Registered: 12/29/99
Posts: 1604
Loc: Vancouver, Washington
A side note: The results of the study that estimates pre-spawn mortality of C&R fish (both commercial and recreational) has implications far beyond Grays Harbor. The potential to change how mark-selective fisheries are implemented on the Columbia Rv is huge. The Tribes have complained at length about the lack of reliable estimates of C&R release mortalities on the Columbia (recreational only, of course). This study might provide a glimpse of how close the actual release moralities are to the estimates used in the catch-balancing calculations. So, after many years of complaining, the Tribes might get want they've been asking for.
But, given that the study will also include gill net release mortality estimates, the Tribes might not like the results.....