British Columbia's near record salmon run is being closed to commercial fisherman too early, one Conservative MP says.

"This was their time to make a few bucks," John Cummins said. "It's a windfall and they should be given every opportunity to fish."

Refusing to keep the fishery open longer could threaten future Salmon runs, he said, and "wastes a valuable resource."

The MP for Delta-Richmond East also said he has been receiving phone calls from commercial fisherman who are upset that they can't be out on the water this weekend, while First Nations fisherman are permitted to continue fishing.

"The aboriginals who fish this weekend are getting an unfair advantage," Cummins said.

Commercial fisherman will be allowed back in the water on Monday, before the fishery is closed for the season.

Ernie Crey of the Sto:lo First Nation defended the laws governing sockeye salmon fishing in the Fraser River, saying the law is the law.

"The policies that the department of fisheries is pursuing, where our fishery is concerned, have been upheld by the highest court of the land," Crey said. "It's difficult to accept and difficult to adjust to, for some people, but nevertheless that's the state of the law.

About 9.6 million sockeye salmon have been pulled from the Fraser River so far this year.

The Pacific Salmon Commission said in late August that it expects more than 30 million sockeye to run British Columbia's Fraser River this year.

In response, the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans increased the total allowable catch for commercial fishermen by more than 60 per cent to 10.2 million sockeye, from 6.2 million.

But the bounty worries some who fear more fish will be caught than processors can handle, or consumers want to buy.

With a report from CTV British Columbia's Norma Reid