HOUSE BILL REPORT

EHB 1026

BYRepresentatives Spanel, R. King, S. Wilson, Haugen, Nelson, Brekke and K. Wilson; by request of  Department of Fisheries

Regulating sea urchin fishing.

House Committe on Fisheries & Wildlife

Majority Report:  Do pass with amendment.  (11)

      Signed by Representatives R. King, Chair; Morris, Vice Chair; S. Wilson, Ranking Republican Member; Basich, Bowman, Brooks, Cole, Haugen, Smith, Spanel and Vekich.

House Staff:Pamela Madson (786-7310)

Rereferred House Committee on Appropriations

Majority Report:  Do pass with amendment by Committee on Fisheries & Wildlife.  (23)

      Signed by Representatives Locke, Chair; Grant, Vice Chair; H. Sommers, Vice Chair; Silver, Ranking Republican Member; Youngsman, Assistant Ranking Republican Member; Belcher, Bowman, Braddock, Brekke, Bristow, Dorn, Doty, Ebersole, Hine, May, Nealey, Peery, Rust, Sayan, Spanel, Sprenkle, Valle and Wineberry.

House Staff:      Randy Acker (786-7136)

AS PASSED HOUSE MARCH 10, 1989

BACKGROUND:

The State of Washington has had a sea urchin fishery since the early 1970's.  However, the number of vessels involved in the fishery has doubled as of the 1988-89 season (78 vessels in 1987; 203 vessels in 1988).  The landings increased from approximately 400,000 pounds in 1983 to over 8.5 million pounds in 1988.

Three species of sea urchins are identified as harvestable:  reds, greens, and purples.  Reds are the predominantly harvest species and are regulated by size, season restriction (October to March, however, the 1988-89 season has been shortened), and by harvest area (five districts).  Green sea urchins have no restrictions and may be harvested with permission of the director of Fisheries. Purples are not harvested commercially.

This fishery is open to any vessel owner with a shellfish diver's license.  The urchins are harvested by divers who are not required to be licensed.  The department has adopted an emergency rule that limits the number of divers per vessel to two.

SUMMARY:

A limited entry program is established for the Washington sea urchin fishery.  After October 1, 1989, the commercial harvest of sea urchins will require a sea urchin endorsement to the shellfish diver's license.  To qualify for the endorsement, a vessel must have held a shellfish diver's license during the 1988 calendar year and must have landed a minimum of 20,000 pounds of sea urchins during the period of April 1, 1986 through March 31, 1988 which is two fishing seasons.

After the initial qualification, subsequent endorsements will be limited to those vessels that qualified during the previous season and that landed 20,000 pounds of sea urchins during a two-year period ending March 31 of an odd-numbered year.

Licenses that are not reissued due to a revocation or suspension will still be eligible to be licensed for the following season. Further discretion is built into the program by allowing the director to reduce or waive the 20,000 pound landing requirement upon the recommendation of a review board.  Such a recommendation shall be based on "extenuating circumstances" which are defined through the rule-making process.

Sea urchin endorsements are not transferable except on death of the owner or from parent to child.

Once the fishing fleet is reduced to 45 vessels, the director may issue additional endorsements by random selection.  The selection process will be established through the rule-making process upon recommendation of the review board.

Fiscal Note:      Available.

House Committee ‑ Testified For:    (Fisheries and Wildlife)  Judith Freeman, Washington Department of Fisheries; Alex Bradbury, Biologist, Washington Department of Fisheries; John Lambly, George Kushner, and Randy Kraxberger, all of the Washington Sea Urchin Association.

(Appropriations)  Ed McNary, Washington Department of Fisheries.

House Committee - Testified Against:      (Fisheries and Wildlife)  None Presented.

(Appropriations)  None Presented.

House Committee - Testimony For:    (Fisheries and Wildlife)  The sea urchin fishery in Washington faces increasing pressure from Washington fishers new to the industry and from out-of-state fishers because of moratoriums in California and Oregon.  A good market, high profit, and minimum initial investment has drawn new fishers to the fishery.  The fishery for red urchins has doubled from the 1987 season to the 1988 season.  Harvest of the new green urchin fishery has dramatically increased.  Safety of those in the industry is a concern because of the influx of inexperienced divers. Some new fishers have an attitude of "take as much as you can as fast as possible" showing little concern for the long-term health of the resource.  To manage a safe fishery and an orderly fishery and to conserve the resource, the Department of Fisheries needs more options than just limiting seasons, regulating harvestable size, rotating harvest areas, and imposing more rules.  A limited fishery would allow more industry concern for conservation, would reduce enforcement pressure, and would allow for a more predictable fishery.  Other limited entry fishers are moving into this fishery because it is their off-season.  Making the license non-transferable helps hold down speculative purchase of licenses that people don't intend to use immediately but do intend to hold for increase in value.  Using shorter seasons to regulate the fishery benefits out- of-state processors because local processors can't survive only working a few weeks or months a year.  The current fleet is an unmanageable size and there is not sufficient enforcement.

(Appropriations)  The commercial harvest of sea urchins is increasing at a rapid rate in the state of Washington.  In order to protect the sea urchin resource from over harvest and address the economic well-being of the sea urchin fishing industry, a limited fishery needs to be created.

House Committee - Testimony Against:      (Fisheries and Wildlife)  None Presented.

(Appropriations)  None Presented.