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Letter to Puget
Sound Commercial Crab Fishers and Crab Dealers
September 23, 2009 This website has been created to inform you of regulation changes for the the 2009-10 commercial Dungeness crab season, which begins at 8:00 a.m. on October 1, 2009. It is your responsibility as the Puget Sound Dungeness Crab license owner or wholesale dealer to communicate this important information to the alternate operators and buyers who work for you. The current permanent fishing rules and provisions and the emergency (temporary) rules are included on this website. The emergency rules replace specific sections of the permanent rules. Both permanent and emergency rules must be read together for a complete understanding of the 2009-10 season regulations. For example, if the permanent rules indicate an area opens on November 1 and the emergency rules list October 15 as the opening date, the area will open on October 15. Please review the regulatory provisions and the following information carefully before fishing and feel free to contact an agency employee at the numbers listed below if you have questions. Note: Emergency rules adjusting the number of pots that can be
legally fished in each Management Regionhave been issued. Crab Management Regions 1 and 2 East will begin this season at 50 pots per
license and the other regions will begin at 100 pots per license. During the season please call the Puget Sound commercial
crab hotline at (360) 796-4601 ext. 320 or use this link
for any changes that may occur.
The following regulations
will be implemented this season:
Setting crab pot gear from a vessel not
designated on a crab license ("barging") will be allowed from 8:00 a.m. on October 1, 2009 until 7:59 a.m. on
October 3, 2009 provided that the operator or alternate operator designated on the license is on board the
non-designated vessel and prior notice is given to WDFW. The license owner must leave a telephone message at the Mill Creek Regional office,
(425) 775-1311 ext. 112 with the following information: Any in-season changes to regional pot limits will be announced on the commercial
crab hotline (360) 796-4601 ext. 320. Please reference the map on the Commercial
Crab Regulation web page for regional and catch area boundaries. Non-commercial and Limited-commercial areas
Dungeness Bay Non-commercial Area:
The State commercial crab fishery is closed in that portion of Marine Fish/Shellfish Catch Area 25A
west of the 123° 7.0' longitude line projected south from the New Dungeness light to the southern shore of Dungeness Bay. (See WAC 220-52-04600X)
Port Angeles Harbor Non-commercial area:
That portion of Marine Fish/Shellfish
Catch Area 23D west of a line from the eastern tip of Ediz Hook to the ITT Rayonier
Dock (Port Angeles Harbor) will be closed to commercial crab harvest this season
(See WAC 220-52-04600X) based on recommendations from the Clallam County Department
of Health and Human Services. Commercial crab fishing will be open at 8:00 a.m. October 1, 2009, in the
following areas, until further notice. These areas were limited-commercial areas in previous seasons.
See WAC 220-52-04600X and click here
for limited-commercial area maps, for a complete description of area boundaries.
Port Gardner Limited-commercial area:
That portion of Catch Area 26A east of a line projected
from the outermost tip of the ferry dock at Mukilteo to the green #3 buoy at the mouth of the Snohomish River and west
of a line projected from that #3 buoy southward to the oil boom pier on the shoreline. Possession Point to Glendale Limited-Commercial Area:
That portion of Marine Fish/Shellfish Catch Area 26A east of a line that extends true north
from the green #1 buoy at Possession Point to Possession Point, and west of a line from the green #1 buoy at Possession Point
extending northward along the 200-foot depth contour to the Glendale dock.
Langley Limited-Commercial Area:
That portion of Marine Fish/Shellfish Catch Area 24C inshore of the 400-foot depth contour within an area described
by two lines projected northeasterly from Sandy Point and the entrance to the marina at Langley.
Outer Birch Bay Limited-Commercial Area:
Those waters of Marine Fish-Shellfish Management and Catch Reporting Area 20A between a line from the boat ramp at the western boundary of
Birch Bay State Park to the western point of the entrance of the Birch Bay Marina and a line from the same boat ramp to Birch Point.
Useless Bay Limited-Commercial Area:
Those waters of Marine Fish-Shellfish Management and Catch Reporting Area 26A-W in Useless Bay north and east of a line from the south end of
the Double Bluff State Park seawall (47°58.782'N, 122°30.840'W) projected 110 degrees true to the boulder on shore (47°57.690'N, 122°26.742'W).
Fidalgo Bay Limited-Commercial Area:
Those waters of Marine Fish-Shellfish Management and Catch Reporting Area 22B in Fidalgo Bay south of a line projected from the red number
4 entrance buoy at Cap Sante Marina to the northern end of the eastern most oil dock.
Deer Harbor Limited-Commercial Area:
Those waters of Marine Fish-Shellfish Management and Catch Reporting Area 22A in Deer Harbor north of a line projected from Steep Point to Pole Pass.
The permanent regulation regarding all other non-commercial
and limited-commercial areas not listed above is found in WAC 220-52-046 via the link at the bottom of this page.
For maps showing approximate non-commercial and
limited-commercial zone boundaries and descriptions of these areas click here.
Note that the state commercial fishery is closed in areas designated on the maps as "Special Management Areas".
Puget Sound Commercial Fishery general schedule by
Management Region.
The Puget Sound Crab fishery will close in all regions for 10 days beginning October 10,
2009 until October 21, 2009. Each region will then close on the dates listed below, or when the harvest share is reached, whichever comes first:
Management Region 1 will close April 15, 2010.
Management Region 2E will close February 15, 2010 with the exception of the Everett Flats area
which will close December 31, 2009. The area is defined as that portion of catch area 26 A east of a line from Howarth Park due north to the
south end of Hat Island and that portion of 24B east of a line from the north end of Hat Island to Camano Head and south of a line drawn from
Camano Head to Hermosa Point.
Management Regions 2W, 3-1, 3-2, and 3-3 will close March 31, 2010. Buoy Tags
Additional tags to replace lost tags will only be issued to the owners or operators
of Puget Sound commercial crab fishery licenses. There is a $1.25 charge for each replacement tag. The charge per fisher, for replacement
tags needed during the 2009-10 and 2010-11 seasons, will be billed to those fishers when they purchase tags for the 20011-12 season.
To obtain replacement tags, the
owner must complete and sign a declaration form in the presence of a
designated agency employee, stating the number of pots/buoy tags lost,
the location and date where the pot gear or tags were last observed and
the presumed cause of loss. Replacement tags can only be obtained in
person at/from the following designated locations and agency staff: Replacement Tag contacts:
To ensure the appropriate
staff will be on site to distribute replacement tags, please contact
designated staff at the office where you plan to obtain replacement tags to
schedule an appointment. Declaration forms will be available at the
time of receiving replacement tags.
The following regulations for
crab buyers will be implemented again this season: At the request of the
crab industry, we are requiring daily reports by crab buyers during the
2009-10 season to improve our ability to monitor the state commercial
harvest in each region. PLEASE report daily purchases of Puget Sound
crab harvested by non-treaty fishers by 10:00 a.m. the following business day.
For more details, see permanent WAC 220-69-240. Reports must be made by fax or e-mail. The reports must be made to the Mill Creek Regional Office by facsimile at
425-338-1066(See WAC 220-69-24000N) or by e-mail to crabreport@dfw.wa.gov. For your convenience an optional FAX reporting form has
been included in this mailer. An electronic version of this form is available on request to the crabreport e-mail address.
Fax and E-mail reports must specify the dealer name, dealer phone number, date of delivery of crabs to the original receiver, and the
total number of pounds of crab caught by non-treaty fishers by Crab Management Region or Marine Fish/Shellfish Catch Area.
The fish receiving ticket-reporting requirement of WAC 220-69-240 remains in effect. DEALERS/BUYERS CAN NO LONGER LEAVE VOICE MESSAGES FOR CATCH REPORTS. According to WAC 220-69-240,
it is unlawful for any original receiver of crab to fail to record all
crab aboard the vessel making the delivery to the original receiver.
The poundage of any crab deemed to be unmarketable, discards or weigh
backs must be shown on the fish receiving ticket, but a zero dollar value
may be entered for such crab. Regulations that pertain to the
2009-10 Puget Sound commercial crab fishery can also be found on the WDFW hotline:
(360) 796-4601 ext. 320. Additional regulatory provisions that will be adopted in-season to address conservation and
allocation concerns will be made available on the WDFW hotline.
Please note that this will be the last year that this material will be printed out
in hardcopy and mailed out. In the interest of conducting more efficient business practices, beginning next season this “mailer” will be
posted in the WDFW website’s commercial section. This section will continue to be updated with in-season harvest numbers, detailed color
charts for special zones, and current emergency regulations. A hardcopy can be provided with a written request.
Have a safe and productive
season!
Rich Childers, WDFW Shellfish Manager
(360) 796-4601
- Brinnon See also:
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