The recreation fishermen asked the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission in the meeting to allocate them enough spring Chinook to fish daily through April between Interstate 5 and Bonneville Dam. While the commercial fishermen wanted to extend the old sharing agreement for another year. A 13-member sport-committee tries to put a long-term plan for their fishing.
Spring’s chinook management explained that this year a big run of 269,300 chinook is expected to head for upstream of Bonneville Dam. It is forecast that a poor return of just 34,000 is anticipated to Oregon’s Willamette River.
Bob Schlecht, owner of Bob’s in Longview, stressed a demand to commissioners to provide some fishing in the Longview area also. He said if this happens then our people down here would receive it whole heartedly. Recreational fishermen demand that the allocation should be changed to 70percent sport and 30 percent commercial. On the other hand Buzz Ramsey of Klickitat said the share of 70-30 is not unreasonable if the commercials get 93 percent of the Columbia River coho.
Sport fisherman Mark Pearsall said they need a season to plan. Glen Johnston of Vancouver said that the commercial fishing needs to be jammed. Steve Fransen of Olympia added the commercial fishermen are dinosaurs devouring al the Chinook and so it is useless to allocate them more percentage.
Commercial fishermen, Fred Ostling, a Cathlamet gillnetter, present a different view saying that if sport-fishing license sales are dropping, why does the recreational fishery need a larger allocation? But the chairman of the Fish and Wildlife Commission, Jerry Gutzwiler of Wenatchee gave no hint about the panel’s decision that will be out in February.
