EMERGENCY RULES
FISH AND WILDLIFE
Date of Adoption: February 20, 2003.
Purpose: Amend commercial fishing rules.
Citation of Existing Rules Affected by this Order: Repealing WAC 220-33-01000A and 220-33-01000B; and amending WAC 220-33-010.
Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW 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: Closed remaining days of the large mesh non-Indian commercial fishery because the impacts to upriver spring chinook are greater than expected for this time frame. Remaining upriver spring chinook impacts are needed to access the commercial allocation of Willamette spring chinook. Fishery will resume when test fishing shows that larger numbers of Willamette fish are present in the catch. This rule is consistent with actions of the Columbia River compact of February 20, 2003, and conforms Washington and Oregon state rules. The select area fisheries are part of an on-going BPA funded study to design fisheries in areas outside of the mainstem Columbia River. Several stocks of salmon have been released from net pens in these select areas to provide for fisheries. All salmon returning to these net pens are harvestable. Impacts to ESA-listed stocks in these fisheries are covered under the biological opinion for the interim management agreement. There is insufficient time to promulgate 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Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted at Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's Own Initiative: New 1, Amended 0, Repealed 2.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, Amended 0, Repealed 0.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Repealed 0;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Repealed 0;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Repealed 0.
Effective Date of Rule:
Immediately.
February 20, 2003
J. P. Koenings
Director
1) Blind Slough Select Area
Area: Open waters of Blind Slough extend from markers at the mouth of Gnat Creek located approximately 1/2 mile upstream of the county road bridge, downstream to markers at the mouth of Blind Slough. Concurrent Washington/Oregon waters extend downstream of the railroad bridge.
Knappa Slough is open to fishing in all waters bounded by a line from the northerly most marker at the mouth of Blind Slough westerly to a marker on Karlson Island downstream to a north-south line defined by a marker on the eastern end of Minaker Island to markers on Karlson Island and the Oregon shore.
a) Blind Slough
Gear: 7 1/4-inch minimum mesh. Mono-filament gill nets are allowed. Nets restricted to 100 fathoms in length with no weight restriction on leadlline.
Dates: 7:00 p.m. February 22 to 7:00 a.m. February 23, 2003
7:00 p.m. March 1 to 7:00 a.m. March 2, 2003
Allowable Sale: Salmon, sturgeon, shad. A maximum of three white sturgeon may be possessed or sold by each participating vessel during each period.
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Reviser's note: The spelling 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.
REPEALER
The following section of the Washington Administrative Code is repealed:
| WAC 220-33-01000A | Columbia River gillnet seasons below Bonneville. (03-21) |
The following section of the Washington Administrative Code is repealed effective 7:01 a.m. March 2, 2003:
| WAC 220-33-01000B | Columbia River gillnet seasons below Bonneville. |