Kamchatka: Protecting a Salmon Sanctuary,
Building a Salmon Economy
D. Gordon
Wild salmon have long been an icon of the North Pacific, binding the region’s economies, cultures and ecosystems together. But urbanization, deforestation, poaching, dams and other threats currently menace these iconic creatures and endanger their future sustainability.
Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula—a land of mountains, geysers and pristine watersheds—is one of the world’s last truly wild salmon sanctuaries. For years Kamchatka was a remote, sparsely inhabited region which was protected in part due to its strategic military value in the Cold War. But in Russia’s rush to liquidate its vast natural resources, Kamchatka’s salmon and the communities which depend on them have found themselves in great danger from illegal fishing, predatory mining and oil and gas drilling.
In response, Pacific Environment is partnering with leading Russian environmentalists to help preserve this habitat for future generations. Wild salmon runs in the Pacific Northwest and California have been decimated over the last century. We’re ensuring Kamchatka’s wild salmon don’t meet the same fate.
