Oregon Considering Lifting Limits On Bass, Catfish, To Ease Predation On Faltering Salmon Stocks

[hatrack]

Oregon wildlife officials said on Tuesday they want to end limits on fishing for bass, catfish and other highly prolific warm-water fish, in part to ease pressure on native fish that are dying by the thousands in abnormally warm summer waters.

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife said in a statement it was considering removing bag limits for warm-water fish in the Columbia, John Day and Umpqua rivers "to both simplify regulations and potentially reduce predation on listed salmon and steelhead smolts."

A month ago, officials implemented unprecedented fishing restrictions for salmon, wild trout, steelhead and other native fish on most of the state's rivers to help populations dying off from high water temperatures amid ongoing drought conditions. Oregon's proposal mirrors efforts underway in Washington state to ease the warm-water fishing restrictions on waterways shared by the two states.

Washington has already eased restrictions in areas where it solely has regulation over the Columbia River, according to Oregon's Fish and Wildlife recreation fisheries manager, Mike Gauvin. Oregon state officials said last week that the unseasonably hot water has killed nearly half of the sockeye salmon migrating up the Columbia River through Oregon and Washington.

EDIT

http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/08/04/us-usa-fishing-oregon-idUSKCN0Q92GE20150804

[pscot]

1. Like pushing on a string