CDFW Restricts the Use of Crab Traps for the Recreational Crab Fishery

April 13, 2022


   
California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) Director Charlton H. Bonham has assessed entanglement risk under the Risk Assessment Mitigation Program (RAMP) and in accordance with regulations adopted by the California Fish and Game Commission for the recreational crab fishery. Due to increased risk of whale entanglement, Director Bonham is restricting the use of crab traps for the remainder of the recreational Dungeness crab fishing season. The season ends on July 30, 2022 in Del Norte, Humboldt and Mendocino counties and on June 30, 2022 in all other counties.
 
The trap restriction becomes effective at 7 p.m. on April 24, 2022, at which point the use and deployment of recreational crab traps shall be prohibited. This restriction is being implemented because of the unusually large number of humpback whales that have migrated back to California waters earlier than in previous years and because of several recent humpback whale entanglements involving California commercial Dungeness crab fishing gear and gear of unknown origin. This statewide trap restriction will help minimize risk of entanglement as humpback whales continue to return to forage in California waters during the spring and summer months. Recreational take of Dungeness crab by other methods, including hoop nets and crab snares, is not affected by the trap restriction.
 
CDFW asks recreational crab fishermen to remove their traps as soon as possible but no later than 7 p.m. on April 24, 2022, and to be on the lookout for and report any entangled whales so a disentanglement response team can be mobilized to remove the gear. Reports can be made to 1-877-SOS-WHALE or contact the U.S. Coast Guard on VHF Channel 16.
 
CDFW, partnering researchers and federal agencies have conducted numerous aerial and vessel-based surveys from the California/Oregon state line to the Channel Islands in Southern California to observe marine life concentrations. Those surveys, and other inputs including important oceanographic data, inform the RAMP. This large collaborative effort works to use the best available science to manage an important California fishery. Its primary goal is to strike a balance between minimizing entanglement risk and providing fishing opportunity and ultimately fresh Dungeness crab for California residents.
 
For more information related to the risk assessment process, please visit CDFW’s Whale Safe Fisheries page (https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Marine/Whale-Safe-Fisheries). For more information on the Dungeness crab fishery, please visit CDFW’s Crab page (https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Marine/Invertebrates/Crabs), including FAQs for the new recreational crab trap regulations. A map of all Fishing Zones can be found on the CDFW website (https://wildlife.ca.gov/Portals/0/Images/marine/WSF/Final_RAMP_color_070621.jpg). 

CAN I RETURN MY CRAB TRAP STAMP

yeah,I mean I get it but shoot that 2.99 or whatever was kind of a burn on us.
my traps will probably become decorations now and I'll just stick with the hoops.

yeah,I mean I get it but shoot that 2.99 or whatever was kind of a burn on us.
my traps will probably become decorations now and I'll just stick with the hoops.

Am loves those decorations!

“Hey babe, I just pulled another 6 traps off the pier, in a few weeks you won’t even smell them anymore!”

Am, “ WTF Isao!!!!!!”

 

So can we still use hoop rings?

So can we still use hoop rings?

Yes

I thought wales needed deep water to travel??
Most Rec trapping in shallower water IMO ???
So why not just stated no pots in water over a certain depth??
They just over rode all rules with there declaration ???
Don't think common sense prevailed in this decision ???????

I thought wales needed deep water to travel??
Most Rec trapping in shallower water IMO ???
So why not just stated no pots in water over a certain depth??
They just over rode all rules with there declaration ???
Don't think common sense prevailed in this decision ???????

Since when does common sense ever have anything to do with DFW regs?

I'm definitely not an expert on the subject by any means.  But I feel like the line for commercial fishing and recreational is a bit blurry since I've been on plenty of charters for crab and fish combo's but I believe that just uses your standard license, charter runs strings through a string of pots they have out in the water all the time and just pull and re-bait them.  By restricting to Recreational to hoops, it forces them to also pull up their gear and switch to using hoops, which many geared up for ahead of the regulation changes and has a lower chance of entanglement for whales.  I still thought the data pointed to a small number of commercial entanglements, but I really don't remember the numbers anymore.

It has become a hallmark of California governance that they create some rules or metrics to throw at people in an attempt to pretend that laws and rules and metrics matter. Then they just go ahead do what they want when they want regardless of what they previously told the rabble.

I thought wales needed deep water to travel??
Most Rec trapping in shallower water IMO ???
So why not just stated no pots in water over a certain depth??
They just over rode all rules with there declaration ???
Don't think common sense prevailed in this decision ???????

I am going to take a guess and say the depth of any given part of the ocean changes throughout the day (tide) so if there is a max depth for trapping, an area that would be legal to trap in now won’t be legal a few hours later when the tide changes. And a place that would be legal today at high tide may not be legal tomorrow at high tide … that kind of thing. How do you police activities at water “depth” when it is in constant flux?

I thought wales needed deep water to travel??
Most Rec trapping in shallower water IMO ???
So why not just stated no pots in water over a certain depth??
They just over rode all rules with there declaration ???
Don't think common sense prevailed in this decision ???????

The idea is that hoops cannot be left over 2 hours... so they are under more active observation.  Traps can be left for 9 days unattended.  In practice, if I'm hooping and whales arrive, I'll move away from the whales.  If I'm checking traps every 9 days, a lot can happen in that period of time that I cannot act upon.

It has become a hallmark of California governance that they create some rules or metrics to throw at people in an attempt to pretend that laws and rules and metrics matter. Then they just go ahead do what they want when they want regardless of what they previously told the rabble.

In just about every facet of governance, yes.

I thought wales needed deep water to travel??
Most Rec trapping in shallower water IMO ???
So why not just stated no pots in water over a certain depth??
They just over rode all rules with there declaration ???
Don't think common sense prevailed in this decision ???????

I am going to take a guess and say the depth of any given part of the ocean changes throughout the day (tide) so if there is a max depth for trapping, an area that would be legal to trap in now won’t be legal a few hours later when the tide changes. And a place that would be legal today at high tide may not be legal tomorrow at high tide … that kind of thing. How do you police activities at water “depth” when it is in constant flux?

There are waypoints in the federal register that are used instead of actual depth.

https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-50/chapter-VI/part-660/subpart-C

I thought wales needed deep water to travel??
Most Rec trapping in shallower water IMO ???
So why not just stated no pots in water over a certain depth??
They just over rode all rules with there declaration ???
Don't think common sense prevailed in this decision ???????

The idea is that hoops cannot be left over 2 hours... so they are under more active observation.  Traps can be left for 9 days unattended.  In practice, if I'm hooping and whales arrive, I'll move away from the whales.  If I'm checking traps every 9 days, a lot can happen in that period of time that I cannot act upon.

Yeah, I would much prefer they just limit the amount of time traps could be left out. I mean, I like hoops, but it's kind of fun to leave a pot while hooping and then grab it on the way in (provided there aren't whales everywhere of course) and not have to be concerned that whatever crabbies are in there could just scoot away with a free lunch.