Washington Commission Updates Rules for Columbia River Smelt Fisheries
The Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission recently voted to revise regulations for commercial smelt fisheries on the mainstem Columbia River.
"The purpose of this rule is to rescind open fishing periods from the permanent Eulachon commercial fishing regulations to align these fishing regulations with current management strategies," Commission documents say.
The eulachon fisheries are managed in accordance with NMFS due to their Endangered Species Act listing status. Therefore, the rule would allow managers to set sustainable harvest limits by modifying fishery duration and intensity on an annual basis, pending run ...
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