WSR 21-15-051
EMERGENCY RULES
DEPARTMENT OF
FISH AND WILDLIFE
[Order 21-117—Filed July 14, 2021, 5:05 p.m., effective July 19, 2021]
Effective Date of Rule: July 19, 2021.
Purpose: The purpose of this emergency rule is to close sockeye retention in the Columbia River from the I-182 Bridge at Pasco/Richland to Chief Joseph Dam.
Citation of Rules Affected by this Order: Amending WAC 220-312-060.
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 emergency rule is necessary because recreational anglers are expected to harvest the in-season sockeye salmon catch quota by the end of Sunday, July 18, 2021. The sockeye catch quota was originally ten thousand nine hundred fish based on a preseason run size estimate of 155,600. In early July, the U.S. v. Oregon technical advisory committee downgraded the run size to 149,600 decreasing the allowable catch quota to approximately seven thousand five hundred fish. 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Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted at the Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's own Initiative: New 1, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Pilot Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.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 14, 2021.
Kelly Susewind
Director
NEW SECTION
WAC 220-312-06000TFreshwater exceptions to statewide rules—Columbia River.
Effective July 19, 2021, until further notice, the provisions of WAC 220-312-060 regarding recreational salmon seasons from the I-182 Bridge at Pasco/Richland upstream to Chief Joseph Dam, shall be modified as described below. All other provisions of WAC 220-312-060 not addressed herein remain in effect unless otherwise amended by emergency rule:
From the I-182 Bridge at Pasco/Richland to Chief Joseph Dam: Salmon: It is unlawful to retain sockeye salmon.