In this episode of More than a fish, host Auston Chhor returns to the roots of seeing salmon as sustenance, culture, and identity through speaking with guest Murray Ned, a member of the Sumas First Nation located in the Fraser Valley. He also formerly served as Councillor for Sumas First Nation and as the Fisheries Manager for the Sto:lo Tribal Council.

Murray is the Executive Director of the Lower Fraser Fisheries Alliance, where he is a part of numerous regional and provincial fishery committees, task, and working groups. The LFFA is an Indigenous technical organization that works to advance the collective fisheries interests of Lower Fraser First Nations. One of the ways they do this is by holding monthly fishers Forums to discuss common issues in the lower Fraser River and its tributaries, where each member Nation of the 30 that compose the LFFA (24 signatory, 6 non-signatory) sends a delegate.

“We’ve got an obligation — an inherent obligation — to look after the resource, the water, plus those that rely on the water, including the salmon… we also have an obligation to bridge relationships and understand that we have to look after the fish wherever they migrate.” – Murray Ned

Auston asks Murray to travel back to his first memory of salmon, how he made the jump from millwright to fisheries management, as well as his visions for the Lower Fraser. They then go on to discuss the Fraser River Sockeye collapse of 2009, when over 10 million fish were estimated to return but only a fraction actually showed.

Can a crisis bring people together? Or is it a matter of fighting over what’s left?

Additional resources:

• The Lower Fraser Fisheries Alliance and Member Nations
• Fraser River Sockeye collapse of 2009
• The Abbotsford Flood 2021
• Q&A with Murray Ned; Fraser Valley Current
• Learn more about this season’s host, Auston Chhor
• Learn more about Raincoast’s wild salmon program

Raincoast Radio is hosted by Auston Chhor and produced by Sofia Osborne. This podcast is a production of Raincoast Conservation Foundation, a team of conservationists and scientists empowered by research to protect the lands, waters and wildlife of coastal British Columbia. Learn more and support our work at raincoast.org