EMERGENCY RULES
FISH AND WILDLIFE
Purpose: Amend commercial fishing rules.
Citation of Existing Rules Affected by this Order: Repealing WAC 220-47-607.
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: This regulation implements the limited participation purse seine coho fishery in Area 8A negotiated during the North of Falcon fishery planning meetings. The names of the participating vessels was determined by lottery and was not confirmed in time to make this a part of the permanent rule process. This fishery is not expected to exceed chinook or summer chum by-catch levels modeled during the preseason process. 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Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted at Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's Own Initiative: New 1, Amended 0, Repealed 1.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted Using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Pilot Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Date Adopted: September 24, 2004.
Evan Jacoby
for Jeff Koenings
Director
Lawful gill net gear:
Lawful gill net gear in Puget Sound Areas 7, and 7A, shall not contain meshes of a size less than 5 inches nor greater than 5 1/2 inches. It is unlawful to fish for salmon with gill net gear in Areas 7 and 7A unless the vessel operator has attended a "Fish Friendly" best fishing practices workshop and is in possession of a department-issued certification card.
Lawful purse seine gear:
1) It is unlawful to fish for salmon with purse seine gear in Areas 7 and 7A unless the vessel operator has attended a "Fish Friendly" best fishing practices workshop and is in possession of a department-issued certification card.
2) If fishers are enrolled in the "Rolling Wedge" evaluation program they may use the rolling wedge in lieu of brailing provided they comply with the following conditions:
(a) Have enrolled by contacting the Department at 902-2717 prior to June 1, 2004
(b) Pay the funding fee of $100 per day of the opening
(c) Allow WDFW observer on board for all fishing activities
(d) No more than 125 fish may be on deck at any one time.
(e) Place all lethargic or injured fish in the operating recovery box until they appear recovered or they are dead
Dimensions and capacities of required recovery boxes:
(i) Recovery boxes must have two chambers, if one box, or it may be two boxes with one chamber in each box.
(ii) Each recovery box chamber must have an inside length measurement of 48 inches, an inside width measurement of 10 inches, and an inside height measurement of 16 inches.
(iii) Each chamber of the recovery box must have an inlet hole measuring between 3/4 inch and 1 inch in diameter, and the inlet hole must be centered horizontally across the door or wall of the chamber and the bottom of the hole must be located 1 3/4 inches above the floor of the chamber.
(iv) Each chamber of the recovery box must include a water outlet hole on the opposite wall from the inlet hole, and the outlet hole must be at least 1 1/2 inches in diameter with the bottom of the outlet hole located 12 inches above the floor of the chamber.
(v) Flow of water through each chamber of the recovery boxes must be not less than 16 gallons per minute nor more than 20 gallons per minute.
(f) Each box and chamber must be operating during any time that the net is being retrieved or picked.
(g) The vessel operator must demonstrate to department employees, upon request, that the pumping system is delivering the proper volume of fresh seawater into each chamber.
All salmon not to be retained must be released immediately with care and the least possible injury to the fish, or placed into the operating recovery box.
Area 6D:
Skiff Gill Nets - (a) Open to skiff gill nets using 5-inch minimum and 5 1/2-inch maximum mesh from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on the following dates: 9/27, 9/28, 9/29, 9/30, 10/1, 10/4.
(b) It is unlawful to retain chinook or pink salmon taken in Area 6D at any time, or any chum salmon taken in Area 6D prior to October 4. Any chinook, chum or pink salmon required to be released, must be removed from the net by cutting the meshes ensnaring the fish.
Areas 7 and 7A:
Reef Nets - Open to reef net gear according to the times,
dates, and conditions as prescribed and listed here:
| TIME | DATES |
| 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Daily |
Immediately through October 4 |
Area 7B:
Purse Seines - Open in Area 7B to purse seines using the 5-inch strip during the following hours and dates.
7:00 a.m. Immediately through 12:00 p.m. October 4.
Gill Nets - Open to gill nets as follows:
| Areas | Mesh Size | Hours | Dates |
| 7B | 5" minimum | immediately through 12:00 p.m. | October 4 |
Purse Seine - Waters of Area 8A north of a line from the Mukilteo Ferry Dock to the Clinton Ferry Dock open to purse seines vessels ESPERANZA and NORMAN B. only using the 5-inch strip from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on September 27.
Waters of Area 8A north of a line from from the Mukilteo Ferry Dock to the Clinton Ferry Dock open to purse seines vessels ANNA LOUISE and MOMENTO only using the 5-inch strip from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on October 4.
It is unlawful to retain chinook salmon, and any chinook salmon caught with purse seine gear must be released immediately.
Area 8D
Purse Seine - Open to purse seines using the 5-inch strip as follows:
| Hours | Dates |
| 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. | 10/4 |
Gill Nets - Open to gill nets using 5-inch minimum mesh as follows:
| Hours | Dates |
| 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. | September 26 September 27 |
| 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. | September 28 September 29 |
| 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. | September 30 October 1 |
| 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. | October 3 October 4 |
Gill Nets - Open to gill nets using 5-inch minimum mesh as follows:
| Hours | Dates |
| 6:00 a.m. Immediatly through 12:00 p.m. |
October 4 |
Area 12A:
Beach Seines - (a) Open to holders of beach seine permits from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on the following dates: 9/27, 9/28, 9/29, 9/30, 10/1.
Open in those waters of Area 12A lying northerly of a line extending from Whitney Point to the flashing light off Fishermans Point then to Fishermans Point on the Bolton Peninsula.
All Other Saltwater and Freshwater Areas: Closed.
"Quick Reporting" Fisheries:
All fisheries opened under this section, and any fishery openings under authority of the Fraser Panel for sockeye or pink salmon in Areas 7 and 7A are designated as "Quick Reporting Required" fisheries.
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Reviser's note: The typographical error in the above section occurred in the copy filed by the agency and appears in the Register pursuant to the requirements of RCW 34.08.040.
Reviser's note: The spelling error in the above section occurred in the copy filed by the agency and appears in the Register pursuant to the requirements of RCW 34.08.040.
REPEALER
The following section of the Washington Administrative
Code is repealed effective 8:00 p.m. September 24, 2004:
| WAC 220-47-607 | Puget Sound all-citizen commercial salmon fishery. (04-253) |
The following section of the Washington Administrative Code is repealed effective 11:59 p.m. October 4, 2004:
| WAC 220-47-608 | Puget Sound all-citizen commercial salmon fishery. |