The Columbia River treaty fishing tribes today asked the states of Oregon and Washington to take the most assertive response available under the Marine Mammal Protection Act to address the growing sea lion predation problem on endangered Columbia River salmon stocks.

In a letter to the directors of each state's fish and wildlife agency the tribes "strongly recommend that the states of Oregon and Washington utilize the MMPA Section 120 (16 U.S.C. § 1389) process to obtain authority to remove problem animals that are impacting listed salmonids, including, but not limited to, lethal take."

The tribes cite previous experiences at Willamette Falls and the highly publicized problems at the Ballard Locks in asking the states to seek such authority from the NOAA Fisheries warning that, "the problem must be quickly addressed or it will quickly escalate."

"The sea lion predation problem in the Columbia River has increased seven-fold in the past few years," said Olney Patt Jr., executive director of the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission, representing the Nez Perce, Warm Springs, Yakama and Umatilla tribes. "We're asking the states to utilize every authority available, within the existing law, to best manage this problem. The Marine Mammal Protection Act is a cumbersome law but it does have some available options. We're pleased to see the hazing efforts of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at Bonneville Dam have some positive effect, but we need all agencies to exercise their management options to effectively deal with this frustrating situation."

In the early 1970's, California sea lion population numbered only around 50,000 animals, requiring protection under the MMPA. NOAA Fisheries now estimates the sea lions have grown to a healthy and robust population of over 300,000 animals.