330,000 sockeye fry to be released in Okanagan and Columbia basins this spring

It may seem like a significant number at first glance, but the reality is that it’s a fraction of what’s desired.

This morning in Penticton, the Okanagan National Alliance (ONA) began the process of releasing 330,000 sockeye fry throughout its territory this spring.

The hundreds of thousands of sockeye fry set to be released into Okanagan and Columbia basin creeks, rivers and lakes comes after a disappointing spawner return in 2025.

“In previous years, we were releasing up to four-million fry, but due to unfavourable water temperatures and fishing in the US, only 9,000 spawners returned this past fall compared to the expected return of under 72,000,” explained ONA fisheries biologist Shayla Lawrence.

According to Lawrence, more fish were harvested in the US than returned to spawn last year.

The ONA says “extreme environmental conditions” in 2025 are to blame as well, as they create thermal barriers that delayed Okanagan-bound salmon in the Columbia River as they sought cooler, deeper waters.

“These conditions impacted their migration and access to spawning grounds,” an ONA release noted.

Despite all the setbacks, the ONA is still planning to release the 330,000 sockeye fry in a multi-step process that began in the South Okanagan this morning.

It will continue in Vernon, Kelowna, Six Mile, Castlegar, Slocan and Revelstoke between May 6-13.

The ONA says ceremonial releases in all these locations mark another important stem in the Syilx Okanagan Nation’s ongoing work to return salmon to their natural habitats and historic ranges.

“Salmon will give their lives trying to come back to us, even if the dam is 10 miles high, they will fight that dam to come home to us,” said Syilx Elder Richard Armstrong.

“It’s a reminder to us that we’re responsible for making sure that the salmon that come up from the ocean have good, clean water to lay their eggs.”

The ONA expects around 270,000 sockeye to pass Bonneville dam this summer as they migrate into the Okanagan river system.

Unfortunately, in the face of low snowpacks, drought, extreme environmental conditions and a high recreational harvest in the US, there may be even less salmon returning to the Okanagan basin in the future.