In Washington, April will release millions of young Chinook salmon from the hatch area, where they start as small pink gloves, swimming downstream and reconstruct salmon populations. They are part of an ecosystem that affects tribal, commercial and recreational fishing, and are the main food sources of endangered killer whales.
However, this year there are almost 12 hatch sites in the Puget Sound region. Because, with one employee at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration closed in February, billionaire Elon Musk's advisory group is the victim of what is known as government efficiency.
The employee is Christa Finlay, and her job at NOAA was to ensure that hatch sites comply with the laws of endangered species before the fish were released into Puget Sound. She was among tens of thousands of federal employees who were on the probationary stage who lost their jobs in February. Finlay, who worked for NOAA for over two years as an intern and then as a fellow since March 2024, said he was afraid of Salmon Run.
“If we don't release millions of salmon, this year and years will be less in the future,” Finlay said. “If salmon doesn't return in 2027 and 2028, we don't have any offspring to release the next year, so if possible, it will take years to repair this.”
Since January, the Trump administration has cut more than 56,000 employees to dozens of federal agencies, from workers fighting wildfires on federal land to those studying vaccines to prevent the next pandemic. Some employees have revived, but many others are still on administrative leave and are unable to work.
In response to a request for comment, NOAA Fisheries spokesman Rachel Hager wrote in an email, “According to years of practice, we have not discussed internal HR and management issues.”
In the Pacific Northwest, salmon is woven deeply into economic and cultural fabrics. Over the last century, there has been a well-documented decline in the number of salmon returning to the Washington rivers, with reduced numbers driven by habit degradation, climate change and excessive harvesting.
Under NOAA, Hatchley has become essential to maintaining salmon in several rivers, according to Daniel Schindler, an ecology professor at the University of Washington who studies the fisheries.
“One of the key roles of NOAA is to ensure hatch sites are operated to minimize the impact on stocks of wild fish, especially endangered species,” Dr. Schindler said. “Reducing the release of these hatch sites will impact everything from providing food to marine mammals to supporting tribal and sporting fisheries.”
Finlay and most other revived NOAA employees have not regained access to their work accounts. Also, many people have not received official cancellation notices that make it easier for their family to apply for unemployment or transfer benefits.
Mark Barzel also ended in February from his government position as a fisheries management expert after working similarly to the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife. He said NOAA only a few people understand how complex management agencies for the fisheries work together.
“The less you have the ability and the less people involved in the job, the more it's a domino effect,” Barzel said. “It starts to have ripple effects on other parts of management or recovery of these populations.”
Approximately 12 million Chinook salmon, which are normally released each year, could be affected, said Adrian Spidl, a fishery geneticist with the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission, an agency representing 20 tribes.
The Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission predicted the return of salmon populations since the 1970s and used those models to estimate how to maintain and harvest healthy fish populations. The responsibility for managing the fisheries and salmon harvest is shared by the tribe and Washington state and is overseen by the NOAA.
“NOAA also needs to replace that person or give someone their job,” Spidle said. “The thing about NOAA cutting people is that they can cut people, but not their obligations.”
Since federal workers were fired, communication with NOAA has been challenging for Spidle and others working on the salmon program.
“It goes back and forth whether we can even talk to people at NOAA right now,” he said.
“It's more complicated than one person's loss,” he added. “It affects us all.”
David Troutt, director of natural resources at the Nisqually Indian Tribe, said it would be difficult to replace the loss of NOAA staff who have a career dedicated to the work. “Even if funds recover, even if NOAA could hire additional staff, it's likely that they'll hire people with little experience and understanding of the issue,” Troutt said. “I don't know what the long-term outcome of this is.”
