Culture and commerce
Aside from being a popular sport fishing target in Washington and British Columbia, Pacific salmon species serve as cultural keystones for Indigenous communities in the Pacific Northwest. Pacific salmon species have shaped different cultural identities by fulfilling a variety of material, religious, and ceremonial roles. The completion of the Grand Coulee Dam and resulting rising waters of Lake Roosevelt led to the loss of Kettle Falls, which meant the loss of a major fishing site for many Interior Salish tribes, as well as the loss of a salmon spirit, for many. This spurred the Ceremony of Tears in 1940, during which Indigenous peoples from across the Pacific Northwest gathered to mourn and acknowledge the end of an era marked by free passage of the salmon up the Columbia River.
In the present, an annual Salmon Ceremony is held at Kettle Falls by the Sinixt people and their sister tribes to offer prayers and songs to the salmon, dedicated to their hopeful return.
Economic impacts of the commercial salmon industry (2012-2015)
Gislason, Gordon, et al. 2017, Economic Impacts of Pacific Salmon Fisheries.
Screenshot from Older Than The Crown, produced by War Pony Pictures. The Colville and Upper Columbia United Tribes release wild salmon above the Chief Joseph and Grand Coulee dams (2019).
Pacific salmon have also played integral roles in the economy of the Pacific Northwest.
- Pacific salmon landings accounted for 14.6% of ex-vessel values (or “the price received by commercial fishers for fish landed at the dock”) generated by Washington fisheries.
- Salmon were found to be the second-most popular sport fishing target in Washington, after trout, and sport fishing for salmon was valued at $129.3 million USD.
- Jobs generated by the commercial catch and harvest of salmon accounted for 14% of all jobs generated by commercial fisheries in Washington.
- Commercial PNW salmon fisheries produced $402 million and 3090 FTE jobs in Washington and $324 million and 3300 FTE jobs in British Columbia.
- Recreational PNW salmon fisheries produced $394 million and 3160 FTE jobs in Washington and $713 million and 6150 FTE jobs in British Columbia.
Here are some photos I took this year at Pike Place Market! The bustling fish market can attract up to 20,000 visitors in a day, with its famous seafood and "fish-throwing." The Pike Place Fish Market has been featured in various forms of pop culture, from commercials to documentary films, and even a reference in "Downtown" - a single by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis. Lucky visitors may get to witness salmon in midair!
Sources
“About Us.” Pike Place Fish Market, www.pikeplacefish.com/about.
“Ceremony of Tears.” Ceremony of Tears | Northwest Power and Conservation Council, www.nwcouncil.org/reports/columbia-
river-history/ceremonyoftears.
“Fishing-Demise of Fishing in Sinixt Territory.” Fishing-Demise of Fishing in Sinixt Territory | Sinixt Nation,
sinixtnation.org/content/fishing-demise-fishing-sinixt-territory.
Garibaldi, Ann, and Nancy Turner. “Cultural Keystone Species: Implications for Ecological Conservation and Restoration.”
Ecology and Society, vol. 9, no. 3, 2004, doi:10.5751/es-00669-090301.
Gislason, Gordon, et al. 2017. Economic Impacts of Pacific Salmon Fisheries. July 2017. Anchorage USA.
LaMere, Derrick, director. Older Than The Crown. War Pony Pictures, 2020.
TCW Economics. 2008. Economic analysis of the non-treaty commercial and recreational fisheries in Washington State.
December 2008. Sacramento, CA. With technical assistance from The Research Group, Corvallis, OR.