IFPAG Meeting, Feb. 25, 2012
Posted: Sat Feb 25, 2012 10:02 pm
Item 1: Personnel Changes
Fish Program Manager Jim Uehara retired and is replaced by Spokane-area biologist Chris Donnelly.
Item 2: 2012 Tiger Muskie Stocking
WDFW has about 5200 to 5300 plantable fingerlings, short of the 6000 goal, because a circulation problem caused the loss of all the fry in one of the round tanks.
Item 3: Northern Pike
I'll try to limit this to new information and avoid rehashing what you already know. WDFW changed its regulations this winter to clean up the confusing dual designation of northern pike as a game fish and prohibited species. They are no longer a game fish and are now a prohibited species. You can fish for them, and it's legal to release them back to the waters from which caught, but you can't transport them and WDFW prefers you kill every pike you catch. WDFW's management goals are to (1) reduce pike numbers in the Pend O'Reilles River, (2) minimize their impact on other species, and (3) keep them from spreading. To give you an idea of how they've proliferated, the 2004 net survey caught 26 pike and the 2009 survey netted 755 pike. WDFW doesn't think they can be eliminated, but hopes to reduce the population by 87%, roughly back to 2004 levels, and keep it there. WDFW likes suggestions by Spokane-area pike anglers to use angling harvest and tournaments as a means of population control; a Kalispell tribal pilot project showed gillnetting also works, and the tribe plans to gillnet pike for 6 weeks beginning in early March. Most of the pike now in the river are small; about 80% are 20 to 27 inches.
Item 4: WDFW Budget
WDFW's biennial (2-year) budget is about $358 million, of which 32% is State General Fund, 18% is Wildlife Account (hunting and fishing license sales), 30% is Federal and 20% is Local Government sources. Under the new budget being debated in the legislature, the percentages for State General Fund and Wildlife Account reverse to about 17% and 33% respectively. The big picture is that our cash-strapped legislature is shifting the financial burden of supporting WDFW's recreational programs from taxpayers to license buyers, but State General Funding won't completely go away, because legislators are willing to continue providing state funding for these four activities: (1) salmon recovery, (2) hatcheries, (3) enforcement, and (4) hydraulic permits. Overall, WDFW has lost half of its State General Funds over the past 4 years, from $110 million to $55M, but some of that was replaced by other sources, so the net loss is about $25-30M. Because at least 85% of WDFW's expenses are personnel costs, spending reductions had to be achieved by reducing staff (including layoffs), as you know. The good news (to the extent there is any) is that license sales, assisted by modest license fee increases, have held up well despite the weak economy. Fiscal Year (FY) 2008 sales were $19.1M, FY2009 sales were $18.7M, FY2010 sales were $20.1M, FY2011 sales were $19.4M, and FY2012 is $23.6M. Over that period, participation in hunting has declined from about 138.6 thousand to 129.1K persons, but fishing participation has grown from 295.7K to 364.1K persons. If you're curious how much 2-pole fees contribute, it's about $40,000 per year -- not a lot, but every bit helps -- and WDFW is studying possible additional user fees.
Item 5: IFPAG's Structure
Last year, WDFW reduced IFPAG's membership from 25 to 15, and my general impression is IFPAG is now a leaner and meaner group. By that I mean WDFW has retained the most focused and motivated members, and we're having productive discussions with enough time for everyone to participate. "Inland fish policy" includes both trout and warmwater fish, and this advisory group is an important avenue for WDFW managers to get feedback representing the public's interests on management and policy issues affecting our state's inland fisheries. I like the group's new format. IFPAG meets 3 times a year, with our next meeting likely to occur in July.
Fish Program Manager Jim Uehara retired and is replaced by Spokane-area biologist Chris Donnelly.
Item 2: 2012 Tiger Muskie Stocking
WDFW has about 5200 to 5300 plantable fingerlings, short of the 6000 goal, because a circulation problem caused the loss of all the fry in one of the round tanks.
Item 3: Northern Pike
I'll try to limit this to new information and avoid rehashing what you already know. WDFW changed its regulations this winter to clean up the confusing dual designation of northern pike as a game fish and prohibited species. They are no longer a game fish and are now a prohibited species. You can fish for them, and it's legal to release them back to the waters from which caught, but you can't transport them and WDFW prefers you kill every pike you catch. WDFW's management goals are to (1) reduce pike numbers in the Pend O'Reilles River, (2) minimize their impact on other species, and (3) keep them from spreading. To give you an idea of how they've proliferated, the 2004 net survey caught 26 pike and the 2009 survey netted 755 pike. WDFW doesn't think they can be eliminated, but hopes to reduce the population by 87%, roughly back to 2004 levels, and keep it there. WDFW likes suggestions by Spokane-area pike anglers to use angling harvest and tournaments as a means of population control; a Kalispell tribal pilot project showed gillnetting also works, and the tribe plans to gillnet pike for 6 weeks beginning in early March. Most of the pike now in the river are small; about 80% are 20 to 27 inches.
Item 4: WDFW Budget
WDFW's biennial (2-year) budget is about $358 million, of which 32% is State General Fund, 18% is Wildlife Account (hunting and fishing license sales), 30% is Federal and 20% is Local Government sources. Under the new budget being debated in the legislature, the percentages for State General Fund and Wildlife Account reverse to about 17% and 33% respectively. The big picture is that our cash-strapped legislature is shifting the financial burden of supporting WDFW's recreational programs from taxpayers to license buyers, but State General Funding won't completely go away, because legislators are willing to continue providing state funding for these four activities: (1) salmon recovery, (2) hatcheries, (3) enforcement, and (4) hydraulic permits. Overall, WDFW has lost half of its State General Funds over the past 4 years, from $110 million to $55M, but some of that was replaced by other sources, so the net loss is about $25-30M. Because at least 85% of WDFW's expenses are personnel costs, spending reductions had to be achieved by reducing staff (including layoffs), as you know. The good news (to the extent there is any) is that license sales, assisted by modest license fee increases, have held up well despite the weak economy. Fiscal Year (FY) 2008 sales were $19.1M, FY2009 sales were $18.7M, FY2010 sales were $20.1M, FY2011 sales were $19.4M, and FY2012 is $23.6M. Over that period, participation in hunting has declined from about 138.6 thousand to 129.1K persons, but fishing participation has grown from 295.7K to 364.1K persons. If you're curious how much 2-pole fees contribute, it's about $40,000 per year -- not a lot, but every bit helps -- and WDFW is studying possible additional user fees.
Item 5: IFPAG's Structure
Last year, WDFW reduced IFPAG's membership from 25 to 15, and my general impression is IFPAG is now a leaner and meaner group. By that I mean WDFW has retained the most focused and motivated members, and we're having productive discussions with enough time for everyone to participate. "Inland fish policy" includes both trout and warmwater fish, and this advisory group is an important avenue for WDFW managers to get feedback representing the public's interests on management and policy issues affecting our state's inland fisheries. I like the group's new format. IFPAG meets 3 times a year, with our next meeting likely to occur in July.