Reduce Chinook bycatch in West Coast commercial fisheries.

Action 1

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife should work with stakeholders to implement fishing practices and regulations to reduce the accidental catching of Chinook salmon along the West Coast leaving more Chinook for Southern Residents.

The Governor should direct the Department of Fish and Wildlife representatives on the Pacific Fishery Management Council and North Pacific Fishery Management Council to work with regional stakeholders and managers starting in 2019 to avoid bycatch and further reduce the bycatch of Chinook in West Coast fisheries to the extent practicable to ensure more Chinook reach Southern Residents. Discussions should consider the effectiveness of existing bycatch reduction measures and provisions of existing federal agency requirements such as the Endangered Species Act.

• The Department of Fish and Wildlife has changed timing, gear, and harvest areas, which have lessened the accidental catching of salmon to date and will continue to seek further reductions as new technology and research become available.
• The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration issued a new rule in March 2021 that created additional management tools to minimize incidental Chinook and coho salmon catch.

More details may be found in the progress reports in the resources library.