Central Valley chinook salmon are in deep distress.

Their rapidly disappearing numbers during their fall run upstream are alarming evidence of the misuse and declining health of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta's.

The collapse also reflects oceanic changes and the continuing clash of humanity and wildlife.

The number of chinook - or king - salmon returning from the Pacific Ocean to spawn in the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers and their tributaries dropped by 88 percent in 2007.

This disturbing decline is the latest in a series of ecological setbacks for the troubled estuary:

» Delta smelt could be nearing extinction.

» The number of striped bass sank to the third-lowest level ever in 2007.

» Two species of shad are in unprecedented danger.

The salmon disaster, which threatens commercial fishing operations on the California, Oregon and Washington coastlines, will cause negative economic impacts.

Pacific Fishery Management Council members will meet in March in Sacramento to discuss options.

One possibility would be shutting down completely the salmon fishing season, which is scheduled to begin in May.

That would damage the fishing industry and cause consumer prices to escalate rapidly.

Beyond that, the salmon crisis is certain to be the focal point of an ongoing debate regarding state water policy. All aspects of the situation must be thoroughly and fairly examined.

Too many people with special interests - sport fishing groups, environmentalists, agricultural and urban water managers - focus too narrowly on their perceived solutions to a very complex problem.

The San Joaquin River's restricted flow is critical. Court-ordered increases in releases from Friant Dam can't start soon enough.

Pumping stations near Tracy have so threatened fish species that a judge shut down diversions to Southern California for 10 days in June.

The fear of that happening again prompted Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to establish the Delta Vision Task Force.

So far, that group's best recommendation has been to increase storage capacity for water runoff during wet years. Its worst idea has been to build a better north-south "linkage," a euphemism for a peripheral canal.

Neither option addresses sustainable changes that would benefit aquatic life over the long term.

There are larger, harder-to-address global issues. Marine biologists theorize the salmon crisis can be attributed to ocean conditions - linked to global warming - that disrupt marine life cycles.

While wild salmon populations in Oregon and Washington also are shrinking, the Central Valley chinook's distress is causing the greatest concern.

A comprehensive review of every factor is necessary. A mechanism that establishes overall decision-making authority must be developed and fully empowered.

The Delta is declining dangerously because it's being redirected, stressed, misused and neglected. There is no common agreement on how to fix it.

The declining fish populations, especially among chinook salmon, are very disturbing signs.

How many more negative indicators are needed?

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