Note: This is a California Department of Fish and Game
news release, and is being distributed on the Council website for informational
purposes only.
California Department of Fish and Game (CDFG)
NEWS RELEASE
June 21, 2002
CDFG Contacts:
Chamois Andersen, Information Officer, (916) 657-4132
Marija Vojkovich, Marine Region,
(805) 568-1246
In-Season Fishing Closure for Rockfish and Lingcod Will Take Effect
July 1
Following federal
action taken Thursday by the Pacific Fishery Management Council, effective
July 1, California's recreational fishery for shelf rockfish and lingcod
will be closed in ocean waters 20 fathoms (120 feet) and deeper south of Cape
Mendocino (Humboldt County).
The closure will be in effect for the remainder
of the fishing season and resulted from in-season fishing adjustments adopted
by the Pacific Fishery Management Council at its meeting in Foster City.
The closure prohibits the take of rockfish, lingcod, ocean whitefish and
California scorpionfish (sculpin) in waters 20 fathoms and greater in depth.
In waters less than 20 fathoms, recreational anglers may continue to take
“nearshore” species of rockfish and lingcod, and retain two “shelf” rockfish (not including bocaccio, cowcod, canary, and yelloweye), if they are taken
incidentally while fishing in waters less than 20 fathoms in depth.
For a listing and descriptions of both shelf and nearshore rockfish species,
refer to California's ocean sport fishing regulations booklet, including
section 1.90 and color pullouts. The booklet is also available online at
www.dfg.ca.gov/enforcement/regs.html. (Also see the list of rockfish species by location on the Council website).
The emergency closure is needed because
the annual harvest limits for bocaccio, established by the Council each year,
have been met for the 2002 fishing season. The Council determined that the
recreational take for bocaccio had already exceeded the annual sport harvest
limit of 56 metric tons. By the end of April, recreational anglers had taken
60 metric tons. Allowing for continued catches of bocaccio, in excess of
specified harvest levels for both sport and commercial fisheries, could prompt
additional federal action including further reduction in fishing opportunity
in future years.
The California
Department of Fish and Game (DFG) will implement the closure in state waters
20 fathoms or greater in depth to comply with the new federal rules. The
closure area specifically includes waters south of a line extending due west
from a point on the mainland shore (40 degrees, 10 minutes north latitude)
near Cape Mendocino.
Allowing for the
continued take of shelf rockfish and lingcod would pose a threat to bocaccio
rockfish because shelf rockfish typically occupy the same waters, between
20 and approximately 150 fathoms in depth. The Council requested the DFG
close the state's shelf rockfish and lingcod fisheries (south of Cape Mendocino,
waters 120 fathoms or deeper) because of the potential to incidentally catch
boccacio while fishing for other species in those areas. The Council took
similar action for commercial fishing in federal waters.
Bocaccio has been declared “overfished”
by the Council and is being managed under stringent rebuilding plans set
forth by the Magnuson-Stevens Act. According to federal assessments, bocaccio
have declined to about 5 percent of their original abundance.
The Council met
this week to assess the current status of all groundfish resources. The
Council's Groundfish Management Team released new scientific evidence suggesting
that rebuilding requirements for bocaccio, canary and yelloweye rockfish
species need to be stronger for full recovery to be achieved.
In September the
Council may consider additional management measures for both sport and commercial
groundfish fisheries for the remainder of 2002 and for 2003 to help restore
overfished rockfish populations.
This action does not affect fishing for
species other than rockfish, lingcod, ocean whitefish, and California scorpionfish.
Species that are unaffected by the closure include salmon, striped bass,
halibut, albacore, barracuda, white seabass, and others that may be taken
in waters greater than 20 fathoms.
Posted June 25, 2002
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