DFG announces public meeting on potential Sturgeon Fishery Closure

The Department of Fish and Game (DFG) will hold a second public meeting in Colusa to review options for a potential sturgeon fishery closure on the Sacramento River. The meeting will be held at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 19 at the Colusa City Council Chambers, 425 Webster Street, Colusa.

The proposed regulations will prohibit fishing for both green sturgeon and white sturgeon from the Keswick Dam downstream to either Highway 32 (Option 1) or Highway 162 (Option 2). The two options propose different specifications ranging from partial to complete closure and new bait and gear restrictions.

Green sturgeon are among the largest and longest living species found in freshwater, living up to 70 years and weighing up to 350 pounds.

In June 2006, the green sturgeon that live south of the Eel River in Humboldt County were formally listed by the National Marine Fisheries Service as a threatened species under the federal Endangered Species Act. Green sturgeon are often caught by anglers fishing for white sturgeon, a species that is not listed or managed under sport fishing regulations.

This is the second public meeting to discuss proposed regulatory options for sturgeon being considered by the Fish and Game Commission (FGC) under its triennial sport fishing review cycle. The first public meeting was held in August in Chico and the proposed regulations were also discussed at the Commission's October and November public meetings.