 Court Orders Federal Deadline on Endangered Chinook Salmon Protection

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Spring-run Chinook populations have crashed to just 28 fish in some river basins, down from thousands historically.

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The legal victory came after environmental groups sued the National Marine Fisheries Service for failing to meet required deadlines.

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Southern Resident orcas, with only 73 individuals left, rely heavily on Chinook salmon as their primary food source.

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"The government has taken far too long deciding whether to protect these imperiled Chinook salmon," said Jeremiah Scanlan from the Center for Biological Diversity.

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Multiple threats endanger these iconic fish: habitat destruction, dams blocking migration, interbreeding with hatchery fish, and climate change.

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Some Chinook salmon populations have completely disappeared from river basins where they once thrived.

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If protected under the Endangered Species Act, fishing, hunting, and trade of these salmon would be prohibited.

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The legal settlement also requires the federal government to pay $9,000 in attorney fees to the environmental groups.

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Without healthy Chinook populations, endangered orcas must travel farther and work harder to find food, contributing to malnutrition and reproductive failures.

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