Summer chinook, sockeye fishing underway

With the spring chinook salmon run estimate rising above 282,000 fish, the two-state Columbia River Compact added more fishing time for both commercial and treaty Indian gillnetters, while recreational fishing remains open in all zones on the Columbia River up through the John Day pool.

The US vs. Oregon regional technical advisory committee (TAC) met June 8 and updated its in-season estimate of the 2015 spring chinook run from 260,000 salmon to 282,000, according to Stewart Ellis, chair of TAC, who also represents the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission. The increase raises the allowable catch of fish up to 30,456, 10.8 percent of the estimated run.

Passage of spring chinook through Bonneville Dam, as of June 9, hit 245,312 adult fish and TAC expects passage to hit 258,000 fish before the season automatically turns to summer chinook, June 16.

The compact approved a final 12-hour spring fishery for commercial gillnetters in the lower Columbia River downstream of Bonneville Dam June 10-11.

The expected total catch of spring chinook through June 15, when the season automatically becomes a summer chinook season, is 29,746 fish, 710 fish shy of the allowable catch.

That number includes catches of 8,047 by treaty tribe gillnetters, 2,057 by tribal platform and hook and line fishers in zone 6 and 922 in zone 5, and 14,220 by commercial gillnetters in the lower river, all through June 7. Expected catch for the June 10 opening was 5,100 fish.

The Compact forecasts 73,000 adult summer chinook to pass Bonneville Dam, June 16 through July 31. That is less than the 2014 run of 78,300 but 114 percent of the ten-year average return of 64,100 adults. Summer chinook are not listed under the federal Endangered Species Act and are considered a healthy run of fish. All are destined for Priest Rapids Dam.

Some 42,000 of these fish are available for harvest. According to rules set by the U.S. vs. Oregon Management Agreement and the Upper Columbia River Management Agreement, the available harvest is to be split equally between treaty and non-Indian fisheries.

Non-Indian fishing includes 5,000 fish caught offshore, so treaty fishers are allowed 21,000 fish and non-Indian fishers are allowed 16,000 fish in the river.

Summer steelhead counts through Bonneville Dam are expected to hit 298,000 fish, July through October. That’s 89 percent of the 2005 – 2015 average of 334,600 fish. As of June 8, the count at Bonneville was 2,580 fish.

Summer steelhead prior to July 1 are considered Skamania stock and those passing the dam after July 1 are classified as either Group A or B fish, depending on length. Summer steelhead handled downstream of Bonneville Dam during May and June are considered lower river stock and beginning in July they are considered upriver stock.

The non-Indian ESA impact limit on wild summer steelhead is 2 percent January through July. The non-Indian impact May through June has been just 0.5 percent and is expected to be similar in 2015.

The Compact is forecasting a strong sockeye salmon return of 394,000 fish, including 106,700 Wenatchee fish, 285,500 Okanogan fish and 1,800 Snake River fish. As of June 8, passage of sockeye at Bonneville was 5,062 fish, greater than the expected 2,800 fish at this time. The average 50 percent passage date is June 27.

The impact limit on ESA-listed sockeye is 1 percent for non-Indian fishing and 7 percent for treaty Indian fishing. For non-Indian fishing, the allocation is 30 percent to commercial gillnetters and 70 percent to recreational anglers.

Treaty Indian fishers are allocated 21,000 adult summer chinook salmon and 27,580 sockeye salmon. The compact estimates the catch for these openings will be 11,200 summer chinook and 8,900 sockeye.

Treaty Indian platform and hook and line fishing will be open June 16 through July 31.

A summer chinook non-Indian commercial fishery was approved by the Compact for 9 p.m. June 17 through 5 a.m. June 18 (8 hours). Effort by gillnetters is expected to be moderate with just 75 boats, with an expected catch of 1,500 fish. The sockeye catch during this fishery is expected to be well below the allocated 1,182 fish.

Summer recreational fishing will be open June 16 through July 6 from the Astoria-Megler Bridge in Astoria upstream to Bonneville Dam and June 16 through July 31 from Bonneville Dam upstream to Priest Rapids Dam for both adipose fin-clipped chinook and sockeye salmon. The daily bag limit includes two hatchery adult salmon. Sockeye can be retained as part of the adult daily bag limit.

The next Compact meeting is scheduled for June 24 to review stock status and to consider non-Indian fisheries.