PORTLAND - Columbia River fishery managers set seasons yesterday to allow sport anglers to fish until May 15 below Bonneville Dam and above The Dalles Dam for hatchery spring chinook salmon.
Decision makers from the Oregon and Washington departments of fish and wildlife meet as the Columbia River Compact to set sport and commercial seasons for the Columbia River.
Seasons were set to harvest the very large return of hatchery spring chinook expected this year. Fishery managers forecast that more than 400,000 spring chinook will enter the Columbia. Most of the returning fish are hatchery fish distinguished by a clipped adipose fin. Only the marked hatchery fish may be retained in both the commercial and sport spring chinook fisheries. All non-clipped fish must be released carefully and unharmed.
Fishery managers adopted the following seasons: From the mouth of the Columbia up to the I-5 Bridge, the season is open now through May 15. From the I-5 Bridge up to Bonneville Dam and from The Dalles Dam up to McNary Dam, the season is open March 16 - May 15.
Anglers may harvest adipose fin-clipped chinook salmon, adipose fin-clipped steelhead, and shad. Daily catch limits include two adult salmon or steelhead and five "jack" salmon. Jack salmon are small males that return one year earlier than adults. Anglers may not continue to fish for jack salmon once they have retained the adult limit. There is no daily catch limit for shad.
The fishery will be managed for a 1 percent incidental mortality impact on the run of wild upriver spring chinook, which are listed as threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA). Based on the pre-season forecast and hatchery fish fin-clip rates, biologists expect about 21,000 hatchery spring chinook can be caught before the 1 percent ESA limit is reached.
Fishery managers also set commercial gill net seasons Thursday. Licensed Columbia River gillnetters may harvest adipose fin-clipped spring chinook and sturgeon 48-60 inches long using tangle nets from 5 a.m. to 7 p.m. on the following dates: Feb. 25, Feb. 27, March 1, March 4, March 6, and March 8.
The commercial fishery will be managed for a target catch of 9,700 hatchery spring chinook destined for the Willamette River and a 0.7 percent incidental impact on ESA-listed upriver wild spring chinook. Using pre-season forecasts, managers expect the commercial fleet to harvest about 19,500 hatchery spring chinook, with about half bound for Willamette hatcheries and half going to upriver hatcheries.
This year marks the first year the entire commercial fleet will use tangle nets, which allow the release of unmarked fish. Biologists from both Oregon and Washington will carefully monitor the fishery for impacts to wild spring chinook and the efficiency of the new gear.
The Compact delayed decisions on sport sturgeon fisheries.
The Compact is scheduled to meet again March 7 at 10 a.m. at the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife headquarters at 2501 S.W. 1st Ave in Portland. All Compact meetings are open public hearings.
A complete list of all decisions made Thursday will soon be available on the ODFW website at:
http://www.dfw.state.or.us/ODFWhtml/...tml#LastAction
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife
Contact: Anne Pressentin Young (503) 872-5264 x5356
Internet:
www.dfw.state.or.us Fax: (503) 872-5700
For Immediate Release February 1, 2002
[ 02-01-2002, 06:23 PM: Message edited by: Pete ]
2002 Columbia River Spring Chinook Seasons Set
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