Feds greenlight killing more sea lions to protect endangered salmon as controversy fades
The federal permit that allows Northwest states and some Native nations to trap and kill salmon-eating sea lions in the Columbia River was reapproved late last week.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service renewed a 2020 permit that had allowed the removal of 540 California sea lions and 176 Steller sea lions from Bonneville Dam and Willamette Falls.
Of that approved number, only 116 Californias and 114 Stellers were taken. The new permit allows the remainder of the original permit to be removed — a total of 486 sea lions between now and Aug. 22, 2030.
The approach generated immense pushback in the late 2010s, with the 2020 permit application generating about 22,000 public comments — of which, fewer than 200 supported it, The Seattle Times reported then.
https://washingtonstatestandard.com/2025/09/15/feds-greenlight-killing-more-sea-lions-to-protect-endangered-salmon-as-controversy-fades/