New rules to trigger fishing closures on low North Coast streams

New fishing regulations governing low-flow closures for rivers and streams along the North Coast take effect this week and appear poised to prompt the immediate closure of Sonoma and Marin county waterways to recreational anglers for the time being, according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

That closure, however, would not cover the Russian River.

The revised rules, adopted in December and finally on the books as of Monday, are designed to be more responsive to dry weather patterns by establishing triggers that reflect regional conditions better than former regulations did, Fish and Wildlife officials said.

They also include, for the first time, a permanent threshold at which anglers would be barred from fishing on the Russian River whenever the flow-rate drops to a certain level - an automatic trigger that forestalls the need for crisis regulations such as were put into effect last year, though not until the river had been at a critical state for weeks.

The goal is to enable the state to move quickly and efficiently to eliminate the added pressure of recreational fishing on threatened and endangered fish species at a time they already are challenged by low flows that slow or block their travel upstream to spawning grounds. Those circumstances make them more vulnerable to predation, physiological stress and disease, Fish and Wildlife personnel said.

“We’re trying to give fish a chance,” Ryan Watanabe, a state fish biologist, said Tuesday.

The new regulations govern the period between Oct. 1 and April 30 of each year and call for the closure of coastal streams in Sonoma and Marin counties any time the current on the South Fork Gualala River near Gualala falls to 150 cubic feet per second or lower.

As the South Fork Gualala was around 126 cfs on Tuesday, anglers can expect the state to announce Wednesday that no fishing is permitted on Salmon Creek, the Gualala River, Russian Gulch Creek, and Walker Creek, in Marin County, until conditions improve, Watanabe said.

Mendocino County streams will be linked to the flow rate on the Navarro River near Navarro. Under the new regulations, the minimum flow there is 200 cfs.

The Navarro River was running at about 220 cfs Tuesday, so Mendocino County streams are “close to being closed,” but not there yet, Watanabe said.

But the Russian River, which his highly manipulated by water releases from two major reservoirs - Lake Mendocino in the upper watershed and Lake Sonoma near Healdsburg - was running strongly Tuesday at about 1050 cfs, well above the new 300 cfs threshold that would trigger closure of the main stem to anglers.

Fishermen have expressed mixed opinions about the regulations, with some supporting tighter limits and others concerned about government over-reaction.

Many however said they welcomed the attempt to fix what had been a problematic system for area streams. Previously, all closures in Marin, Sonoma and Mendocino counties were linked to the Russian River, which, because of its artificially controlled flows, did not necessarily reflect the state of other streams and rivers in the region.

“In the past, by the time this thing (the Russian River) got down to 500 (cfs), the Gualala could have had no water for three weeks,” said Scott Heemstra, an avid fisherman and manager at King’s Sport and Tackle in Guerneville. “So it’s a good thing.”

But the timing is tough, given it’s peak season for steelhead fishing, said Heemstra.

He said the closures have also impacted sales at the bait and tackle store in Guerneville, which lost 90 percent of its business for 2½ months last spring.

He said the prospect of October closures is also troubling because that’s prime time for a variety of freshwater fish that aren’t protected as endangered or threatened species but will be unavailable to anglers because of stream closures.

The rules were born out of three years of continuous drought that have profoundly altered California’s landscape and waterways, diminishing streams and rivers, and even drying up some smaller ones during summer heat.

Anita Laiwa, a clerk at Gualala Sport and Tackle in Gualala, said flow in the nearby Gualala River had been low for week, so much so that a sand bar has closed the mouth, preventing fish from coming in from the ocean in any case.

“To tell you the truth a lot of my local fisher guys are just rock fishing right now,” she said.

Under pre-existing law, coastal streams and rivers in Marin, Sonoma and Mendocino counties - except for the Russian River - were subject to closure between Oct. 1 and April 1 any time the Russian River flow fell to 500 cfs in Guerneville, mostly to protect spawning coho and chinook salmon, and steelhead trout.

After a scramble last year to react to drought conditions around the North Coast, the Fish and Game Commission extended the window from April 1 to April 30 for coastal streams and adopted an emergency fishing ban for the Russian River’s main stem, from Ukiah to the river delta near Jenner.

But all of that took time, leaving the fish at the mercy of sport anglers willing to keep fishing despite an advantage some observers likened to shooting fish in a barrel.

Many others backed off of their own accord even before the state ban took effect.

The new regulations require the status for streams and rivers to be re-evaluated three times a week to reflect the latest flow conditions.

Fishermen are responsible to check on the status of given streams themselves, and can do so by calling state-administered hotlines to be updated by 1 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

The number for stream information in Sonoma and Marin counties is (707) 944-5533. For Mendocino County, it is (707) 822-3164.

You can reach Staff Writer Mary Callahan at 521-5249 or mary.callahan@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @MaryCallahanB.

EDITOR’S NOTE: This story has been updated to correct the location of the South Fork Gualala River near Gualala.