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Sport fishery cries foul at DFO's rules

*ldBlackDog said: Sport fishery cries foul at DFO's rules Chinook catch limited to two per day, with additional restrictions on size Sandra Mcculloch Times Colonist Sunday, March 16, 2008 Victoria sport fishermen say they're being unfairly targeted by a new Department of Fisheries and Oceans regulation that limits their catch of chinook salmon. The restriction aims to protect the early-timed Fraser River chinook, which are very low in numbers this year. The restriction limits the chinook fishery by commercial, recreational and First Nations fisheries between Cadboro Point in Saanich and Sheringham Point, near Shirley. The allowable catch is now two fish per day, with a minimum length of 45 centimetres and a maximum of 67 cm. The restriction affects both wild and hatchery-raised chinook caught between March 11 and May 15. The aim, according to a DFO fishery notice, is to halt the decline of early-timed chinook. "We regard it as unfair, pointing the gun at us," said Chris Bos, president of the Victoria Fish and Game Protective Association and chairman of the local sport-fishery advisory committee. The new restriction was announced March 7 and went into effect just four days later, giving the charter fishery short notice to inform clients. "There's a very good sport-fishery consultation process that meets with govern- ment several times a year," said Bos. "They come at us at the last minute and we have to quickly advise all our clients. It's a nightmare." The restriction isn't going to achieve its aim of protecting the Fraser River chinook, Bos suggested. Some fishermen are upset there are no such restrictions on the First Nations who catch chinook in the river on their way upstream, he said. "The department has to address all the harvesters and they have to do it equally, but what's happening is there is a far higher percentage of those fish being extracted in the river." The affected area off Victoria has a mixed fishery with few Fraser River chinook, Bos said. "We're being unfairly targeted in Victoria. We're not against the conservation of Fraser River chinook. We're in favour of making salmon stocks healthy." Sport fishermen are also upset the restriction lumps the harvest of hatchery chinook in with wild salmon. "That fish is not an endangered species -- it's a completely different fish," said Bos. Anglers are already upset the halibut opening was pushed back from the normal start of Feb. 1 to March 1, he said. These changes will mean the sport fishery here will take a financial hit, Bos said. "You're dealing with charter trips that are worth $1,000, you're dealing with salmon trips that are worth $550 and that's part of that [charter operator's] annual income." The salmon fishery off Victoria is popular year-round, he said. "Ninety-nine per cent of those fish [being restricted] are not those we're trying to conserve," Bos said. smcculloch@tc.canwest.com © Times Colonist (Victoria) 2008