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CLEAR Temp: 90 °F Wind: NW at 10 mph Friday, August 29, 2003 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine Joy Magazine Tempo A & E RogueValleyAutoFinder RogueValleyHomeFinder Real Estate Showcase Wellness Connection Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Employment Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend August 7, 2003 State police to step up ocean patrols after reports of angling violations By MARK FREEMAN Mail Tribune Oregonians are enjoying one of their best salmon-fishing seasons on the ocean in years, but the high salmon catches are being accompanied by high rates of angling violations, police say. The Oregon State Police will step up its ocean patrols after boat checks last month revealed widespread fishing violations along the north coast. Checks showed that 30 percent to 80 percent of the boats returning to one mid-coast port sported anglers who committed violations, the OSP reports. "We have more fish, so there’s more people — people who are not necessarily familiar with ocean fishing and what the rules are," says Lt. Steve Ross of the OSP’s Fish and Wildlife Division in Medford. Advertisement But Southern Oregon anglers seem to know and obey the rules better than their northern brethren. An OSP report on boats checked in Coos Bay, Bandon and Winchester Bay reveal a 94 percent compliance rate. "It’s Newport and the north coastal areas where we’re seeing the problem with compliance," says Capt. Cynthia Kok, who oversees the OSP’s Fish and Wildlife Division out of Salem. Kok’s division is charged with patrolling the first three miles of near-shore ocean that are under state jurisdiction. Many of the regulations in these waters are designed to protect wild coho salmon from harvest, while ensuring that anglers catch their allotted share of hatchery-bred fish. Officers are encouraging anglers to review ocean regulations before heading out of port. The agency has added patrols at and around key ports to ensure compliance with regulations. "We don’t want to put the fishery managers in a position of being more conservative with fishing seasons in the future due to low compliance rates," says OSP Lt. Dave Cleary, who oversees the state’s angling enforcement. Along the Oregon coast, anglers are enjoying one of their longest and most successful seasons in years. Coast-wide, Oregonians have been averaging more than one salmon per angler per trip since early July. But not all the catches have been legal. In one week, officers seized 19 salmon in Newport that were illegally kept. One was a chinook that was shorter than the minimum length of 20 inches, and 18 were wild coho with their adipose fins intact. The adipose fin is a small, fleshy fin between the tail and the dorsal fin. In hatchery-bred fish, the adipose fin is clipped off before the fish are released into streams as juveniles. The illegal keeping of wild coho continues despite an intense effort by the OSP and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife to show anglers how to tell the difference between a coho and a chinook, Ross says "There are kiosks with pictures of what they look like, but still that continues to be a problem," Ross says. However, another batch of offenders know they are keeping fish they should release, Kok says. "We have a group of people over there who are, frankly, they’re taking them intentionally and they’re playing the odds on whether they’re getting checked (by police)," Kok says. Anglers are responsible for knowing and following the rules, which are available in a leaflet at most ports. Violations of the Oregon sport-fishing rules can be class A misdemeanors and can result in fines up to $5,000 and a year in jail. Offenses also can be treated as violations similar to traffic tickets, with bails around $299. Judges also can demand restitution for the value of the seized salmon. Here are some of the ocean salmon rules for 2003: Cape Falcon south to Humbug Mountain in Oregon — open seven days a week through Aug. 24 or until the 88,000 hatchery coho quota is reached. The daily bag limit is two salmon per day. All retained coho must have a healed adipose fin clip. The minimum length is 16 inches for coho and 20 inches for chinook and steelhead. The chinook general season will remain open through Oct. 31. Humbug Mountain, Oregon south to Horse Mountain, Calif.: Open seven days a week through Sept. 14. The daily bag limit is two salmon per day. No coho may be retained in this area. The minimum length for chinook and steelhead is 20 inches. Barbless hooks are required. For more information about ocean salmon-angling rules and catch rates, log onto hmsc.oregonstate.edu/odfw/salmon/index.html on the Web. Reach reporter Mark Freeman at 776-4470, or e-mail [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2003 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Rogue Valley Auto Finder Rogue Valley Job Finder --> Rogue Valley Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Real Estate Showcase Food for Thought Hike of the Week Wellness Connection Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Openings Prime Times