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Weyerhaeuser Environmental Books
Making Salmon: An Environmental History of the Northwest Fisheries Crisis
Taylor (history, Iowa State U.) examines the social, cultural, economic, and environmental contexts of the decline of salmon in the Pacific Northwest from the aboriginal fisheries through the advent of industrial fishing and the rise of hatcheries all the way down to the current crisis of the salmon fisheries as they face the threat of collapse today. He argues that solutions to the problem are frustrated by the inability of commercial and sport fishers, fish culturalist, environmentalists, smelters, irrigators, bargers, and dam agencies to find common ground. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
- GenresNonfictionEnvironment
Hardcover
First published January 1, 1999
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
March 12, 2018
Taylor tells the story of how the salmon of the Pacific Northwest (e.g. Columbia and surrounding watersheds) came to their present beleaguered state. While the usual suspects (dams, agriculture diversions, pollution, overfishing) are all present, Making Salmon is particularly interested in the hatcheries. Fish culture was considered a technological panacea and gave managers license to ignore other problems whose solutions would disrupt economic development. Unfortunately, it was not only helpful but actively detrimental for nearly a century, altering the gene pool to favor fish adapted for hatcheries rather than wild streams and oceans. The moral of scientific hubris is well-taken, though I would have appreciated more about the actual science - how was success measured, and why did fish culturists think they had succeeded for so long?
Some mention of full-lifecycle aquaculture would have also been nice, as would more comparisons with the well-managed Alaskan salmon fisheries and the nearly extinct Sacramento runs.
Some mention of full-lifecycle aquaculture would have also been nice, as would more comparisons with the well-managed Alaskan salmon fisheries and the nearly extinct Sacramento runs.
February 15, 2019
A very informative history on Pacific Salmon with sophisticated analysis on its cultural, politico-economic, and technological aspects. Should be read along with works on settler-indigineous interaction and international (US-Canada and Trans-Pacific) marintime issues.
January 27, 2016
Taylor includes a host of perspectives in his narrative: that of the natives, the commercial fishers, the dam builders, the sportfishers, the conservationists are all present. While salmon continually DECLINE for 125 years, their decline is continually advertised as an urgent event. In fact, Taylor shows it as a gradual process. Nevertheless it is a decline/collapse. Different parties deflect blame onto others (4).
Historiography: Arthur McCoy has a history of CA fisheries, but “nobody has examined the interplay of nature, economy, culture, and since in fisheries” (6). Salmon’s fate inextricably linked to culture [social and artificial propagation/fish culture] and economy (7). A belief that humans could make salmon more efficiently than nature—scientific progress and technological solutions to social problems. Indians developed social and cultural customs to moderate their consumption (38).
Overfishing has explanatory power—but it needs to be understood more dynamically. It wasn’t just too many fishers in the water, but the environment became less amenable to salmon reproduction as fishing remained intense as ever. Demographic shifts—social, cultural, economic, and ecological changes in the land occurred—industrialization and urbanization as well as fish hatcheries all effected the load on salmon in rivers. Burning the candle at both ends (67).
“Making fish has been a political success story but a fiscal and ecological disaster” (236).
“Finding a scapegoat is killing the salmon” cartoon. Everyone is blaming everybody else; no one is taking responsibility. Political volleyball leads to inaction (256).
Problems and solutions are not simple. History is complex; politics reduces/oversimplifies arguments. Taylor calls for ll to take as a collective responsibility to govern ourselves. Not ask how do we save salmon without hurting people, but how do we save people without hurting salmon. No longer try to govern nature, but instead, try to govern ourselves (257).
This flirts with a moralistic, preachy tone, but overall it is fairly practical and graciously brief. The majority of the narrative is dispassionate and convincing.
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"Taylor's purpose is to help us understand just how hard it is to grapple with ecological problems that are also intensely cultural and political and economic. . . . By showing us how complicated the human history of salmon has been in the past, Taylor assembles the essential tools we need for thinking more clearly about its future." — William Cronon.
"Making Salmon is essential reading for anyone who wants to know how the salmon crisis began and as a caution to those who think there are easy ways to get out of it." — Richard White, Stanford University
"Exhaustively researched and written in clear and graceful prose, Making Salmon . . . will prove to be the definitive study of its subject until well into the twenty-first century." - William G. Robbins, Oregon State University Joseph E. Taylor III is assistant professor of history at Iowa State University. An environmental historian specializing in fisheries, he has also worked in the commercial fisheries of the northeast Pacific and Bering Sea. Winner of the George Perkins Marsh Award, American Society for Environmental History
Historiography: Arthur McCoy has a history of CA fisheries, but “nobody has examined the interplay of nature, economy, culture, and since in fisheries” (6). Salmon’s fate inextricably linked to culture [social and artificial propagation/fish culture] and economy (7). A belief that humans could make salmon more efficiently than nature—scientific progress and technological solutions to social problems. Indians developed social and cultural customs to moderate their consumption (38).
Overfishing has explanatory power—but it needs to be understood more dynamically. It wasn’t just too many fishers in the water, but the environment became less amenable to salmon reproduction as fishing remained intense as ever. Demographic shifts—social, cultural, economic, and ecological changes in the land occurred—industrialization and urbanization as well as fish hatcheries all effected the load on salmon in rivers. Burning the candle at both ends (67).
“Making fish has been a political success story but a fiscal and ecological disaster” (236).
“Finding a scapegoat is killing the salmon” cartoon. Everyone is blaming everybody else; no one is taking responsibility. Political volleyball leads to inaction (256).
Problems and solutions are not simple. History is complex; politics reduces/oversimplifies arguments. Taylor calls for ll to take as a collective responsibility to govern ourselves. Not ask how do we save salmon without hurting people, but how do we save people without hurting salmon. No longer try to govern nature, but instead, try to govern ourselves (257).
This flirts with a moralistic, preachy tone, but overall it is fairly practical and graciously brief. The majority of the narrative is dispassionate and convincing.
_____________
"Taylor's purpose is to help us understand just how hard it is to grapple with ecological problems that are also intensely cultural and political and economic. . . . By showing us how complicated the human history of salmon has been in the past, Taylor assembles the essential tools we need for thinking more clearly about its future." — William Cronon.
"Making Salmon is essential reading for anyone who wants to know how the salmon crisis began and as a caution to those who think there are easy ways to get out of it." — Richard White, Stanford University
"Exhaustively researched and written in clear and graceful prose, Making Salmon . . . will prove to be the definitive study of its subject until well into the twenty-first century." - William G. Robbins, Oregon State University Joseph E. Taylor III is assistant professor of history at Iowa State University. An environmental historian specializing in fisheries, he has also worked in the commercial fisheries of the northeast Pacific and Bering Sea. Winner of the George Perkins Marsh Award, American Society for Environmental History
November 16, 2007
most of this book is really dry, but the last section is awesome- i actually found myself exclaiming "i love what you're saying!" out loud... to the book... more than once while reading it. also, this is the first book i've read for class that even sort of addresses race and class while talking about environmental issues.
November 21, 2013
Just finished this book for the second time in preparation for a talk I am giving this coming spring. I think it's the best of the books that cover the northwest salmon situation, and it still is even though it's almost 15 years old now. It covers both the biology and the politics really well.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews