Grays Harbor Salmon Fishery meeting is tomorrow
January 10, 2014KXRO Newsradio
Tomorrow morning, hundreds of local fisherman could be in Tumwater asking the Department of Fish and Wildlife to ban commercial gill netting locally.

According to the official schedule, on Saturday, January 11th at 9am at the Comfort Inn Conference Center in Tumwater, department staff will “brief the Commission on Grays Harbor salmon fishery management and discuss challenges, provide an update on the public process and seek further guidance from the Commission”.

The public will be able to speak following the presentation.

Local anglers are hoping that over 300 people will attend the meeting to ban commercial gill netting in Grays Harbor. According to Sportsman for Change, their plan is to “Let the commission know that it is no longer acceptable for WDFW to spend 250,000.00 to 300,000.00 per year on over-seeing a commercial fishery for 20 to 30 commercial fishermen.” They say that the money should be spent on hatchery production and reform to, “Boost the numbers in the basin, providing more opportunity for the thousands of sports fishers who spend hundreds of thousands of dollars, in the region. “

According to event organizers, the meeting will be the last time to speak in front of the commission prior to their February 14th vote on the Grays Harbor Management Plan.

6:20 a.m.-----There will be more than a few "sportspersons" there. Hope the Commission listens and makes some changes to the WDFW Draft for Grays Harbor.

Be safe on your drive there!!!!

GO SEAHAWKS !!!!!!!!!!!

Tomorrow is here.... whew, what a night!

Today is the day! Off we go and your correct Doc, what a night just teeny bit windy.

Commercials tee off re purse seine transition in CR... Conditions too dangerous to sort catch. Mortality understated. Gillnets are selective by time and mesh size

2many and 2many Jr at the mike... Re gene banks... Future opportunity losses... We need fish... Resource is something precious to his family

RW at the mike... Staff presentation on GH now

Full house.

Kings don't make escapement because... Bad habitat, northern intercept about half, QIN about 1/10 of that... Sports even less. Asserts 42% make it to gravel

Really? 42%.... I wish!

Allocation and conservation dominate public comments

Need to earn back public trust.

Lots of PC's about economic feasibility of comm fishery

Mentioned 4/3 concept for escapement windows ... We need to look at it

Public testimony now:

GJ:Gillnets archaic many ghost nets removed in GH. Conservation, escapement = nutrients

NR: conservation... real time catch reporting to enhance in season mgt of marine fishery

Softbite: accountability and review of conservation failures, develop plans to prevent repeating them.

Exceeding the goal is NOT a failure/waste

JR: steelhead conservation, demise of wild steelhead in the basin, need new direction

Some who are stepping up to speak in the public open forum have gone as far as to state "the department cannot bend over far enough to allow additional Gil-net days".... I think we may be on to something here.

Salmo g hits a grand slam re review of 2013 GH marine rec fishery

JD: CONSERVATION .... eliminate area 2A as a GN area.

Conservation, economics .. Eliminate all GN's in GH!

Sorry , can't keep up with speakers to do them justice. Preparing my own comments

Commercial comments: decide based on science NOT public opinion, only 5% of the public fishes w rod and reel.... Who'll fish for the rest?

Preserve good (com fish) jobs instead of hoping on new ones.

Mahnken: presenting fish committee recommendations.... 5 new points