WSR 24-09-032
EMERGENCY RULES
DEPARTMENT OF
FISH AND WILDLIFE
[Order 24-55—Filed April 10, 2024, 5:03 p.m., effective April 15, 2024, 8:00 a.m.]
Effective Date of Rule: April 15, 2024, 8:00 a.m.
Purpose: This emergency rule is necessary to adjust the Quinault secondary special management area boundary and set the season opening for the Quileute special management area with a pot limit.
Citation of Rules Affected by this Order: Repealing WAC 220-340-42000W and 220-340-45000Q; and amending WAC 220-340-420 and 220-340-450.
Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW 77.04.012, 77.04.020, 77.12.045, and 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: Tribal special management area descriptions conform with state/tribal agreements and state/tribal discussions regarding in-season modifications. 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Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted at the Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's own Initiative: New 2, Amended 0, Repealed 2.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Pilot Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.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: April 10, 2024.
Amy H. Windrope
for Kelly Susewind
Director
NEW SECTION
WAC 220-340-42000XCommercial crab fishery—Unlawful acts.
Notwithstanding the provisions of WAC 220-340-420 and WAC 220-340-480, effective 8:00 a.m. April 15, 2024, until further notice:
(1) Effective immediately, through 7:59 a.m. April 24, 2024, it is unlawful for a vessel to use more than 200 pots in the area between Split Rock (47°24.50) and Raft River (47°28.00) shoreward of a line approximating the 27-fathom depth curve. Fishers must pre-register with the Department of Fish and Wildlife 24 hours prior to deploying gear in this area by one of the following methods:
(a) E-mail to Jamie Fuller at Jamie.Fuller@dfw.wa.gov; or
(b) Telephone call to Jamie Fuller at 360-580-0875.
(2) It is unlawful for a vessel to use more than 100 pots in the area between the Copalis River (47°08.00) and Joe Creek (47°12.25) shoreward of a line approximating the 27-fathom depth curve, until further notice. Fishers must pre-register with the Department of Fish and Wildlife 24 hours prior to deploying gear in this area by one of the following methods:
(a) E-mail to Jamie Fuller at Jamie.Fuller@dfw.wa.gov; or
(b) Telephone call to Jamie Fuller at 360-580-0875.
(3) Effective 8:00 a.m. May 1 through 7:59 a.m. June 1, 2024, it unlawful for a vessel to use more than 100 pots in the Quileute SMA area between Cape Johnson (47°58.00) and Destruction Island (47°40.50) shoreward of a line approximating the 30-fathom depth curve. Fishers must pre-register with the Department of Fish and Wildlife 24 hours prior to deploying gear in this area by one of the following methods:
(a) E-mail to Jamie Fuller at Jamie.Fuller@dfw.wa.gov; or
(b) Telephone call to Jamie Fuller at 360-580-0875.
(4) All other provisions of the permanent rule remain in effect.
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 unnecessary underscoring 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.
NEW SECTION
WAC 220-340-45000RCommercial crab fishery—Seasons and areas—Coastal.
Notwithstanding the provisions of WAC 220-340-450, effective 8:00 a.m. April 15, 2024, until further notice: it is unlawful to fish for Dungeness crab in Washington coastal waters, the Pacific Ocean, Grays Harbor, Willapa Bay, or the Columbia River, except as provided in this section:
(1) Open area (except for areas and times listed in sections (2), (3), and (4) below): The area from the WA/OR border (46°15.00) to the U.S./Canada border, including Willapa Bay and Grays Harbor.
For the purposes of this section, the waters of Willapa Bay include the marine waters east of a line connecting 46°44.76 N, 124°05.76 W and 46°38.93 N, 124°04.33 W.
(2) The Quinault secondary special management area (SSMA) is closed to fishing for Dungeness crab. The SSMA includes the area shoreward of a line approximating the 27-fathom depth curve between Split Rock (47º24.50) and Joe Creek (47°12.25) according to the following coordinates:
(a) Northeast Corner (Split Rock): 47°24.50 N. Lat. 124°20.00 W. Lon.
(b) Northwest Corner: 47°24.50 N. Lat. 124°32.40 W. Lon.
(c) Southwest Corner: 47°12.25 N. Lat. 124°27.50 W. Lon.
(d) Southeast Corner (Joe Creek): 47°12.25 N. Lat. 124°12.28 W. Lon.
(3) Effective immediately, through 7:59 a.m. May 1, 2024, the Quileute special management area (SMA) is closed to fishing for Dungeness crab. The SMA includes the area shoreward of a line approximating the 30-fathom depth curve between Destruction Island and Cape Johnson according to the following points:
(a) Northeast Corner (Cape Johnson): 47°58.00' N. Lat. 124°40.40' W. Lon.
(b) Northwest Corner: 47°58.00' N. Lat. 124°49.00' W. Lon.
(c) Southwest Corner: 47°40.50' N. Lat. 124°40.00' W. Lon.
(d) Southeast Corner (Destruction Island): 47°40.50' N. Lat. 124°24.43' W. Lon.
(4) All other provisions of the permanent rule remain in effect.
REPEALER
The following sections of the Washington Administrative Code are repealed, effective 8:00 a.m. April 15, 2024:
WAC 220-340-42000W
Commercial crab fishery—Unlawful acts—Coastal. (24-44)
WAC 220-340-45000Q
Commercial crab fishery—Season and areas—Coastal. (24-44)