EMERGENCY RULES
FISH AND WILDLIFE
Effective Date of Rule: Immediately.
Purpose: Amend commercial fishing rules.
Citation of Existing Rules Affected by this Order: Repealing WAC 220-24-04000Q and 232-28-61900R; and amending WAC 220-24-040.
Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW 77.12.047 and 77.04.020.
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: Federal groundfish and salmon regulations allow trollers incidental allowances of Pacific halibut and lingcod that are expressed as a ratio of individual lingcod or halibut possessed or landed to the number of chinook retained. To enforce this incidental allowance, the department must therefore require that Pacific halibut and lingcod be reported in individual numbers on the troll fish receiving ticket. Current regulations only require halibut and lingcod to be reported in original total or original dressed weight. Harvestable numbers of salmon remain on the quota for the troll fleet. There is insufficient time to adopt 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Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted at Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's Own Initiative: New 1, Amended 0, Repealed 2.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted Using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Pilot Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.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: July 17, 2009.
Lori Preuss
for Philip Anderson
Director
(1) Salmon Management and Catch Reporting Areas 1, 2, 3, and that portion of Area 4 west of 125°05'00" W longitude and south of 48°23'00" N latitude, open:
July 18 through July 21, 2009;
July 25 through July 28, 2009;
August 1 through August 4, 2009;
August 8 through August 11, 2009;
August 15 through August 18, 2009;
August 22 through August 25, 2009;
August 29 through September 1, 2009;
September 5 through September 8, 2009;
September 12 through September 15, 2009;
(2) The Cape Flattery and Columbia River Control Zones are closed. Mandatory Yelloweye Rockfish Conservation Area is closed.
(3) Landing and possession limit of 75 Chinook and 200 Coho per boat per each entire open period for the entire catch areas 1, 2, 3 and 4 through September 15.
(4) Minimum size for Chinook salmon is 28 inches in length. Minimum size for Coho salmon is 16 inches in length. No minimum size for pink, sockeye or chum salmon. All retained coho must have a healed adipose fin clip. It is unlawful to retain chum salmon north of Cape Alava during August and September.
(5) Lawful troll gear is restricted to all legal troll gear with single point, single shank barbless hooks.
(6) Fishers must land and deliver their catch within 24 hours of any closure of a fishery provided for in this section, and vessels fishing or in possession of salmon while fishing north of Leadbetter Point must land and deliver their fish within the area and North of Leadbetter point. Vessels fishing or in possession of salmon while fishing south of Leadbetter Point must land and deliver their fish within the area and south of Leadbetter Point.
(7) The Cape Flattery Control Zone is defined as the area from Cape Flattery (48°23'00" N latitude) to the northern boundary of the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone, and the area from Cape Flattery south to Cape Alava, 48°10'00" N latitude, and east of 125°05'00" W longitude.
(8) Columbia Control Zone - An area at the Columbia River mouth, bounded on the west by a line running northeast/southwest between the red lighted Buoy #4 (46°13'35" N. Lat., 124°06'50" W. long.) and the green lighted Buoy #7 (46°15'09' N. lat., 124°06'16" W. long.); on the east, by the Buoy #10 line which bears north/south at 357° true from the south jetty at 46°14'00" N. lat., 124°03'07" W. long, to its intersection with the north jetty; on the north, by a line running northeast/southwest between the green lighted Buoy #7 to the tip of the north jetty (46°14'48" N. lat., 124°05'20" W. long.), and then along the north jetty to the point of intersection with the Buoy #10 line; and, on the south, by a line running northeast/southwest between the red lighted Buoy #4 and tip of the south jetty (46°14'03" N. lat., 124°04'05" W. long.), and then along the south jetty to the point of intersection with the Buoy #10 line.
(9) Mandatory Yelloweye Rockfish Conservation Area - The area in Washington Marine Catch Area 3 from 48°00.00' N latitude; 125°14.00' W longitude to 48°02.00' N latitude; 125°14.00' W longitude to 48°02.00' N latitude; 125°16.50' W longitude to 48°00.00' N latitude; 125°16.50' W longitude and connecting back to 48°00.00' N latitude; 125°14.00' W longitude.
(10) It is unlawful to fish in Salmon Management and Catch Reporting Areas 1, 2, 3 or 4 with fish on board taken south of Cape Falcon, Oregon; and all fish taken from Salmon Management and Catch Reporting Areas 1, 2, 3, and 4 must be landed before fishing south of Cape Falcon, Oregon.
(11) All lingcod and Pacific halibut taken incidental to Chinook must be reported on the troll fish receiving ticket in individual numbers of fish. This additional requirement is not intended to replace or otherwise affect the requirement of WAC 220-69-230 and WAC 220-69-250 to also report landings of lingcod or halibut on the receiving ticket in total original or legally dressed weight.
(12) This commercial troll fishery is designated as a "quick reporting required" fishery, and commercial purchasers and receivers must comply with the provisions of WAC 220-69-240(12).
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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 220-24-04000Q | All-citizen commercial salmon troll. (09-123) |
The following section of the Washington Administrative Code is repealed effective September 17, 2009:
| WAC 220-24-04000R | All-citizen commercial salmon troll. |