This week, Trout Unlimited released the results from its poll of more than 630 active steelhead anglers in California, Oregon, and Washington, which shows positive signs of support for wild steelhead conservation and for managing fisheries to sustain wild steelhead populations.

The conclusions cut across all preferred gear types (lures, flies, and bait), across a broad demographic range, and across the three states. Steelhead management, however, often is not in sync with angler views regarding the high value steelheaders place on wild steelhead and opportunities to fish for them, says TU.

The poll was conducted by non-partisan public opinion research firm Southwick & Associates, which has done opinion research for many state fish and wildlife agencies across the country.

HIGHLIGHTS:

-A majority of anglers (62%) favor a balanced approach to managing steelhead, with some rivers for wild steelhead and other rivers for hatchery fish.
When wild populations are low, a majority (68%) of anglers support releasing any wild fish caught versus 24% of anglers who would prefer to keep wild fish they caught.

-In order to protect wild steelhead, more anglers (55%) chose longer seasons with more restrictions on fishing gear and methods than shorter seasons with fewer gear/method restrictions (32%).

-58% of anglers support closing a hatchery that provides harvest opportunity if that hatchery harms wild steelhead and jeopardizes a catch-and-release fishery for wild fish. Given these conditions, only 27% of anglers supported keeping the hatchery in operation.

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Tom Bie
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Tom Bie is the founder, editor, and publisher of The Drake. He started the magazine in 1998 as an annual newsprint publication based in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. He then moved it to Steamboat, Colorado (1999), Boulder, Colorado (2001), and San Clemente, California (2004), as he took jobs as managing editor at Paddler, Senior Editor at Skiing, and Editor-in-Chief at Powder, respectively. Tom and The Drake are now both based in Denver, Colorado, where The Drake is finally all grows up(Swingers, 1996) to a quarterly magazine.

Category: Daily Drake
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Author: Tom Bie

Tom Bie is the founder, editor, and publisher of The Drake. He started the magazine in 1998 as an annual newsprint publication based in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. He then moved it to Steamboat, Colorado (1999), Boulder, Colorado (2001), and San Clemente, California (2004), as he took jobs as managing editor at Paddler, Senior Editor at Skiing, and Editor-in-Chief at Powder, respectively. Tom and The Drake are now both based in Denver, Colorado, where The Drake is finally all grows up(Swingers, 1996) to a quarterly magazine.

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