Anglers fish the Cowlitz River from the rocks beneath the Barrier Dam as a thunderstorm rolls past them to the east on Thursday, May 4, 2017, in Salkum.
Last week at a meeting in Ridgefield, the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission voted to adopt a slew of new freshwater sportfishing rules and regulation.
The Fish and Wildlife Commission is a citizen panel appointed by the governor to set policy for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. The changes implemented will impact Washington’s rivers, streams and lakes for fish from salmon to sturgeon, trout to bass, shad to carp, with the stated intent of making a notoriously dense rulebook easier to follow.
Specific changes to the rules include a reduction in the number of outliers to the year-round lake season opener, the elimination of mandatory steelhead retention, and a standardization of the daily limit and minimum size requirements for bass, walleye and channel catfish in the Columbia River downstream of Chief Joseph Dam, as well as its tributaries, such as the Snake River.
Another rule change specifically separates the daily catch limit of trout and steelhead. According to notes from the meeting:
“Distinguishing between trout and steelhead will help anglers better understand the rules as published in the pamphlet. For many anglers the current rule structure is confusing and leads to dissatisfaction with use of the rule pamphlet and their fishing experience. This rule proposal would allow both limits to be retained daily (e.g. two trout and three steelhead). This would also modify the definition of trout to ‘rainbow trout (except steelhead)’.”
However, a press release noted that WDFW staff withdrew a number of proposals that had been recommended during the public review process. One example the department provided was a rule that would have allowed the practice of chumming statewide, while another change would have eliminated special rules for panfish. Another change that was not pursued by the WDFW was a request to eliminate the requirement that anglers fishing with bait quit casting for trout after they’ve landed the daily limit for that species, regardless of whether or not the fish were kept.
Additional information on the rule changes can be found online at wdfw.wa.gov/commission/meetings/2018/01/agenda_jan1818.html.
In other matters, the commission voted to change rules governing compensation to commercial livestock owners when their animals are killed or injured by wolves. One change establishes a standard market value for livestock and guard dogs. And, according to the press release, another change mandates that livestock producers “exhaust all available compensation from non-profit groups before receiving payment from the department.”
A fine feathered bird received a nod from the commission when WDFW staff was directed to initiate a public process to improve conservation and protection efforts for the Columbian sharp-tailed grouse. In the 1800s, sharp-tailed grouse were the most abundant game bird east of the Cascades thanks to the plentiful grasslands and sagebrush type vegetation.
However, the conversion of wide swaths of land to agricultural use spoiled much of their habitat.
Following a major fire in 2015 the total population is believed to have dropped below 600 birds. Sharp-tailed grouse have been listed as threatened under state law since 1998, but the commission expressed a belief that an elevation of status to endangered could bolster its recovery. A final decision is expected later this year.
Beginning next week audio recordings and minutes of the commission meeting should be available online at wdfw.wa.gov/commission/minutes.html.
