BILL REQ. #:  H-3286.2 

Prefiled 1/8/2004. Read first time 01/12/2004.   Referred to Committee on Fisheries, Ecology & Parks.

     AN ACT Relating to geoduck harvest in Hood Canal; and adding a new section to chapter 77.65 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   A new section is added to chapter 77.65 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) The department is prohibited from entering or reentering into any management plan with either a state or nonstate entity that would allow for the harvest of naturally occurring geoduck in Hood Canal below the mean low tide line until the commission adopts an administrative rule canceling or modifying the restriction. For the purposes of this section only, Hood Canal means the area bounded by a line projected from Tala Point in Jefferson county to Foulweather Bluff in Kitsap county, and includes all marine waters south of this line and the associated aquatic lands.
     (2) The commission may adopt a rule allowing the department to enter into management agreements with state or nonstate entities that allow for the harvest of naturally occurring geoduck in Hood Canal below the mean low tide line only if a majority of the members of the commission vote to affirm that substantial, peer-reviewed research strongly indicates that the commercial harvest of geoduck in Hood Canal does not have either a significant short-term adverse effect or significant long-term adverse effect on the environmental health of Hood Canal, including water quality and dissolved oxygen levels. Any research considered must be specifically tailored to the unique conditions of Hood Canal and must address the effect of removing a large quantity of geoducks from Hood Canal.
     (3) If a majority of the members of the commission vote affirmatively on a rule under subsection (2) of this section, a summary of the research considered must be presented to the appropriate standing committees of both the house of representatives and the senate. No rule may take effect until thirty days after the adjournment of the session during which the research is presented.
     (4) The department of natural resources is prohibited from entering or reentering into a management plan with either a state or nonstate entity that allows for the harvest of naturally occurring geoduck in Hood Canal below the mean low tide line unless the department of fish and wildlife is authorized by the commission to enter into such a management plan.