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August 31, 2018 - 9:55 AM
KAMLOOPS - The province is closing all angling on the Thompson River below Kamloops Lake and parts of the Fraser River this fall in response to low steelhead returns.
In a news release, the province says the closure will be in effect from Oct. 1, 2018 to May 31, 2019. Angling will be closed on the Thompson River downstream from signs at the Kamloops Lake outlet to the confluence with the Fraser River.
Angling on the Fraser River will be closed from the Highway 99 bridge at Lillooet downstream to B.C. Hydro's tail race outflow channel, and from the confluence with Thompson River downstream to the CNR Bridge.
The province says this past February, the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada undertook an emergency assessment of Thompson and Chilcotin steelhead. Both populations are being considered for listing as endangered. The committee recommended an emergency listing order under the federal Species at Risk Act.
Although catch-and-release opportunities account for a small percentage of annual steelhead mortality, the province says, in order to support the recommendations the closure will remove remaining steelhead recreational catch-and-release opportunities and associated mortalities.
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News from © iNFOnews, 2018