Comment closes Tuesday on Washington fishing rule proposals

FISHING —  An update on proposed changes to sportfishing rules will be presented by state fish managers to the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission at its Feb. 8-9 meeting in Olympia.  See the preliminary meeting agenda here .

Fishing rule proposals affecting Eastern Washington angling include:

• Liberalizing limits for bass, walleye and channel catfish in the main stem and tributaries of the Snake and Columbia rivers, including Lake Roosevelt.
• Changing regulations on motorized boats on the Yakima and lower Grande Ronde.
• Prohibiting use of internal combustion motors at Yocum Lake in Pend Oreille County.
• Converting North Silver Lake in Spokane County to a year-round fishery for warmwater species.
• Prohibiting trout fishing in Methow River stretches to protect steelhead.

Public comments on the proposals are being accepted on the agency’s website through Tuesday (Jan. 29).

The commisison is set to vote on the proposals at a March 1-2 meeting.