The proposed rule change would make it mandatory for several non-treaty coastal and Puget Sound commercial shellfish fisheries including: Dungeness crab, ocean pink shrimp, pink shrimp, coonstripe shrimp, sidestripe shrimp, and spot shrimp, to report all landings into Washington ports using electronic fish tickets. The purpose of this change is to improve the timeliness of data collection in order to narrow data gaps, support management of catch relative to quotas, and to better respond to state-tribal co-management needs.
Please provide your comments to the proposed amendments to WAC 220-352-035, WAC 220-352-305, WAC 220-352-060, and WAC 220-352-140.
The proposed rule change would make it mandatory for several non-treaty coastal and Puget Sound commercial shellfish fisheries including: Dungeness crab, ocean pink shrimp, pink shrimp, coonstripe shrimp, sidestripe shrimp, and spot shrimp, to report all landings into Washington ports using electronic fish tickets. The purpose of this change is to improve the timeliness of data collection in order to narrow data gaps, support management of catch relative to quotas, and to better respond to state-tribal co-management needs.<br><br>Please provide your comments to the proposed amendments to WAC 220-352-035, WAC 220-352-305, WAC 220-352-060, and WAC 220-352-140.
Dear Fish and Wildlife Commissioners, I was a beta tester for the Puget Sound Shrimp Electronic Fish Ticket reporting system. I can see many reasons to implement the regulation/system but I would also like to also mention some reservations I have about its implementation. First of all, I feel the system should be put in place. It offers the potential of a near real-time management of commercial fisheries and will result in a more accurate timing of season openings and closures. Also, if the information is shared/updated daily on a website with it has the additional benefit of allowing fishers to anticipate these changes and to prepare to switch areas or to stack out ahead of time, especially if we see a weather system arriving. My concerns are that it could be a system that addresses the agencies needs but not the needs of the fisher. At this time, paper fish tickets provide a tangible record for a fisherman to keep and file for long-term records and to be shared with federal agencies, co-owners of permits, additional operators and fish and wildlife enforcement officers. A simple file folder can hold these records. I can go back years and years to review and collect my personal fishing history. How will electronic tickets serve these needs? Who can and should be able to access these records? Furthermore, the system I beta tested was a bit clunky and will need to be patiently implemented. It will require a working and charged-up smart phone each and every time one goes fishing, (I have on occasion forgot my phone in the morning and had a peaceful phone-free day on the water!) Accidents and situations that are not anticipated will happen. What are the back-up plans for cold, rainy, blustery days when fingers don't work well and/or the phone fell in the water? Or, days when the internet is down? Like I said before, it is or will be, a great improvement, but it needs to proceed somewhat captiously, as it is a significant change that will not be universally accepted well or ably.
I am in favor of electronic fish ticket reporting. I see one thing that would allow this to be much more manageable for the industry. Extending the reporting time to two working days after the date of the landings. Requiring submittal the day after the landings is not always realistic for getting accurate results. Many of the companies buying these products are small and staffing is short everywhere due to COVID. An extra day would allow the breathing room for companies to report accurately without issue.
I think this will provide a great advantage to our management staff in Puget Sound especially in the Crab fishery where often times the lag time in reporting catches us all off guard. I would eliminate the need for quick reporting which is a very unreliable system as it is and often times requires enforcement interaction to achieve compliance. With the electronic system once the fish ticket is entered the data is automatically collected and available for management to have access to real time data. I support this 100% and continue to impress upon the Commission the implementation of an electronic reporting APP for recreational harvesters as well.
Marjorie From: Morningstar Marjorie L (DFW) Sent: Tuesday August 3 2021 11:13 AM To: tlrussell924@hotmail.com Cc: commercialcrab@PublicInput.com Subject: FW: Ellsworth Backlash #128291 - Opinion regarding Etix Hi Terri - Thank you for sending Dean s input on using electronic tickets. Dean can fill out a paper ticket to transport the crab if you aren t there to enter the electronic ticket and get the electronic signature from the fisher. The electronic fish ticket has to be submitted within 24 hours of landing. I am forwarding Dean s comment to commercialcrab@PublicInput.com . Marjorie Morningstar Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife Commercial Harvest Data Team Manager marjorie.morningstar@dfw.wa.gov Work phone: 360-902-2854 Work cell: 360-819-7381 From: teri russell Sent: Tuesday August 3 2021 8:41 AM To: Allen Valerie G (DFW) Subject: Imprinter/Electronic Fish Tickets F/V Nola-K Dean Ellsworth External Email Dear Valerie First Dean says there is no adjustment on our printer. I started (and will continue) to hand-write the dealer number on the ticket. I would say we will buy another but it looks like we may be forced to switch to electronic reporting. That is my second point. Dean wants me to say that he has 50 years experience crab fishing and he does NOT want electronic reporting. He has no idea how to turn on a computer let alone do anything with it. He still carries a flip phone and won t even learn how to populate his contact list!! I told him we would have to do whatever is required (and I will) but he wanted his opinion expressed. Teri Russell
Hi Terri - Thank you for sending Dean s input on using electronic tickets. Dean can fill out a paper ticket to transport the crab if you aren t there to enter the electronic ticket and get the electronic signature from the fisher. The electronic fish ticket has to be submitted within 24 hours of landing. I am forwarding Dean s comment to commercialcrab@PublicInput.com . Marjorie Morningstar Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife Commercial Harvest Data Team Manager marjorie.morningstar@dfw.wa.gov Work phone: 360-902-2854 Work cell: 360-819-7381 From: teri russell Sent: Tuesday August 3 2021 8:41 AM To: Allen Valerie G (DFW) Subject: Imprinter/Electronic Fish Tickets F/V Nola-K Dean Ellsworth External Email Dear Valerie First Dean says there is no adjustment on our printer. I started (and will continue) to hand-write the dealer number on the ticket. I would say we will buy another but it looks like we may be forced to switch to electronic reporting. That is my second point. Dean wants me to say that he has 50 years experience crab fishing and he does NOT want electronic reporting. He has no idea how to turn on a computer let alone do anything with it. He still carries a flip phone and won t even learn how to populate his contact list!! I told him we would have to do whatever is required (and I will) but he wanted his opinion expressed. Teri Russell
Buoy tags are required on all crab gear fished in the coastal Dungeness crab fishery. Currently, a small number of replacement tags can be obtained if tags are lost between March 1 and April 30. The proposed rule making would eliminate the replacement buoy tag program will reduce the option for participants to obtain replacement tags during the season and will reduce the entanglement risk by reducing the number of lines in the water.
Please provide your comments to the proposed amendments to WAC 220-340-430.
Buoy tags are required on all crab gear fished in the coastal Dungeness crab fishery. Currently, a small number of replacement tags can be obtained if tags are lost between March 1 and April 30. The proposed rule making would eliminate the replacement buoy tag program will reduce the option for participants to obtain replacement tags during the season and will reduce the entanglement risk by reducing the number of lines in the water.<br><br>Please provide your comments to the proposed amendments to WAC 220-340-430.
While I am a Puget Sound Crab fisher and not a Coastal fisher I feel this would be a determent if enforced in Puget sound where our licenses only support 100 pots and in most seasons we typically regulate our licenses to 35 to 50 pots depending on areas fished. If the replacement tags were not available in season one could find themselves unable to compete.
As for the entanglement issue I have mentioned this to Dan Ayres in an email with no reply, I haven't kept up on all of the ideas floating around out there but I have one of my own. A few years ago I went to Maine on vacation / business and while I was there I went on a working trip aboard a lobster boat and in that fishery they fish what they refer to as pairs. This consist of two pots on a single buoy setup and works very well. In my opinion if this could be implemented in the coastal Crab fishery you could reduce the number of lines in the water by 50% with the stroke af the pen and fishers could still maintain their full compliment of gear.
I was a beta tester for the Puget Sound Shrimp Electronic Fish Ticket reporting system. I can see many reasons to implement the regulation/system but I would also like to also mention some reservations I have about its implementation.
First of all, I feel the system should be put in place. It offers the potential of a near real-time management of commercial fisheries and will result in a more accurate timing of season openings and closures. Also, if the information is shared/updated daily on a website with it has the additional benefit of allowing fishers to anticipate these changes and to prepare to switch areas or to stack out ahead of time, especially if we see a weather system arriving.
My concerns are that it could be a system that addresses the agencies needs but not the needs of the fisher. At this time, paper fish tickets provide a tangible record for a fisherman to keep and file for long-term records and to be shared with federal agencies, co-owners of permits, additional operators and fish and wildlife enforcement officers. A simple file folder can hold these records. I can go back years and years to review and collect my personal fishing history. How will electronic tickets serve these needs? Who can and should be able to access these records?
Furthermore, the system I beta tested was a bit clunky and will need to be patiently implemented. It will require a working and charged-up smart phone each and every time one goes fishing, (I have on occasion forgot my phone in the morning and had a peaceful phone-free day on the water!) Accidents and situations that are not anticipated will happen. What are the back-up plans for cold, rainy, blustery days when fingers don't work well and/or the phone fell in the water? Or, days when the internet is down?
Like I said before, it is or will be, a great improvement, but it needs to proceed somewhat captiously, as it is a significant change that will not be universally accepted well or ably.