09-14-2002, 11:55 PM
[#000099][size 2]Saturday, September 14, 2002; 8:13 AM [/size][/#000099]
PORTLAND, Ore. –– Federal regulators banned commercial trawling off much of Washington, Oregon and California in an effort to avoid the decimation of several bottom fish species.
The action taken by the Pacific Fishery Management Council late Friday is the strictest regulation ever of West Coast fishing – and comes as coastal economies are hobbled by restrictions on logging and salmon fishing.
"It's pretty scary for everybody involved. The potential impacts for every fishing industry up and down the coast are pretty severe. It's like we are cutting off our arm to save our life," said Steven Kupillas, groundfish observer liaison with the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission.
Sport and commercial fisheries generated $1 billion in income for the West Coast in 2001. Commercial landings were worth nearly $230 million, of which $62 million came from groundfish – species that usually dwell at or near the ocean floor.
"The government has never given us credit for the all the revenue the fishermen produce," said Bill James, a commercial fisherman from California. "Our whole fishing community is going to be gone in a couple of years if we don't let the government know how much we're worth."
Groundfish include more than 80 species, many of which have healthy populations.
The cutbacks were precipitated by scientific findings that four species of rockfish – a staple of party fishing boats and fish markets, where they are often sold as red snapper – were in worse trouble than previously believed. The species are bocaccio, yellow-eye, canary and dark blotched rockfish.
For commercial bottom trawlers north of Cape Mendocino on the Northern California coast, the council banned fishing between depths of 600 feet and 1,500 feet. During the summer, the inshore boundary will move to 450 feet. South of Cape Mendocino, the council banned commercial trawling between the depths of 360 feet and 1500 feet. In the winter months, trawling is banned between depths of 300 and 900 feet.
For fixed gear, such as longlines and traps, the council will require boats to fish deeper than 600 feet off the Washington coast. For Oregon and Northern California, the council banned fishing in waters shallower that 162 feet and deeper than 600 feet. South of Cape Mendocino, they banned fishing in waters shallower than 120 feet and deeper than 900 feet.
The council also approved a proposal from the California Department of Fish and Game that creates the California Rockfish Conservation Area for the coast south of Cape Mendocino to the Mexican border. Trawl nets, fish traps and pots and some types of fishing lines will be banned in much of the area.
On recreational fishing, generally done in shallow waters, the council restricted daily bag limits to 10 rockfish with no more than two canary rockfish and no yelloweye rockfish in Washington. In Oregon and Northern California, they kept the bag limit to 10, with one canary rockfish and one yelloweye rockfish. In Southern California, there will be a 10 fish bag limit with no yelloweye or canary rockfish.
"The economic effects on some individuals and some individual ports will be pretty big," said council Chairman Hans Radke. "The signal is there for the industry that now we have to avoid fish as much as we target fish. But the fishing industry will eventually adapt."
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On the Net:
Pacific Fishery Management Council: [url "http://www.pcouncil.org/"][#0080c0]http://www.pcouncil.org[/#0080c0][/url]
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IMHO this is just the beginning, the commercials are targeted and you can rest assured ANYBODY who takes fish is on the agenda as well.
[signature]
PORTLAND, Ore. –– Federal regulators banned commercial trawling off much of Washington, Oregon and California in an effort to avoid the decimation of several bottom fish species.
The action taken by the Pacific Fishery Management Council late Friday is the strictest regulation ever of West Coast fishing – and comes as coastal economies are hobbled by restrictions on logging and salmon fishing.
"It's pretty scary for everybody involved. The potential impacts for every fishing industry up and down the coast are pretty severe. It's like we are cutting off our arm to save our life," said Steven Kupillas, groundfish observer liaison with the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission.
Sport and commercial fisheries generated $1 billion in income for the West Coast in 2001. Commercial landings were worth nearly $230 million, of which $62 million came from groundfish – species that usually dwell at or near the ocean floor.
"The government has never given us credit for the all the revenue the fishermen produce," said Bill James, a commercial fisherman from California. "Our whole fishing community is going to be gone in a couple of years if we don't let the government know how much we're worth."
Groundfish include more than 80 species, many of which have healthy populations.
The cutbacks were precipitated by scientific findings that four species of rockfish – a staple of party fishing boats and fish markets, where they are often sold as red snapper – were in worse trouble than previously believed. The species are bocaccio, yellow-eye, canary and dark blotched rockfish.
For commercial bottom trawlers north of Cape Mendocino on the Northern California coast, the council banned fishing between depths of 600 feet and 1,500 feet. During the summer, the inshore boundary will move to 450 feet. South of Cape Mendocino, the council banned commercial trawling between the depths of 360 feet and 1500 feet. In the winter months, trawling is banned between depths of 300 and 900 feet.
For fixed gear, such as longlines and traps, the council will require boats to fish deeper than 600 feet off the Washington coast. For Oregon and Northern California, the council banned fishing in waters shallower that 162 feet and deeper than 600 feet. South of Cape Mendocino, they banned fishing in waters shallower than 120 feet and deeper than 900 feet.
The council also approved a proposal from the California Department of Fish and Game that creates the California Rockfish Conservation Area for the coast south of Cape Mendocino to the Mexican border. Trawl nets, fish traps and pots and some types of fishing lines will be banned in much of the area.
On recreational fishing, generally done in shallow waters, the council restricted daily bag limits to 10 rockfish with no more than two canary rockfish and no yelloweye rockfish in Washington. In Oregon and Northern California, they kept the bag limit to 10, with one canary rockfish and one yelloweye rockfish. In Southern California, there will be a 10 fish bag limit with no yelloweye or canary rockfish.
"The economic effects on some individuals and some individual ports will be pretty big," said council Chairman Hans Radke. "The signal is there for the industry that now we have to avoid fish as much as we target fish. But the fishing industry will eventually adapt."
–––
On the Net:
Pacific Fishery Management Council: [url "http://www.pcouncil.org/"][#0080c0]http://www.pcouncil.org[/#0080c0][/url]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
IMHO this is just the beginning, the commercials are targeted and you can rest assured ANYBODY who takes fish is on the agenda as well.
[signature]
