On the Columbia River it’s a real problem at Bonneville Dam. The dam is over a hundred miles from the coast and sea lion numbers have increased at the dam every year for 10 or more years and they have a feast.
Some of the sea lions have even learned to get in the fish ladders in wait for the salmon.
Oh I don’t doubt that. Sea lions are smart. They make it sound like sea lions are not the problem dams are. Those same sea lions are going to eat whether the dams are there or not. If you travel up and down the coast they exhibit the same behavior usually at the mouth of every river and stream.