Written by Derrick Nunnally, Puget Sound Institute

As wildlife managers work to recover Puget Sound’s diminished Chinook population, a proposed white paper is expected to review the impacts of some of the salmon’s chief predators. The study would include a section on potential management of seals and sea lions, prompting open discussion of a long taboo subject: Could officials seek to revise the Marine Mammal Protection Act — or even conduct lethal or non-lethal removal of seals and sea lions in some cases? Such actions are hypothetical, but we look at some of the ongoing discussions around the issue as prompted by a new resolution from the Puget Sound Leadership Council.

Read more on the Encyclopedia of Puget Sound

Did you know: The Puget Sound Partnership is guiding the development of the Chinook Implementation Strategy along with the Salmon Recovery Council. The council created a list of regional priorities of the top bold actions and near term issues that need to be addressed throughout the Puget Sound. The list calls for an analysis of the impacts of seals and sea lions on the chinook salmon populations.