Update On Our Petition To Protect Resident Rainbow Trout
Resident rainbow trout- adults and juveniles- are a critical life history component of wild steelhead populations. We believe they represent an opportunity to better protect and help recover wild steelhead.
• Statewide year-round Catch-and-Release (all-size wild trout) in rivers and streams for all watersheds with wild steelhead
• Statewide year-round Selective Gear Rules (all size wild trout) in rivers and streams in all watersheds with wild steelhead
• Closed Waters: Selected sections of rivers designated as Wild Steelhead Gene Banks
• Closed Waters: Watersheds with wild steelhead runs under escapement
On October 27, the WDFW commission considered our petition, and we won big for Wild Steelhead when they rejected it. That’s right, they rejected our petition, and we can chalk it up squarely in the win column for wild rainbow trout and steelhead.
Instead of granting our petition, the department asked the commission to direct the department to develop a state-wide native trout policy. By developing a statewide native trout policy, the department can work stream-by-stream, or watershed-by-watershed, to set regulations and protections that address specific systems' specific needs and challenges. The regulation petition process is a blunt instrument, and we believe that a native resident trout policy is more likely to provide better protections that can be surgically targeted—a big win.
We haven’t seen details on the when and the how—department staff will be preparing a process outline with a timeline. We hope that the process will achieve the following:
1. Provide adequate protection of this increasingly critical steelhead life history and life stage, and make adequate resources available to ensure it is accomplished in a timely manner.
2. Use a public engagement approach that allows for local input into rainbow trout fisheries. We hope this engagement includes opportunities for providing up-front input into the development process and meaningful opportunities to engage in subsequent revisions.
3. Develop regulations and other protections that are well-designed 'on paper' and clear, understandable, and designed to maximize angler compliance.
4. Preserve sustainable opportunities to participate in fisheries for wild rainbow trout, prioritizing fishing opportunities over harvest opportunities.
5. Be prepared to move quickly from policy to regulatory protections once the process is complete.
The Wild Steelhead Coalition wants to thank the Department staff for their proactive and comprehensive approach and the Commission for its action to develop protective policies for resident trout—and wild steelhead.