Scott Doggett’s ‘House on Fire’ [July 24] article fixing Alaska king salmon trollers with blame for declines in Southern Resident Orcas is too simple and is based upon inflammatory inaccuracies. Yes, the kings he describes are born in southern rivers (from B.C. to Oregon), but they spend their entire lives fattening up in the “icy, nutrient rich water” of Alaska before making their way south to spawn.

Yet Doggett characterizes Alaska trollers as “ambushing” them. He accuses these outlaw fishermen with being “fitted” with “miles of gillnets.” Really, does he not know the difference between a hook-and-line fisherman, that cleanest and most discriminatory fishing technique, and a high seas, foreign gillnetter? Or is he perhaps confusing “troller” with “trawler,” another dead giveaway for someone who does not know what he’s talking about?

As for these Alaska trollers hauling in “fortunes of fish” that “fetch $90 per pound” in a “royal scam,” try on a fisherman’s price more like $6 a pound. These guys work 18 hours a day to make ends meet. A walk along a dock of aging Alaska trolling boats might disabuse one from thinking their owners were getting rich from ambushing fish.I confess to loving orcas. A single encounter with these magnificent animals leaves an indelible impression. The decline in Southern Residents is very concerning, but it has many causes, including dams, more frequent flooding of southern spawning grounds, global warming and increased interference from boat traffic in southern waters. This may be the reason why the Southern Resident orca population has declined while the Northern Residents have steadily increased.The declining size of king salmon every

where has similar multiple causes. Ironically, one cause is the orcas themselves. They have a strong preference for the largest, most fat-rich kings, and are far more size selective than is any hook and line.

Jim Brennan

Port Townsend