A poaching expert is warning about enforcement cuts by Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) on the Fraser River when sockeye salmon returns were near their lowest.

Randy Nelson, a former DFO fishery officer, and the B.C. Wildlife Federation (BCWF) leadership put out an Oct. 31 news release, citing DFO staffing cuts in particular to mid-river enforcement and helicopter patrols.

鈥淭he level of surveillance is just a tiny fraction of historic levels,鈥� Nelson said.

Nelson, who spent five years of his career as regional director for Conservation & Protection branch, is the author of the books, The Wildest Hunt, and Poachers, Polluters and Politics, is asserting more needs to be done.

鈥淲e used to do many thousands of hours of patrols on the river, and in the air, to control poaching. Today, enforcement is effectively non-existent.鈥�

There are only six fisheries officers on the mid and upper river sections of the Fraser, including three trainees, compared to more than a dozen in 2012, Nelson said.

When DFO ratcheted down the estimates for Fraser sockeye in September by more than 100,000 fish to just 456,000, it was the second lowest figure ever recorded for this cohort, according to 2024 Fraser Panel numbers from the Pacific Salmon Foundation.

Day, night, boat, and helicopter patrols on the mid-Fraser have all been cut back, and that has left the dwindling at the mercy of poachers, the retired fishery officer asserted. Cuts to special investigations by fisheries officers have left "no capacity for covert operations," Nelson said.

In a followup after their joint news release came out, Nelson told The Chilliwack Progress that over his lengthy career, the fishery officer watched and sometimes participated in more than a dozen studies, including major inquiries, delving into the dramatic decline of Fraser salmon fisheries, like the Cohen Commission of 2012.

"Each and every one said there has to be more effort put into enforcement," Nelson said, in part to stem the tide of poaching, "which DFO did right after those studies."

Then years later they "hack and slash" funding in those areas, "which is cyclical, predictable and quite frankly annoying," the ex-DFO official said.

BCWF says the recent Fraser River Panel data from PSF show that 6,148 sockeye salmon were caught legally, which includes test fisheries and Food, Social and Ceremonial fisheries of First Nations.

At least 15,000 fish are estimated to have been harvested illegally, or poached in 2024.

鈥淭hose numbers are likely a vast underestimate, because people routinely under-report their catch unless they are directly observed,鈥� said Nelson.

They're calling for the creation of "an independent, multi-stakeholder group" to hold DFO accountable, Nelson said, adding, "lack of oversight has been a disaster."

Making a tough job of conservation and protection even harder is that recruitment is proving to be a major challenge for DFO. Part of their training goes unpaid, which also hurts recruitment.

鈥淭he government of Canada has wiped out morale within DFO, abandoned the public interest and the conservation of salmon and steelhead on the Fraser," said BCWF executive director Jesse Zeman. 鈥淲e are seeing an exodus of passionate professionals dedicated to the conservation of salmon and steelhead from the federal and provincial governments.

"If there ever was a signal that the DFO no longer cares about conservation, this is it.鈥�

Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) officials sent a lengthy statement by email, offering some explanation for fewer DFO enforcement and patrols on some parts of the Fraser River.

"DFO Conservation and Protection (C&P) fishery officers monitor the Fraser River Watershed, from the mouth near Vancouver to its headwaters near Mount Robson in the B.C. Interior, through a mix of enforcement activities, including helicopter flights, vehicle and patrol vessel monitoring and night-time enforcement," DFO officials said in response to questions about enforcement cuts.

"Approximately 38 C&P staff are dedicated to enforcement efforts on an ongoing basis.

"In the 2024 season, several factors influenced how enforcement was conducted along the Fraser River: the lack of salmon abundance that closed most fisheries to all harvesting, limited First Nations Food, Social, Ceremonial access, ongoing drought and extremely low water levels, and the impact of forest fires.

"In the BC Interior, a strategic change in patrol strategy was utilized to better coordinate flights with on-the-ground enforcement support, resulting in fewer helicopter patrols needing to be conducted in comparison to previous years. This is in keeping with DFO鈥檚 enforcement approach to use a risk-based, intelligence-led approach, including the use of drones as an additional enforcement tool.

"A significant landslide event occurred on July 30 in the Chilcotin River system resulting in the suspension of all DFO activities on and adjacent to the Fraser River, including enforcement, for a period of 10 days in the Mid-Fraser to Hope," the DFO response said.

"In the Lower Fraser area, B.C. wildfires resulted in a significant shortage of available aircraft to be utilized for enforcement support, limiting the number of helicopter patrols that were conducted.

"From the beginning of the year to date, fishery officers have removed 143 illegally set gillnets from the Lower Fraser River, along with other fishing gear, a marked decrease from seizures in the recent past."