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The original recovery assessment was produced in a rare collaboration by provincial and federal scientists and outside contractors, vetted by 42 experts from government, academia, First Nations and conservation groups, but not publicly released.

The DFO advisory was also intended to inform Ottawa’s consideration of an emergency listing of the steelhead stock under the Species at Risk Act.

Wilkinson spoke with provincial Agriculture Minister Lana Popham, Forests Minister Doug Donaldson and Environment Minister George Heyman about the need for better collaboration.

“The letter was part of a conversation between the province and the federal government that we need to get on the same page, but ultimately it was about a document that was not yet finalized,” he said.

B.C. is looking for much stronger protections for troubled steelhead runs than DFO is proposing.

Reducing federally managed fisheries is the only area in which immediate action can be taken to slow and reverse the decline of a steelhead run “at imminent risk of extinction,” wrote Zacharias in the letter sent last month.

DFO changed the conclusions of the report to support “status-quo salmon harvesting,” he wrote.

“We are going to work on this in the spirit of partnership and there will be opportunities for British Columbia’s views to be reflected in the discussion on fisheries management issues,” said Wilkinson.

He vowed to take a “strong hand” in informing conversations the Environment Minister Catherine McKenna has about whether the Interior Fraser Steelhead warrant an emergency listing under the Species at Risk Act.