Welcome to the Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) sportfishing rule public involvement process. We appreciate your participation in this important activity.
Provided on this page is a package of proposed changes to the 2010-2012 rules governing recreational fisheries for game fish, food fish, and shellfish. As a cost-saving measure, we have not mailed this document, but have sent out postcards asking interested anglers to access it at this web address. Anglers can request a printed copy by calling (360) 902-2700, or obtain a direct e-mail of the information by sending a request to Sportfishing.Rules@dfw.wa.gov. We look forward to receiving your comments or ideas concerning the proposed changes that are enclosed with this notice. They may be sent in via e-mail to Lori.Preuss@dfw.wa.gov, by FAX to (360) 902-2155 (Attention: WDFW Rules Coordinator) or by regular mail to the WDFW Rules Coordinator at 600 Capitol Way N, Olympia WA 98504. All written testimony must be received by Dec 1, 2009. Two new proposals were added Sept. 24, 2009 and can be found at the end of the document.
As another cost-saving measure, the department has decided to adopt sportfishing rules on a two-year cycle rather than a yearly basis, which means the next opportunity to change these rules will be in two years for the 2012-2014 regulations. Other annual regulation setting processes will continue for salmon, halibut, and coastal bottomfish.
The public hearing for these proposed rules will be held during the Fish and Wildlife Commission meeting in Olympia on December 4-5, 2009. Please check the Fish and Wildlife Commission's website or call the Commission office at (360) 902-2449 prior to the meeting for details. Verbal testimony on the proposals may be presented at the hearing. If you plan on attending the public hearing, you may submit written or oral testimony at that time.
There will also be seven public meetings held around the state as one means to gather your input on these proposals. Department staff will be there to answer questions you may have on the proposals and listen to your comments and concerns. The meetings will be held at:
Region 1 - Spokane Office
2315 North Discovery Place
Spokane Valley, WA 99216
Tuesday September 29, 2009 at 6-8 pm
Region 2 - Ephrata Office
1550 Alder St NW
Ephrata, WA 98823
Monday September 28, 2009 at 6-8pm
Region 3 - Carpenter’s Hall
507 3rd Street
Yakima WA
Wednesday, September 30, 2009 at 6-8pm
Region 4 - Mill Creek Office
16018 Mill Creek Boulevard
Mill Creek WA 98012
Tuesday October 6, 2009 at 6-8pm
Region 5 - Vancouver Office
2108 Grand Blvd.
Vancouver, WA 98661
Thursday, October 8, 2009 at 6-8pm
Region 6 - Peninsula College
1502 E Lauridsen Blvd. Room J47
Wednesday, October 7, 2009 at6:30-8:30pm
Headquarters - Natural Resources Building Room 172
1111 Washington Street SE
Olympia, WA 98501
Tuesday October 13, 2009 at 6-8pm
At the February 2010 Fish and Wildlife Commission meeting there will be an adoption hearing where these proposals: (a) may be adopted as proposed; (b) may be modified; or (c) may not be adopted. The effective date of any adoptions/modifications made at this meeting will be May 1, 2010, unless otherwise noted in specific proposals that are adopted. Permanent rules remain in effect until formally changed.
If you are a person with a disability and require accommodation for attendance, please contact Nancy Burkhart at (360) 902-2449. This publication is available in alternate formats upon advance request. Please contact (360) 902-2200 or TDD (360) 902-2207. Please allow seven working days to process request.
The Pre-Season Salmon Management Process
Another process that shapes recreational fisheries in Washington waters is the North of Falcon process. The final product from this process is a management plan that coordinates recreational, commercial, treaty, and non-treaty salmon fisheries north of Cape Falcon which includes both marine and freshwater areas in Washington State. Except where modified by a specific proposal, any salmon seasons listed in this document are the 2009-2010 seasons, and may be modified during the meetings described below. A series of public meeting are scheduled in March and April in conjunction with the Pacific Fishery Management Council’s ocean season setting process. These meetings are attended by federal, state, and tribal managers, special interest groups and concerned citizenry. You are welcomed and encouraged to attend any of these meetings. To find out how you can participate in this process, call WDFW’s Intergovernmental Resource Management Program at (360) 902-2819.
Pacific Halibut
The Pacific Fisheries Management Council, the National Marine Fisheries Service and the International Pacific Halibut Commission have the primary responsibility for regulating this fishery. Rules for the 2009 recreational fishery for halibut have not been established. Final decision on these rules will be made in early 2010. WDFW will be hosting a public workshop on the proposed regulations. For more information on this process, please call (360) 249-4628, ext 254.
Coastal Bottomfish
The Pacific Fishery Management Council adopts rules for recreational fishing for bottomfish in coastal waters each fall. These rules can include catch quotas, season length, daily limits, and size limits. State rules are generally adopted to match these rules. For more information, call (360) 249-4628, ext 254.
Columbia River Sturgeon
Sturgeon in the lower Columbia River and tributaries downstream from Bonneville Dam are managed under 3-year sturgeon management agreements between Washington and Oregon. Sturgeon population status, fishing seasons, and regulations are reviewed each year. Columbia River Joint State Hearings are held at the end of each year to set seasons and regulations to keep sturgeon harvest within annual guidelines. These rules also maintain concurrent regulations between Washington and Oregon. There will be public hearings scheduled this fall as part of this process. For more information on this or other sturgeon rules, contact Brad James at WDFW’s Vancouver office at (360) 906-6716.
Thank you for your interest in Washington’s fisheries resources. If you no longer want to be part of the sportfishing rule change process, you can write to us at the Capitol Way address listed above c/o Fish Program and ask to be taken off the Sportfish Rule Development Mailing List. We have also set up a special mailbox at Sportfishing.Rules@dfw.wa.gov that you can use to update your address or to add or delete yourself from our mailing list. If you received a postcard notice, but would rather receive a direct e-mail, it will save the Department some mailing costs. Please send an e-mail to the Sportfishing box, listing your regular mailing address and the e-mail address we can use instead. Also, please reserve the use of this mailbox only for sportfish mailing list business.
