs are getting smaller. For the Swinomish Tribe that means a deeply rooted part of their tradition is dying off, and fish are surviving have too many toxins to be consumed in high volume. Seafood in the form of salmon, crab, shrimp and clams is a staple of the Swinomish diet. Pollution from the air, PCBs, farming, storm water, brakes, oil, basically you name it, is affecting the toxicity of these animals and therefore also the health of their daily consumers. Steve Hinton, the Director of Habitat Restoration for the Skagit River System Cooperative, said that the Swinomish without Salmon is like imagining “China without rice or the Irish without potatoes.”

Fish is a way of life for them. It is a food staple, as well as a cultural and economic foundation. But this foundation is crumbling. As the runs get smaller Swinomish fishermen find themselves jobless because there are not enough fish to catch.

A lot of this has to do with the decreasing amount of wetland area along the edges of the Skagit. Juvenile fish swim this way and hang out in inland waterways, growing bigger and staying out of danger as much as possible until they are strong enough to swim into the ocean. Agriculture and development have decreased the amount of available wetland by flushing sea water out of their lands. Sea water kills agriculture and this river delta in La Connor is some of the richest land in the world, as long as the salt water stays out. Unfortunately that means the fish stay out too, thanks to tide gates. Tide gates are literally gates that close off when the tide starts to rise, to keep salt water out of the farmland.

The Swinomish argue that the barriers are harming salmon and could be considered illegal via the Endangered Species Act.

The fight rages on as agriculture makes its own arguments and salmon restoration efforts carry on.

I’m at the edge of my seat and biting my nails. Aren’t you? Who knew salmon were so controversial? This LA girl definitely didn’t.

To be continued…