December 22, 2021 9:30 a.m.

A temporary rule prohibits wild spring Chinook harvest on the mainstem Umpqua River and reduces the North Umpqua bag limit.

A release from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife said that February 1st through June 30th of next year:

*Only hatchery spring Chinook may be kept on the mainstem Umpqua River. Harvesting wild spring Chinook is prohibited

*Just one, down from two, wild spring Chinook per day. 10 per year may be kept on the North Umpqua River. All other Southwest Zone permanent angling rules apply

ODFW forecasts low returns of adult wild spring Chinook for 2022. The release said these temporary rules are meant to help protect the populations returning to the South and North Umpqua rivers.

South Umpqua wild spring Chinook returns have been low the past few years. Biologists expect returns to the North Umpqua to be well below average again this year

ODFW said the wild spring Chinook harvest restrictions are from a conservation sliding scale outlined in the CMP- ODFW’s Coastal Multi-Species Conservation and Management Plan: https://www.dfw.state.or.us/fish/crp/docs/coastal_multispecies/CMP_main_final.pdf’ The sliding scale adjusts harvest opportunity based on the health of the North and South Umpqua populations.

The CMP was adopted in 2014 by the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission.