Thirty years after the landmark ruling affirming fishing rights in Washington, some tribal fishermen are finding an industry that is not as lucrative as it once was.

The Upper Skagit Tribe's salmon fleet has gone from 50 boats to fewer than 10, a tribal member says. Salmon prices are so low that the tribe is subsidizing the catch.

Billy Franks Jr., a member of the Nisqually Tribe who was at the center of the fish wars in the 1960s and 1970s, believes the problem goes back to the way the state reacted to U.S. District Judge George Boldt's ruling. Instead of focusing on co-management with the tribes, state biologists turned it into a counting game, he says.

Critics in the commercial and sport fishing world blame increased tribal fishing on dwindling runs. But Mark Cedergreen, a former commercial fishermen, says salmon numbers were already dropping due to environmental changes. Cedergreen opposed the decision but later went to work with tribes on salmon management.

The Boldt case isn't really over yet either. An earlier ruling on Part II -- the state's obligations to protect fish habitat -- was set aside. Tribes have renewed the case but it has not gone to trial.

Some tribes were also cut out of the decision by Boldt, who determined they didn't have rights. The courts have refused to reopen the decision.

Get the Story:
Boldt Decision 'very much alive' 30 years later (The Seattle Post-Intelligencer 2/12)
Boldt ruling's effect felt around the world (The Seattle Post-Intelligencer 2/12)

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