WDFW Seeks Public Comment on Fisheries Priorities

Residents of coastal communities in Washington State are being asked to tell the state’s Department of Fish and Wildlife on Feb. 4 where their values and priorities lie regarding the state’s fisheries resources.

The site will be the seventh public forum conducted through WDFW’s ongoing outreach initiative, “Washington’s Wild Future” at the Willapa Harbor Community Center in South Bend.

WDFW Director Jim Unsworth said the agency hopes to hear from commercial harvesters, charter boat operators, people active in recreation and tourism, and others concerned about fish and wildlife management along the coast.

“This is a chance for the public to tell WDFW managers what we are doing right, where we need to improve, and where we should focus our efforts and our funding over the next five to 10 years,” Unsworth said.

More information is online at http://www.wdfw.wa.gov/wildfuture

WDFW managers and regional staff want to hear residents’ views on fishing, including commercial gillnetting in the Columbia River, Grays Harbor, and Willapa Bay, and Pacific Ocean fisheries. They also want to hear views on razor clam management, habitat protection and restoration, licensing, law enforcement, and other fish and wildlife issues.

The meeting will include a brief presentation about the importance of fish and wildlife management to Washington’s quality of life and the economies of communities throughout the state. Participants will then be invited to speak in small groups with representatives of WDFW’s fish, wildlife, enforcement, licensing and habitat programs, as well as Unsworth and his staff.

Send comments by email to WildFuture@dfw.wa.gov or post them on WDRW’s website, http://wdfw.wa.gov/wildfuture/form.html.

Persons with disabilities who need to receive this information in an alternative format or who need reasonable accommodations to participate in these public meetings should contact Dolores Noyes at 360-902-2349, TTY 360-902-2207, or dolores.noyes@dfw.wa.gov