KILL NETS

[Phunybonz]

SO, Can someone tell me where these commercial killers come from and who is buying thier KILL. I for one have never been to Freddy's and found sturgeon to be an option. Last weekend I had the oportunity to fish the day after the nets were in down near the Nuke. Talk about a slow day..... didn't hear of any keepers, WONDER WHY?????Screw talking about it, I'm ready for confrontation!

[Clamman]

Commercial gillnet fisherman are located throughout the river from Bonneville dam to Astoria on both sides of the river. There are fish processors/buyers located throughout that area. Most of the fish ends up in resturants as near as Portland and as far away as Chicago and New York. The commercial fishery is allowed 10000 fish a year. Their size limit is 48"-60". They are expected to catch 1500-2500 fish this winter fishery (ODFW Joint staff report 12/18/00 on their web site).

The sport fishery is allowed 40000 fish a year. Their size limit is 42"-60". The average size sport caught fish is roughly 45" (ODFW Lower Columbia River Report 1999). The commissions from both ODFW and WDFW agreed to the 20%-80% split last year when they met to decide on three year sturgeon management.


ISG

[Barnyard]

I believe the commercial size slot is 48" to 66". At least in the lower river...The allotment is suppose to be 80% sport 20% commercial. The last two years however the split has been 75% sport 25% commercial.

[Clamman]

Barnyard,

Look at the ODFW website and you will find under "FISH" and then "ACTION NOTICES" that the size limit is 48"-60" for white sturgeon and 48"-66" for green sturgeon. If you look through 1999 Lower Columbia River Recreational Fisheries Report, the catch was at least 40k. From the 12/18/00 Joint Staff Report, the 2000 catch was slightly over 40k. The commercial catch was about 10k both years.

ISG

[Barnyard]

ISG - A report downladable from WDFW web sight shows an 75-25 split the last two years. The reason for the 5% difference is the sports fishermen didn't catch as many in the upper size range...And you are correct on the upper 6" slot for greens...How many have caught green Sturgeon that were bright and not ugly?

[HOGTIDE]

Sometimes I wonder just how STUPID we can be.We have seen the decline of the salmon population, quite frankly, due to the things us humans do,(i.e.) overharvest, habitat degradation,commercial exploitation, dams, etc., etc. And, this was all effectively done to a species of fish that has the propensity for quick regeneration. They could have rebounded quite quickly, if ever given the chance. The static low levels of salmon returns have driven sportsmen away from that quarry, due to the given lack of success.

So...now it's on to that beautiful creature we call White Sturgeon. God knows, no one would ever chase them, if salmon were readily available. But, they're are big, pull hard, and taste good, if you got the right stuff to put a knife into one of these gators.

Enters the ODFW. "Here ya go boys. Based on our scientific data and projections which have worked flawlessly through the 'Era De Salmon', we divine that your group may keep 10,000 fish, And, you, you may retain 40,000.At that rate we will have a strong population of sturgeon, forever! (Remember hearing 'that one' about the Willamette Spring Salmon Run just a couple years back)Besides, they are tough lil' buggers. Doubt a few incidental kills, missing tails and net slices will bother 'em. Keep in mind, that netting is a cultural requiem. Besides, there are little ol' ladies in the west hills that can't go out and land their own sturgeon and they neeeeed this coveted meat to sustain their feeble lives."

Enter my brother sportsman. Traditonal arguement, bla,bla bla, more recreational dollars invested bla, bla, bla our fair share, etc, etc.


And, as we argue with each other...
Sturgeon grow and regenerate slowly. They WILL disappear quickly.

[shureskunk]

You hit it right on the head Hogtide!
Imagine how clueless the "allocation gods" would be if they didn't have the luxury of sitting in front of that big underwater window at B. dam counting jack salmon...a one ana two ana three, etc. Even with that, (OPI index) they have still proven that they can be wrong at least 50% in their predictions and projections. Lets wait till it's a crisis, then try and figure it out. As you, I have a hard time believing that they have a handle on the health and population of white sturgeon. If only we, (sport fishers) could get organized and vote the dang nets out of there.
SSK

[Deleted User]

We could hit them over the head at the entrance to a fish hatchery and load them up in vats and give them to the native Americans...This would be better than having too many of them spawn and crowd the other fish in the river.

BWB

[HOGTIDE]

S.S, And I guess the moral to my story (I had forgotten to put the moral to my story)is...if we must make allocation judgements/ allocation errors, lets judge on the conservative side, in favor of the fish. I doubt many people would be angry if we goofed up and left too large a population of sturgeon.

Have you noticed, even when the ODFW is very restrictive on the saltwater and it ends up that a lot more coho returned than predicted, people who complain about the allocation error seem to be enthused, smiling and encouraged when they state just how many fish 'did' return!

[Chris Sessions]

OH NO! Now you are talking about the dreaded "SURPLUS FISH"....We can't have those, it would be just awful! All those fish just swimming around!
SSK