The Record Searchlight
By Damon Arthur
February 23, 2012
Under a new set of rules proposed by the state Department of Fish and Game, the agency would reduce the number of gold miners’ suction dredging permits it issues annually statewide from 4,000 to 1,500 and prohibit dredging on more than 20 north state streams.
The regulation is one of many proposed changes to statewide regulations that the DFG has proposed to comply with court orders and recent state laws.
Yesterday, by unanimous decision, the California Fish and Game Commission rejected proposed changes to striped bass regulations. To reduce predation on native salmonids and Delta smelt, the California Department of Fish and Game (CDFG) proposed decreasing size restrictions and increasing bag limits of striped bass. The sport fishing regulation changes were intended to reduce the size and abundance of striped bass in the Delta and Central Valley tributaries, and were proposed as part of a settlement agreement to a lawsuit by the Coalition for a Sustainable Delta. No word yet on how this will impact the original lawsuit, but, we think it’s fair to say that this issue is far from over.
Fisheries research, monitoring, and conservation