Title 5 . Fish and Game

Chapter 75 . Personal Use Fishery

Section 222. Policy for the management of sustainable wild trout fisheries

5 AAC 75.222. Policy for the management of sustainable wild trout fisheries

(a) The Board of Fisheries (board) and Department of Fish and Game (department) recognize that

(1) this state's wild trout and the trout's attendant ecosystems are important to the quality of life and economy of this state, and the state has long recognized the value of these fish in its management;

(2) many wild trout populations have been depleted or have disappeared from much of their range around the world; this state's wild trout populations are still largely intact and robust, largely because of remote locations and limited accessibility, abundant pristine habitat, and the historical application of sound, precautionary conservation and management practices; because this state's trout now represent a great spectrum of genetic diversity and because of the potential for irreversible loss of genetic integrity due to human activity, a comprehensive policy for the regulation and management of wild trout fisheries is essential to protect this biological resource in perpetuity;

(3) in formulating new or modifying existing fishery management objectives or plans, the board and department must consider factors including environmental change, habitat loss or degradation, data uncertainty, limited funding for research and management programs, and existing regulatory regimes; and

(4) to effectively assure optimal sustained yield and habitat protection for wild trout stocks, fishery management plans and programs require specific guiding principles and criteria, and the framework for their application, as provided in this section.

(b) The goal of the policy established in this section is to ensure conservation, sustainability, and optimal sustained yield of wild trout. Benefits of fisheries managed in accordance with this policy include quality of experience, diversity of opportunity, conservative consumptive harvest opportunities, and economic benefits of wild trout and the trout's attendant ecosystems.

(c) Management of wild trout fisheries should be based on the following principles and criteria:

(1) wild trout stocks and the trout's habitats should be maintained at levels of resource productivity that assure optimal sustained yield, as follows:

(A) wild trout spawning, rearing, and migratory habitats should be protected as follows:

(i) wild trout habitats should not be perturbed beyond natural boundaries of variation;

(ii) scientific assessments of possible adverse ecological effects of proposed habitat alterations and the impacts of the alterations on wild trout stocks should be conducted before approval of a regulatory proposal;

(iii) adverse environmental impacts on wild trout stocks and the trout's habitats should be assessed;

(iv) all essential wild trout habitat in marine, estuarine, and freshwater ecosystems and access of wild trout to these habitats should be protected; essential habitats include spawning and incubation areas, freshwater feeding and over-wintering areas, estuarine and nearshore rearing areas, offshore rearing areas, and migratory pathways;

(v) wild trout habitat in fresh water should be protected on a watershed basis, including appropriate management of riparian zones, water quality, and water quantity (instream flows);

(B) wild trout stocks should be protected within the trout's spawning, incubating, rearing, and migratory habitats;

(C) degraded wild trout productivity resulting from habitat loss should be assessed, considered, and controlled by affected user groups, regulatory agencies, and boards when making conservation and allocation decisions;

(D) degraded wild trout spawning, incubating, rearing, and migratory habitats should be restored to natural productivity;

(E) ongoing monitoring should be conducted to determine the current status of habitat and the effectiveness of restoration activities;

(F) depleted wild trout stocks should be allowed to recover; diversity should be maintained to the maximum extent possible at the genetic, population, species, and ecosystem levels;

(2) wild trout populations should be maintained for optimal sustained yield as follows:

(A) wild trout populations and trout population trends should be assessed both temporally and geographically; fishery monitoring programs should be appropriate to the scale, intensity, and importance of each wild trout stock's use;

(B) wild trout populations shall be managed in a manner consistent with the trout population's optimal sustained yield; unless otherwise directed, the department will manage Alaska's wild trout fisheries, to the extent practicable, to maintain desired size compositions and stock levels;

(C) wild trout should be managed at abundance levels so that stocking is not required to enhance or supplement the wild trout stock;

(D) wild trout management should allow for uncertainty associated with

(i) measurement and assessment techniques;

(ii) measured variability in the wild trout stock;

(iii) changes in climatic, aquatic, and oceanographic conditions; and

(iv) varying abundance within related populations of the wild trout stock;

(E) wild trout should be managed in a manner to maintain genetic and phenotypic characteristics of the stock by assuring appropriate geographic and temporal distribution of spawning fish as well as consideration of size range, sex ratio, and other population attributes;

(F) impacts of fishing, including incidental mortality, should be assessed and considered in harvest management decisions;

(G) wild trout harvest management decisions should be made in a manner that protects non-target stocks or species;

(H) the role of wild trout in ecosystem functioning should be evaluated and considered in the setting of wild trout management strategies;

(I) food sources important to wild trout populations should be identified;

(3) effective management systems should be established and applied to regulate human activities that affect wild trout, as follows:

(A) wild trout management objectives should be appropriate to the scale and intensity of various uses and the biological capacities of target wild trout stocks;

(B) management agencies should have clear authority in statutes and regulations to

(i) when practicable, control all sources of fishing mortality on wild trout; and

(ii) protect wild trout habitats and control non-fishing sources or mortality;

(C) management programs should be effective in

(i) controlling human-induced sources of fishing mortality and should incorporate procedures to assure effective monitoring, compliance, control, and enforcement; and

(ii) protecting wild trout habitats and controlling collateral mortality and should incorporate procedures to assure effective monitoring, compliance, control, and enforcement;

(D) fisheries management implementation and outcomes should be consistent with regulations, regulations should be consistent with statutes, and effectively carry out the purpose of this section;

(E) the board will recommend to the commissioner the development of effective joint research, assessment, and management with appropriate management agencies for wild trout stocks that cross state or federal jurisdictional boundaries; the board will recommend the coordination of appropriate procedures for effective monitoring, compliance, control, and enforcement with those of other agencies or states;

(F) the board will work within the limits of its authority to assure that

(i) management activities are accomplished in a timely and responsive manner to implement objectives, based on the best available scientific information;

(ii) effective mechanisms for the collection and dissemination of information and data necessary to carry out management activities are developed, maintained, and utilized; and

(iii) management programs and decision-making procedures are able to clearly distinguish, and effectively deal with, biological and allocation issues;

(G) the board will recommend to the commissioner and legislature that adequate staff and budget for research, management, and enforcement activities be available to fully implement sustainable wild trout fisheries principles;

(H) the board will consider, and where appropriate adopt, options to maintain diversity of experience in wild trout fisheries;

(I) the board will consider gear regulations that assure minimal levels of injury and mortality to wild trout;

(J) the board will work with the commissioner and agencies to develop an effective process for maintaining benefits and diversity;

(K) procedures should be implemented to regularly evaluate the effectiveness of fishery management and habitat protection actions in sustaining wild trout populations, fisheries, and habitat, and to resolve associated problems or deficiencies;

(L) conservation and management decisions for wild trout fisheries should take into account the best available information on biological, environmental, economic, social, and resource use factors;

(M) research and data collection should be undertaken to improve scientific and technical knowledge of wild trout fisheries, including ecosystem interactions, status of wild trout populations, and the condition of wild trout habitats;

(N) the best available scientific information on the status of wild trout populations and the condition of wild trout habitat should be routinely updated and subject to peer review;

(4) public support and involvement for sustained use and protection of wild trout resources should be sought and encouraged, as follows:

(A) the board will work with the department and the public to determine the benefits desired for wild trout and whether the current opportunities are meeting these desires; identified benefits should promote quality of experience, diversity of opportunity, conservative consumptive harvest opportunity, and economic benefits and be implementable by management objective;

(B) effective mechanisms for dispute resolution should be developed and used;

(C) pertinent information and decisions should be effectively disseminated to advisory committees and all other interested parties in a timely manner;

(D) the board's regulatory management and allocation decisions will be made in an open public involvement process;

(E) an understanding of the proportion of mortality inflicted on each wild trout stock by each user group should be conveyed and the burden of conservation should be allocated across user groups in a manner consistent with applicable state and federal statutes; in the absence of a regulatory management plan that otherwise allocates or restricts uses, and when it is necessary to restrict fisheries on wild trout stocks where there are known conservation problems, the burden of conservation should be shared among all fisheries in close proportion to each fisheries respective use, consistent with state and federal law;

(F) the board will work with the commissioner, other agencies, advisory committees, and the legislature as necessary to assure that adequately funded public information and education programs provide timely materials on wild trout conservation, including habitat requirements, threats to wild trout habitat, the value of wild trout and habitat to the public and fish and wildlife ecosystem, natural variability and population dynamics, the status of wild trout stocks and fisheries, and the regulatory process;

(5) in the face of uncertainty, wild trout stocks, fisheries, and essential habitats will be managed conservatively, as follows:

(A) a precautionary approach involving the application of prudent foresight that takes into account the uncertainties in wild trout fisheries and habitat management, the biological, social, cultural, and economic risks, and the need to take action with incomplete knowledge should be applied to the regulation and control of harvest and other human-induced sources of wild trout mortality; a precautionary approach requires

(i) consideration of the needs of future generations and avoidance of potentially irreversible changes;

(ii) prior identification of undesirable outcomes and of measures that will avoid undesirable outcomes or correct them promptly;

(iii) initiation of any necessary corrective measure without delay and prompt achievement of the corrective measure's purpose;

(iv) that where the impact of resource use is uncertain, priority should be given to conserving the productive capacity of the resource; and

(v) that the appropriate burden of proof is placed on those plans or ongoing activities that pose a risk or hazard to wild trout habitat or production;

(B) a precautionary approach should be applied to the regulation of activities that affect essential wild trout habitat.

(d) The principles and criteria for wild trout fisheries will be applied by the department and the board using the best available information, as follows:

(1) at a regular meeting of the board, the department will, to the extent practicable, provide the board with reports on the status of wild trout stocks and fisheries under consideration for regulatory changes, which should include

(A) a stock-by-stock assessment of the extent to which the management of wild trout stocks and fisheries is consistent with the principles and criteria contained in the policy specified in this section;

(B) descriptions of habitat status and any habitat concerns;

(C) identification of healthy wild trout stocks and sustainable wild trout fisheries; and

(D) identification of any existing wild trout management actions needed to achieve these goals that may have allocative consequences, including

(i) the identification of any wild trout stocks, or populations within stocks, that present a concern related to conservation or optimal sustained yield; and

(ii) description of management and research options to address wild trout stock or habitat concerns;

(E) food sources important to wild trout populations should be identified;

(2) in response to the department's wild trout stock status reports, reports from other resource agencies, and public input, the board will review the management plan or consider developing a management plan for each affected wild trout fishery or stock; management plans will be based on the principles and criteria contained in this policy and will

(A) contain goals and measurable and implementable objectives that are reviewed on a regular basis and utilize the best available scientific information;

(B) minimize, as practicable, the adverse effects on wild trout habitat caused by fishing;

(C) protect, restore, and promote the long-term health and sustainability of the wild trout fishery and habitat;

(D) provide, if feasible, recommendations regarding food sources;

(E) prevent overfishing; and

(F) provide conservation and management measures that are necessary and appropriate to promote optimal sustained yield of the wild trout fishery resource;

(3) in the course of review of the wild trout stock status reports and management plans described in (1) and (2) of this subsection, the board, in consultation with the department, will determine if a sustainability concern or optimal sustained yield concern exists; if so, the board will, as appropriate, amend or develop wild trout fishery management plans to address the concerns;

(4) in association with the appropriate management plan, the department and the board will, as appropriate, collaborate in the development and periodic review of an action plan for any stock of concern; action plans should contain goals, measurable and implementable objectives and provisions, including

(A) measures required to restore and protect wild trout habitat, including necessary coordination with other agencies and organizations;

(B) identification of wild trout stock or population rebuilding goals and objectives;

(C) fishery management actions needed to achieve rebuilding goals and objectives in proportion to each fishery's use of, and hazards posed to, a wild trout stock;

(D) description of a sustainability concern or optimal sustained yield concern; and

(E) performance measures appropriate for monitoring and gauging the effectiveness of the action plan that are derived from the principles and criteria contained in this policy;

(5) each action plan will include a research plan as necessary to provide information to address concerns; research needs and priorities will be evaluated periodically, based on the effectiveness of the monitoring described in (4) of this subsection;

(6) where actions are needed to regulate human activities that affect wild trout and wild trout habitat that are outside the authority of the department or the board, the department or the board shall correspond with the relevant authority, including the governor, relevant boards and commissions, commissioners, and chairs of appropriate legislative committees, to describe the issue and recommend appropriate action.

(e) Nothing in this section is intended to expand, reduce, or be inconsistent with the statutory authority of the board, the department, or other state agencies with authority to adopt regulations affecting the fishery resources of the state.

(f) In this section, and in implementing this policy,

(1) "depleted wild trout stock" means a wild trout stock for which there is a sustainability concern;

(2) "diversity", in a biological context, means the range of variation exhibited within any level of organization, such as genotypes within a wild trout population, populations within a wild trout stock, wild trout stocks within a species, wild trout species within a community, or communities within an ecosystem;

(3) "genetic" means those characteristics (genotypic) of an individual or group of wild trout that are expressed genetically, such as allele frequencies or other genetic markers;

(4) "habitat concern" means the degradation of wild trout habitat that results in or can be anticipated to result in, impacts leading to a sustainability concern or optimal sustained yield concern;

(5) "healthy wild trout stock" means a wild trout stock that is able to sustain a specified optimal sustained yield management objective so that stocking is not required and which is characterized by fishing activities and habitat alteration, if any, that do not cause or lead to significant undesirable changes in biological productivity, biological diversity, or ecosystem structure and function, from one human generation to the next;

(6) "incidental harvest" means the harvest of fish or other species that is captured in addition to the target species of fish;

(7) "incidental mortality" means the mortality imposed on a wild trout stock other than directed harvest, and includes mortality caused by incidental harvests, interaction with fishing gear, habitat degradation, and other human-related activities;

(8) "optimal sustained yield" means an average annual yield from a stock managed for objectives other than maximum yield considered to be optimal in achieving a specified management objective designed to attain a specified benefit while maintaining healthy stock status and genetic integrity; benefits include, quality of experience, diversity of opportunity, conservative consumptive harvest opportunity, and economic benefits;

(9) "optimal sustained yield concern" means a threshold level of size composition genetic diversity, or abundance below which the ability of the wild trout stock to maintain a desired optimal sustained yield management objective is jeopardized;

(10) "overfishing" means a level of fishing on a wild trout stock that results in a sustainability concern or optimal sustained yield concern;

(11) "phenotypic characteristics" means those characteristics of an individual or group of wild trout that are expressed physically, such as body size and length at age;

(12) "stock of concern" means a stock of wild trout for which there is a sustainability concern or optimal sustained yield concern;

(13) "sustainability concern" means indications of a trend expected to result in a threshold level of size composition, genetic diversity, or abundance below which the ability of the wild trout stock to sustain itself is jeopardized;

(14) "wild trout" means the species rainbow trout or steelhead trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), or cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii), that are wild;

(15) "wild trout population" means a locally interbreeding group of wild trout that is distinguished by a distinct combination of genetic, phenotypic, life history, and habitat characteristics, comprised of an entire stock or a component portion of a stock; the smallest uniquely identifiable spawning aggregation of genetically similar wild trout used for monitoring purposes;

(16) "wild trout stock" means a locally interbreeding group of wild trout that is distinguished by a distinct combination of genetic, phenotypic, life history, and habitat characteristics or an aggregation of two or more interbreeding groups which occur within the same geographic area and is managed as a unit.

History: Eff. 11/19/2003, Register 168

Authority: AS 16.05.251