Fish and Game Commission to Consider Responsible Striped Bass Regulations

Predation by non-native striped bass is a key stressor impacting endangered salmon and smelt populations in the Delta. The California Department of Fish and Game recently teamed with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service to recommend new fishing regulations to help reduce striped bass predation.

The proposed regulations will be considered by the California Fish and Game Commission on February 2, 2012. The Commission will be simply voting to move forward with a necessary environmental review before final action on the proposed regulations can be taken later this year.

There is growing scientific consensus that predation is as a major source of salmon and delta smelt mortality, but state regulators have repeatedly failed to address the problem of striped bass predation on these species. Striped bass are an invasive species that were planted in California as a sportfish. The Department of Fish and Game has long been protecting the voracious predators at the expense of salmon, delta and longfin smelt, and other endangered species through the imposition of size (18 inches minimum) and bag (2 per day) limits.

Proposed Regulations
The proposed regulations will:

• Decrease the size limit for striped bass to 12 inches
• Increase the bag limit to 6 per day.
• Establish a “hot spot” for striped bass fishing at Clifton Court Forebay at which the daily bag limit will be 20 fish.
• Include adaptive management and ongoing research components to evaluate the effects of the proposed changes on both the populations of striped bass and listed species and to make informed adjustments to the regulations in the future.

The proposed regulations are a responsible, balanced and common sense plan to regulate a known stressor to the Delta ecosystem. Recreational and sport fishing groups are bombarding the Commission with pleas to kill the proposed regulations without any further consideration.

Your Help is Now Needed
Send a letter of support for the new striped bass regulations to the California Fish and Game Commission by January 27.

For a sample letter, click here.