Posts
The 2008 recreational salmon fishing closures in the Central Valley go into effect Thursday, July 3, 2008 to protect Sacramento River fall Chinook (SRFC) salmon.
No Chinook are allowed to be kept anywhere on the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers or any of their tributaries, including the American and Feather rivers. The only exception is from Nov. 1 to Dec. 31 in the Sacramento River between the Red Bluff Diversion Dam and Knights Landing for a one-salmon bag and possession limit.
While catch-and-release fishing for salmon is not prohibited, the salmon regulations were purposely structured as a zero-salmon bag limit to keep fishing open for other non-salmon species. The trout, steelhead, sturgeon, striped bass, black bass, sunfish and catfish fisheries are major recreational inland fisheries in the Central Valley.
The California Department of Fish and Game (DFG) requests that the public use a very conservative approach toward salmon this year and refrain from any catch-and-release fishing that specifically targets salmon. If the self-regulating conservative approach fails and excessive SRFC catch-and-release mortality is observed, additional regulatory measures may be enacted. One of the possible measures could be closure of all recreational fisheries in the specific areas where SRFC inhabit.
While the salmon season has been closed in the ocean and reduced in the Central Valley, the Smith, Klamath and Trinity rivers remain open to salmon fishing. These temporary closures will help to ensure the future of ocean and inland salmon fishing for present and future generations.
More information on 2008 California salmon fisheries can be found at www.dfg.ca.gov/news/issues/salmon.
