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 220-52-05100V; and amending WAC 220-52-051.
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: The 2009 state/tribal shrimp harvest management plans for Puget Sound require adoption of harvest seasons contained in this emergency rule. This emergency rule closes the pot fishery season in Catch Area 25A because the spot shrimp quota there has been harvested. In addition, the weekly spot shrimp limits have been lowered in several catch areas to reduce catch rates and help prevent overharvest of the quotas. 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Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted at Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's Own Initiative: New 1, Amended 0, Repealed 1.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted Using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Pilot Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.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: August 18, 2009.
Lori Preuss
for Philip Anderson
Director
(1) Shrimp pot gear:
(a) All waters of Shrimp Management Areas 1A, 1B, 1C, 2E, 2W, 3 and 6 are open to the harvest of all shrimp species, effective immediately until further notice, except as provided for in this section:
(i) All waters of Catch Areas 23A-E, 23A-C, 23A-W and the Discovery Bay Shrimp District are closed.
(ii) Effective immediately, until further notice, all waters of Shrimp Management Areas 1B, 1C, 2E, 2W, and Catch Areas 23B and 26D, are closed to the harvest of spot shrimp.
(iii) Effective 11:59 p.m. August 23, 2009, until further notice, all waters of Catch Area 25A are closed to the harvest of spot shrimp.
(iv) Effective immediately, until further notice, all waters of Shrimp Management Area 1A are closed to the harvest of all shrimp species, except that those waters of Shrimp Management Area 1A south of line projected at 48°.31.5' N latitude are open to the harvest of all species except spot shrimp.
(b) The shrimp accounting week is Monday through Sunday.
(c) Effective immediately, until 11:59 p.m. August 23, 2009, it is unlawful for the total harvest of spot shrimp by a fisher and/or the fisher's alternate operator to exceed 200 pounds per week in Catch Area 25A.
(d) Effective until 11:59 p.m. August 23, 2009, until further notice, it is unlawful for the total harvest of spot shrimp by a fisher and/or the fisher's alternate operator to exceed 350 pounds per week in Catch Areas 23A-S/23D, or to exceed 250 lbs per week in Catch Area 23C.
(e) Effective immediately until further notice, it is unlawful for the combined total harvest of spot shrimp by a fisher and/or the fisher's alternate operator to exceed 600 pounds per week. It is unlawful to fish for any shrimp while in possession, on board the fishing vessel, of any spot shrimp from any previous accounting week.
(f) It is unlawful to pull shellfish pots for commercial purposes in more than one Marine Fish-Shellfish Management and Catch Reporting Area per day. Fishers may move all of their shellfish pot gear from one Marine Fish-Shellfish Management and Catch Reporting Area to another Marine Fish-Shellfish Management and Catch Reporting Area if a harvest report is made before the shellfish pot gear is moved. The harvest activity report must be made consistent with the provisions of WAC 220-52-075 and must also include the following additional information:
(i) The number of pots being moved to a new area; and
(ii) The Marine Fish-Shellfish Management and Catch Reporting Area that the pots are being moved to.
(g) It is unlawful to set or pull shellfish pots in one Marine Fish-Shellfish Management and Catch Reporting Area while in possession of shrimp harvested from another Marine Fish-Shellfish Management and Catch Reporting Area, except shellfish pots may be set in a new fishing area subsequent to making a report as indicated in Section 1(f) above.
(2) Shrimp beam trawl gear:
(a) Shrimp Management Area (SMA) 3 (outside of the Discovery Bay Shrimp District, Sequim Bay and Catch Area 23D) is open immediately until further notice. Sequim Bay includes those waters of Catch Area 25A south of a line projected west from Travis Spit on the Miller Peninsula.
(b) That portion of Catch Area 22A within SMA 1B is open immediately until further notice.
(c) That portion of Catch Area 21A within Shrimp Management Area 1B is open immediately until further notice.
(d) All waters of Catch Area 20A are open immediately until further notice.
(3) All shrimp taken under this section must be sold to licensed Washington wholesale fish dealers.
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The following section of the Washington Administrative Code is repealed:
| WAC 220-52-05100V | Puget Sound shrimp pot and beam trawl fishery -- Season. (09-168) |