Hard to have sightings when no one walks the streams to count them any more, how convenient
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/sfu-salmon-study-1.4256265
There is a little hyperbole in your comment. While I don't necessarily disagree with the author's findings (other than highlight the uncertainty that surrounds models that predict how reduced fishing would impact CU status) if you had read the paper you would have noticed that the results of the study were based on data from the North and Central coasts - not province wide. Unfortunately when this story came out, fish farm critics jumped at the talking points from the more vocal activists. The media was partially responsible. Again, context is important and so are facts.
It's not true that nobody walks the streams anymore. What I will say is that some species of Pacific salmon in BC are assessed much better than others and some watersheds are assessed much better than others. Doesn't mean there is no problems or challenges in these other areas, but there are crews (DFO and First Nations) on the ground walking streams, conducting live counts, dead pitching carcasses and doing biological sampling. Yes, budget cuts from the past federal government certainly didn't help and have hampered our ability to fully implement the Wild Salmon Policy, but I get annoyed when I keep reading on social media that nobody walks streams anymore. These crews do a great job and encounter many salmon carcasses and would be diligent enough to recognize anything out of the ordinary including sightings of Atlantic Salmon.