Breaking News

Tribe opens commercial fishing season; could use gill nets

October 8, 2008, 10:48 am

The Nez Perce Tribe has again opened a commercial season on steelhead in the Snake and Clearwater rivers that could include the use of gill nets.

During a recent conference call with fisheries managers from Idaho, Washington and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the tribe shared its intentions to open five short commercial and ceremonial and subsistence steelhead seasons this month. The commercial seasons could authorize the use of gill nets.

Tribal officials could not be reached for comment and it is not known if the tribe has issued permits to its fishermen approving the use of gill nets.

But Joe Dupont, regional fisheries manager for the Idaho Department of Fish and Game at Lewiston, said the tribe plans five commercial steelhead seasons.

The first of those seasons opened at 6 a.m. today and runs through Friday. Other seasons could be held between the hours of 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. from Monday through Oct. 16, Oct. 20 to Oct. 23 and Oct. 27 to Oct. 30.

The Clearwater and Snake rivers support a fishable surplus of hatchery salmon and steelhead. This year’s steelhead and fall chinook runs are expected to be amongst the largest in recent decades.

By court precedent, the surplus of hatchery salmon and steelhead is split evenly between tribes and sport anglers. But the tribe has traditionally not taken its share of the steelhead run. The tribe has said a commercial gill net season would allow it to begin approaching its share of available fish.

But gill netting is controversial because the nets kill all the fish that become entangled in them. That means some wild steelhead and fall chinook, which are protected by the Endangered Species Act, are likely to be taken in the fishery.

“The problem with gill netting is it is not selective,” Dupont said. “We realize they have their quota that we think they should be able to get and they say they are going to keep their take (of wild fish) down, so the whole issue comes down to conflict with (sport) anglers.”

The tribe has sought a similar permit but it was not clear this morning if NOAA fisheries had approved the fishery. The tribe has allowed gill netting during each of the past two steelhead runs.

Last year and in 2006 tribal anglers used gill nets in December and January and took only a handful of fish each year. But this year gill netting could occur when there are more fish moving through both the Snake and Clearwater rivers and when there is more sport anglers fishing for steelhead.

Receive Breaking News Emails

E-mail
Name