Page 6C
OUTSIDE
East Oregonian
Saturday, October 28, 2017
Bag limit increased for area steelhead fisheries
their local ODFW office to schedule
an appointment. Chronic wasting
disease has not been shown to
sicken people, although the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention
advise people not to eat meat from
infected animals.
By GEORGE PLAVEN
East Oregonian
Steelhead runs are coming
in stronger than expected up the
Grande Ronde and Imnaha rivers,
prompting fisheries managers to
increase the number of hatch-
ery-born steelhead available for
anglers to retain in northeast
Oregon.
The bag limit for steelhead
was increased to two hatchery fish
per day on the rivers beginning
Saturday, Oct. 21, about two months
after the limit was lowered to one
fish amid reports of historically low
summer steelhead returns.
Based on fish counts at Bonne-
ville Dam, the Oregon Department
of Fish & Wildlife now expects
more than 3,000 hatchery fish in
the Grande Ronde Basin and nearly
2,000 in the Imnaha Basin. The
increased bag limit also applies to
the Snake, Wenaha and Wallowa
rivers, as well as Big Sheep Creek.
“We’ve got more fish left over
for fishermen than we thought
we did,” said Jeff Yanke, ODFW
district fish biologist in Enterprise.
According to the most recent
estimates, Yanke said there are
twice as many Imnaha steelhead
past Lower Granite Dam compared
to this time last year, and about as
many Grande Ronde steelhead.
However, those totals are still just
half of steelhead returns from two
years ago.
“It’s still a really low run,”
Yanke said.
Yanke said the one-fish limit
was based on preseason forecasts,
though it is better to manage
conservatively off the bat than
manage liberally and regret it later.
At the time, ODFW counted
70,000 hatchery and 25,000 wild
steelhead past Bonneville Dam,
Hunting, fishing fees
set to increase again
EO Media Group file photo
A fisherman casts his line into the Grande Ronde in this August 2014 file photo.
which was just 30 percent of the
most recent 10-year average.
The increased bag limit brings
Oregon into alignment with
Washington and Idaho fishing
regulations.
“We definitely think there are
plenty of hatchery fish to harvest
out there,” Yanke said.
Chronic wasting
disease increasing
Meanwhile, ODFW is also
stepping up its monitoring for
chronic wasting disease, a fatal
neurological infection in deer, elk
and moose.
Though it has never been
detected in Oregon, chronic wasting
disease is spreading across North
America and has been documented
in Colorado, Montana, Wyoming,
Utah and Alberta, Canada. The
disease is caused by an abnormal
protein that damages the brain of
infected animals, causing them to
gradually lose weight and bodily
functions.
Chronic wasting disease is
not treatable and always fatal.
Colin Gillin, ODFW state wildlife
veterinarian, said it is one of the
most devastating wildlife diseases
on the American landscape, and is
nearly impossible to eradicate once
it infects deer and elk.
“If we ever document (chronic
wasting disease) in Oregon, we
want to act quickly and will need
the support of Oregon hunters,”
Gillin said. “Early detection is our
best chance to keep the disease
from spreading, should it enter the
state.”
ODFW has run check stations
for years in Eastern Oregon,
monitoring for the disease. Wild-
life officials sampled for chronic
wasting disease during the opening
weekend of rifle deer season, and
will host another two check stations
Sunday, Oct. 29 and Monday, Oct.
30 for elk season — one station will
be set up at Biggs Junction along
Interstate 84, and another will
be set up east of Prineville along
Highway 26.
Hunters interested in having
their animals tested can contact
Hunting and fishing license fees
are due for a scheduled increase in
2018.
The Oregon Fish and Wildlife
Commission has adopted new fees
that were previously approved
by the state Legislature when it
passed ODFW’s 2015-17 budget.
Normally, ODFW raises fees once
every six years but opted instead
for a more modest increase once
every two years, beginning in 2016.
Hunting and fishing licenses
for 2018 will go on sale Dec. 1.
An annual hunting license will
increase by $1.50 to $33.50, an
annual fishing license will increase
by $3 to $41 and a combination
license will increase by $4 to $69.
Fee increases were intended to
help alleviate a $32 million budget
shortfall for the 2015-17 biennium.
The cost of youth licenses will
remain the same, in an effort to
make hunting and fishing more
affordable for families, according
to ODFW. Oregon’s outdoor
recreation and retail industry
supports more than 20,000 jobs and
contributes $3 billion directly to the
economy, according to figures the
governor’s office.
A complete list of hunting and
fishing fees can be found online at
www.dfw.state.or.us.
———
Contact George Plaven at
gplaven@eastoregonian.com or
541-966-0825.
U.S. considers higher entry fees
at 17 popular national parks
By FELICIA FONSECA
Associated Press
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife via AP, file
In this 2015 file photo provided by the Oregon Depart-
ment of Fish and Wildlife, an ODFW biologist is in the
process of collaring wolf OR-33, a 2-year-old adult male
from the Imnaha pack, in Oregon’s Wallowa County.
The wolf was killed illegally in southern Oregon in
spring 2017.
Reward offered for info
on wolf-killing poacher
By GILLIAN FLACCUS
Associated Press
PORTLAND — The U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service
and five conservation groups
have teamed up to offer
$15,500 for information
about the illegal poaching
of a federally protected gray
wolf that was shot dead in a
national forest in southern
Oregon.
The wolf, known as
OR-33, was being tracked
by authorities and is one
of at least eight that have
been poached or died under
mysterious circumstances
in the state since 2015, the
conservation groups said.
The groups in a statement
Tuesday said OR-33 was
found dead of gunshot
wounds in Fremont Winema
National Forest on April
23. DNA tests only recently
confirmed that he was
OR-33, a 4-year-old male
who left a pack in northeast
Oregon in 2015. His radio
tracking collar stopped
working last year.
Over two days in June,
he killed two goats and one
lamb at a small livestock
operation near the small
city of Ashland just north
of Oregon’s border with
California.
The federal agency is
offering $5,000 for infor-
mation about the poaching
and the conservation groups
are offering an additional
$10,500 combined.
“Wolf recovery in Oregon
depends on wolves like
OR-33 making their way
“Wolf recovery in
Oregon depends on
wolves like OR-33
making their way
west and thriving.”
— Amaroq Weiss, West
Coast wolf advocate at the
Center for Biological Diversity
west and thriving, so his
death is a major setback. We
hope someone will do the
right thing and come forward
with information,” said
Amaroq Weiss, West Coast
wolf advocate at the Center
for Biological Diversity.
Killing gray wolves in
the western two-thirds of
Oregon is a violation of the
federal Endangered Species
Act and of Oregon state
game laws.
The federal offense
is punishable by up to a
$100,000 fine, a year in jail,
or both. The maximum state
penalty is a fine of $6,250
and a year in jail.
In 2016, OR-33 roamed
almost within Ashland’s
city limits and was seen
by numerous residents,
according to the Statesman
Journal.
Wolves in Oregon hunt
deer, elk, bighorn sheep and
goats, but also can target
livestock and are loathed by
many livestock owners.
State wildlife officials say
141 livestock or domestic
animals have been killed by
wolves in Oregon since they
began returning to the state
in the late 1990s.
Did someone in your hunting party
bag a trophy buck or bull this year?
Email a photo of the prize to
ttrainor@eastoregonian.com
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. — The
National Park Service is considering
a steep increase in entrance fees at 17
of its most popular parks, mostly in
the U.S. West, to address a backlog
of maintenance and infrastructure
projects.
Visitors to the Grand Canyon,
Yosemite, Yellowstone, Zion and other
national parks would be charged $70
per vehicle, up from the fee of $30 for
a weekly pass. At others, the hike is
nearly triple, from $25 to $70.
A 30-day public comment period
opened Tuesday. The Park Service
says it expects to raise $70 million a
year with the proposal at a time when
national parks repeatedly have been
breaking visitation records and putting
a strain on park resources. Nearly
6 million people visited the Grand
Canyon last year.
“We need to have a vision to look at
the future of our parks and take action
in order to ensure that our grandkids’
grandkids will have the same if not
better experience than we have today,”
Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke said in
a statement. “Shoring up our parks’
aging infrastructure will do that.”
Annual $80 passes for federal lands
would not change, though fees would
go up for pedestrians and motorcy-
clists. The higher fees would apply
only during the five busiest contiguous
months for parks; for most that’s May
through September when many fami-
lies are on vacation.
The proposal would not affect
several free weekends and holidays at
parks throughout the year.
It comes not long after many of the
parks that charge entrance fees raised
them. The rationale is the same this
time around — to address a backlog
of maintenance and infrastructure
projects.
The Park Service estimated deferred
maintenance across its parks at $11.3
billion as of September 2016, down
from $11.9 billion in 2015.
Kevin Dahl, Arizona senior
program manager for the National
Parks Conservation Association,
AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File
In this 2015 file photo, a long line of hikers head out of the Grand
Canyon along the Bright Angel Trail at Grand Canyon National Park, Ariz.
The National Park Service is floating a proposal to increase entrance
fees at 17 of its most popular sites next year.
said maintenance costs should fall to
Congress, not visitors.
“We’ve supported increases at the
parks, they are a huge value for the
price of entrance,” he said. “But we
want to look closely at this and we want
local communities to look closely at
this to see if it would impact visitation
because we don’t want to price people
out of the parks.”
Latino Outdoors founder Jose
Gonzalez said the need for revenue
and to control the crowds at the busiest
parks is understandable but he ques-
tioned the potential impact.
“If there isn’t always a question or
consideration of equitable access to a
lot of communities, it’s only going to
increase the disparity in terms of who
is able to access our national parks and
public lands,” he said.
Not all Park Service sites charge
entrance fees. The 118 that do keep
80 percent of revenue for things like
fixing restrooms, signs, trails, exhibits
and campgrounds and send 20 percent
into a pot to help other free park sites.
Erik and Janet Schwartz of Boston
said regular maintenance is vital for
enjoying national parks. The couple
was wrapping up a four-week trip that
included visits to Bryce, Zion and the
Grand Canyon.
The entrance fees are a bargain
considering the vastness of the parks,
they said, but they also want assurance
the revenue is used as intended.
“If they have the true justification
for that, then I think preserving these
lands for future generations is abso-
lutely critical,” Erik Schwartz said.
Flagstaff
resident
Brittany
Montague said the proposed increase is
“completely unreasonable,” especially
for young families and those making
a day trip to national parks. If the cost
included a guided tour or family photo,
“it might make it worth it,” she said.
The proposal applies to Arches,
Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands and
Zion in Utah; Yosemite, Sequoia &
Kings Canyon and Joshua Tree in
California; Grand Teton and Yellow-
stone in Wyoming; Mount Rainier and
Olympic in Washington; Shenandoah
in Virginia; Acadia in Maine; Rocky
Mountain in Colorado; the Grand
Canyon in Arizona; and Denali in
Alaska.
Denali is structured differently
because it’s largely a drive-through
park. The vehicle fee doesn’t apply.
The proposed increase per person is
from $10 to $30.
Tribes release wild steelhead into Snake River
East Oregonian
This year’s low steelhead returns
are getting a much-needed boost after
fisheries biologists with the Nez Perce
Tribe and Columbia River Inter-Tribal
Fish Commission released 100 wild,
B-run fish Tuesday into the Snake
River just below Lower Granite Dam.
Funded by the Bonneville Power
Administration, the tribes’ steelhead
restoration project is an effort to
increase adult steelhead returns to the
Snake River Basin by maximizing
their ability to repeat spawn. All of the
fish released Tuesday were kelts, or
steelhead that have spawned at least
once, collected during out-migration in
spring 2016 and 2017.
The fish were nursed back to health
at the Nez Perce Tribal Hatchery in
Idaho before being the females were
ready to spawn again, and released
back into the wild.
“With an expected natural return of
around 500 female B-run steelhead,
this year’s kelt release will boost the
number of the spawners in the Snake
River by 20 percent,” said Doug
Hatch, senior fisheries scientist and
kelt project leader for CRITFC. “This
work is beneficial every year, but
absolutely critical in low-return years
like this one.”
Nearly all steelhead survive after
spawning, though in the Snake River
Basin only about half of each year’s
run makes it back to Lower Granite
Dam, and less than 1 percent survive to
repeat another spawning cycle.
Jaime Pinkham, CRITFC executive
director, said kelts have always been
part of the ecosystem.
“Through the tribal reconditioning
program we are merely nurturing an
existing process to increase natural
reproduction and significantly increase
a kelt’s chances of spawning again,”
Pinkham said.
More infomration on the program
can be found at www.critfc.org.