More springers to gillnetters and less to sportsman???

[Nelly]

Spring Chinook Allocation decreases to Sport and increases to Gillnetters!
(From NSIA Bulletin)
ODFW and WDFW moving to decreases Columbia River sport fisheries by nearly 17% !

ACTION ALERT: Spring Chinook Allocation decreases to Sport and increases to Gillnetters!
Recent announcements by WDFW and ODFW staff indicate they will be moving to cut recreational sport fishing seasons on the Columbia River for spring chinook. Specifically, for 2012 the harvest matrix the agencies use to allocate Spring Chinook ESA impacts in the Columbia decreases sport fisheries by nearly 17%!
Last year, the sharing agreement for ESA impacts was 60% sport and 35% commercial. This year the sport share of the ESA impacts decreases to 50% and the gillnet share increases to 45%!

This recommendation punctuates just how flawed and broken the system of allocation and management of these stocks is. Adopting their proposal would mean unnecessarily forfeiting tens of millions of dollars of economic benefit that comes to Oregon and Washington through much-needed tourism and direct benefits to a broad range of local industries and interests. The agency’s proposal to cut sport fishing opportunities, and increase mainstem gillnet fisheries is completely unfair and an example of a broken process that is begging to be fixed.

During this great recession, in a river full of ESA listed fish, it’s hard to believe we are seeing a proposal to grow this archaic and outdated fishery management. The SAFE (or terminal commercial fishing) areas successfully deliver tens of thousands of Willamette and Columbia River salmon to the market. For the last several years the commercial gillnet fleet has harvested more fish in the SAFE areas than the sport fleet is allocated in 140 miles of fishing below Bonneville dam. But growing mainstem non-treaty gillnet fisheries is killing jobs and killing the conservation benefits to wild fish that the SAFE areas were designed for.

You might ask yourself how this can be and the simple answer is: The squeaky wheel gets the grease!

This decision will be made soon~within the next couple weeks. We need your voice now to help overcome this setback. Please, today, contact your state legislators, that is, your state representative and state senator. A personal letter (email) in your own words is always best. Tell about yourself, stay polite and professional and seek a response. Do not rip on the gillnetters. Their harvest in the SAFE areas is providing important jobs and hatchery fish to the market.

The message is: on what is forecast to be the 4th largest run of spring chinook since 1938, sports anglers and the regional sport fishing industry are facing potential reductions in their season. Last year, the sports anglers only received 65% of their 60% allocation because of the way this fishery is managed. It's patently unfair and needs attention now. With these reductions come significant impacts in revenue to the state, rural and urban communities, revenue to WDFW through license sales, tourism and expenditures related to boating, fishing and outdoor recreation. These impacts could easily total into the tens of millions of dollars at a time when Oregon and Washington can ill-afford to be forfeiting economic opportunities.

Tune in tomorrow for more on this breaking story!

[Salmonhawk]

This is another prime example of why recreational anglers need to be politically active. If just half of the over 700,000 recreational anglers in this state were politically actice with CCA or some other group that fit them, things like this would never be considered. Do not sit back and complain, get involved, this is also another reason that I got involved in helping to start the WACPAC. With a Political Action Committee we will be able to help get people that are predisposed to our issues as recreational anglers elected. Please consider giving at www.washingtonanglerspac.com

[Jadeo]

I was just wondering if anybody knows how close rec anglers have been to their projected catches in the Colombia terminal fisheries in recent years.