Feds OK plan to cut salmon fishing when needed for orcas

SEATTLE (AP) — Federal officials have approved a plan that calls for cutting nontribal salmon fishing along the West Coast when the fish are needed to help the Northwest’s endangered killer whales. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries adopted the plan Tuesday as recommended by the Pacific Fishery Management Council. It calls for restricting commercial and recreational salmon fishing when chinook salmon forecasts are especially low. The southern resident killer whales are endangered orcas that spend much of their time in the waters between Washington state and British Columbia. They depend heavily on depleted runs of fatty chinook. The fishing restrictions would extend from Puget Sound in Washington to Monterey Bay in central California.