EMERGENCY RULES
FISH AND WILDLIFE
Date of Adoption: March 23, 2004.
Purpose: Amend commercial fishing rules.
Citation of Existing Rules Affected by this Order: Repealing WAC 220-33-01000Y; and amending WAC 220-33-010.
Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW 77.12.047.
Under RCW 34.05.350 the agency for good cause finds that immediate adoption, amendment, or repeal of a rule is necessary for the preservation of the public health, safety, or general welfare, and that observing the time requirements of notice and opportunity to comment upon adoption of a permanent rule would be contrary to the public interest.
Reasons for this Finding: Harvestable numbers of hatchery salmon are available and impacts to ESA listed fish are expected to be within the guidelines that have been established. The use of short soak times, and recovery boxes will aid in the survival of spring chinook and steelhead that are released. An interim management agreement signed in 2001 provides allocation of ESA impacts to upriver spring chinook to non-Indian fisheries, and Washington and Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commissions have provided guidance on sharing of impacts between commercial and recreational fishers. Impacts in this fishery are consistent with the management agreement and the biological opinion provided by the National Marine Fisheries Service. This rule is consistent with actions of the Columbia River compact of March 22, 2004, and conforms Washington and Oregon state rules. There is insufficient time to promulgate permanent rules.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted at Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's Own Initiative: New 1, Amended 0, Repealed 1.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted Using Negotiated Rule Making:
New 0,
Amended 0,
Repealed 0;
Pilot Rule Making:
New 0,
Amended 0,
Repealed 0;
or Other Alternative Rule Making:
New 0,
Amended 0,
Repealed 0.
Effective Date of Rule:
Immediately.
March 23, 2004
J. P. Koenings
Director
by Larry Peck
1) Blind Slough/Knappa Slough Select Area
Area: Open waters of Blind Slough extend from markers at the mouth of Gnat Creek located approximately 1/2 mile upstream of the county road bridge, downstream to markers at the mouth of Blind Slough. Concurrent Washington/Oregon waters extend downstream of the railroad bridge.
Knappa Slough is open to fishing in all waters bounded by a line from the northerly most marker at the mouth of Blind Slough westerly to a marker on Karlson Island downstream to a north-south line defined by a marker on the eastern end of Minaker Island to markers on Karlson Island and the Oregon shore.
a) Gear: 7 1/4 inch minimum mesh through March 31, 2004 and 8-inch maximum mesh thereafter. Mono-filament gill nets are allowed. Nets restricted to 100 fathoms in length with no weight restriction on leadline.
b) Dates:
7:00 p.m. Thursdays to 7:00 a.m. Fridays April 22 through April 30, 2004
7:00 p.m. Mondays to 7:00 a.m. Tuesdays May 3 until further notice
7:00 p.m. Thursdays to 7:00 a.m. Fridays May 3 until further notice
Both Blind Slough and Knappa Slough are open.
c) Allowable Sale: Salmon, sturgeon, and shad. A maximum of three white sturgeon may be possessed or sold by each participating vessel.
d) Other: Quick reporting required for Washington wholesale dealers, WAC 220-69-240.
2) Deep River Select Area
a) Area: Deep River boat launch upstream to the Highway 4 Bridge.
b) Dates:
7:00 p.m. Thursdays to 7:00 a.m. Fridays April 22 through April 30, 2004
7:00 p.m. Mondays to 7:00 a.m. Tuesdays May 3 until further notice
7:00 p.m. Thursdays to 7:00 a.m. Fridays May 3 until further notice
c) Gear: 8-inch maximum mesh size.
d) Allowable sale: salmon, sturgeon, shad.
e) Miscellaneous: Transportation or possession of fish outside the fishing area is unlawful unless by licensed buyer. An exception to the rule would allow fishers to transport their catch out of the fishing are with a permit issued by an authorized agency employee after examining the catch.
f) Other: Quick reporting required for Washington wholesale dealers, WAC 220-69-240.
3) Area: SMCRA 1A, 1B, 1C, and 1D upstream to Kelley Point.
a) Season: 9:00 p.m. Tuesday March 23 through 5:00 a.m. Wednesday March 24, 2004.
b) Gear: 4 1/4 inch maximum mesh. Mesh size is determined by placing three consecutive meshes under hand tension and the measurement is taken from the inside of one vertical knot to the outside of the opposite vertical knot of the center mesh. Hand tension means sufficient linear tension to draw opposing knots of meshes into contact. Monofilament gill nets are not allowed for the 4 1/4 inch mesh. Gill nets that are fished at any time between official sunset and official sunrise must have lighted buoys on both ends of the net unless the net is attached to the boat then one lighted buoy on the opposite end of the net from the boat is required. There are no restrictions on the use of slackers or stringers to slacken the net vertically. There are no restrictions on the hang ratio. The hang ratio is used to horizontally add slack to the net. The hang ratio is determined by the length of the web per length of the corkline. Net length not to exceed 150 fathoms, except under the following exceptions: An optional use of a steelhead excluder panel of mesh may be hung between the corkline and the 4 1/4 inch maximum mesh size tangle net. The excluder panel web must be a minimum mesh size of 12 inches when stretched taut under hand tension. Monofilament mesh is allowed for the excluder panel. The excluder panel must be a minimum of 5 feet in depth and not exceed 10 feet in depth as measured from the corkline to the upper margin of the tangle net mesh as the net hangs naturally from a taut corkline. Weedlines or droppers (bobber type) may be used in place of the steelhead excluder panel. A weedline-type excluder means the net is suspended below the corkline by lines of no less than five feet in length between the corkline and the upper margin of the tangle net. A dropper-type excluder means the entire net is suspended below the surface of the water by lines of no less than five feet in length extending from individual surface floats to a submersed corkline. The corkline cannot be capable of floating the net in its entirety (including the leadline) independent of the attached floats. Weedlines or droppers must extend a minimum of 5 feet above the 4 1/4 inch maximum mesh size tangle net. Tangle nets constructed with a steelhead excluder panel, weedlines, or droppers, may extend to a maximum length of 175 fathoms. Tangle nets constructed with a steelhead excluder panel, weedlines, or droppers, must have two red corks at each end of the net, as well as the red corks under miscellaneous regulations.
c) Allowable Sale: Adipose fin-clipped salmon, and sturgeon. An adipose fin-clipped salmon is defined as a hatchery salmon with a clipped adipose fin and having a healed scar at the location of the fin. A maximum of three white sturgeon may be possessed or sold by each participating vessel.
d) Sanctuaries: Grays River, Gnat Creek, Elokomin-B, Abernathy Creek, Cowlitz River, Kalama-B, Lewis-B.
4) Miscellaneous Regulations:
a) At least one fisher on each boat must possess a tangle net certificate issued by either WDFW or ODFW. The certificate must be displayed to WDFW or ODFW employees, fish and wildlife enforcement officers, or other peace officers upon request.
b) Soak times, defined as the time elapsed from when the first of the gill net web is deployed into the water until the gill net web is fully retrieved from the water, must not exceed 45 minutes.
c) Red corks are required at 25 fathom intervals and red corks must be in contrast to the corks used in the remainder of the net.
d) Each boat will be required to have two operable recovery boxes or one box with two chambers, on board. Each box and chamber shall be operating during any time that the net is being retrieved or picked. The flow in the recovery box will be a minimum of 16 gallons per minute in each chamber of the box, not to exceed 20 gallons per minute. Each chamber of the recovery box must meet the following dimensions as measured from within the box; the inside length measurement must be at or within 39 1/2 inches to 48 inches, the inside width measurements must be at or within 8 to 10 inches, and the inside height measurement must be at or within 14 to 16 inches. Each chamber of the recovery box must include a water inlet hole between 3/4 inch and 1 inch in diameter, centered horizontally across the door or wall of chamber and 1 3/4 inches from the floor of the chamber. Each chamber of the recovery box must include a water outlet hole opposite the inflow that is a least 1 1/2 inches in diameter. The center of the outlet hole must be located a minimum of 12 inches above the floor of the box or chamber. The fisher must demonstrate to WDFW and ODFW employees, fish and wildlife enforcement officers, or other peace officers, upon request, that the pumping system is delivering the proper volume of fresh river water into each chamber.
e) All non-legal sturgeon, non-adipose fin-clipped salmon, and steelhead must be released immediately to the river with care and the least possible injury to the fish or placed into an operating recovery box.
f) Any fish that is bleeding or lethargic must be placed in the recovery box prior to being released.
g) All fish placed in recovery boxes must be released to the river prior to landing or docking.
h) Quick reporting required for Washington wholesale dealers, WAC 220-69-240.
5) Tangle net permit. Any individual meeting the qualifications of RCW 77.65.040(2) may obtain a tangle net certificate by attending and completing a WDFW- or ODFW sponsored workshop concerning live captive commercial fishing techniques. A tangle net certificate shall expire on December 31, 2004. No individual may obtain more than one tangle net certificate between January 1 and December 31, 2004.
6) Nothing in this section sets any precedent for any fishery after the 2004 spring chinook fishery. The fact that an individual may hold a tangle net certificate in spring 2004 does not entitle the certificate holder to participate in any other fishery. If WDFW authorizes a tangle net fishery in spring 2005 or at any other time, WDFW may establish qualifications and requirements that are different from those established for 2004. In particular, WDFW may consider an individual's compliance with these rules in determining that individual's eligibility to participate in any future tangle net fisheries.
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Reviser's note: The typographical errors in the above section occurred in the copy filed by the agency and appear in the Register pursuant to the requirements of RCW 34.08.040.
REPEALER
The following section of the Washington Administrative Code is repealed:
| WAC 220-33-01000Y | Columbia River gillnet seasons below Bonneville. (04-55) |