Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission Approves Prospecting Rules Changes

As reported earlier on this site, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) requested the Fish and Wildlife Commission to approve several proposed changes to the HPA rules governing mineral prospecting, including changes to the work times on the Sultan and Similkameen rivers.

Here is the pertinent part of today's news release from WDFW:

April 24, 2018

Commission OKs mineral prospecting
rules....

OLYMPIA – The Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission has changed the work times for mineral prospecting in and around the Sultan and Similkameen rivers to avoid periods when incubating eggs and young fish are present.

The commission, a citizen panel appointed by the governor to set policy for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), approved the changes on Friday, April 20....

Until recently, a section of the Sultan River in Snohomish County was open to mineral prospecting using a variety of equipment, including suction dredges, sluices, and high bankers, for more than seven months each year.

That changed in 2016, when a fish-passage project at the City of Everett diversion dam opened an additional 6.3 miles of the river to spawning salmon and steelhead, said Randi Thurston, WDFW habitat protection manager.

"Last year, the department adopted an emergency rule that prohibited the use of certain types of prospecting equipment in that area, except during August," Thurston said. "This year, the commission adopted that new work window as a permanent rule."

The new rule applies to the use of mineral prospecting equipment in the water, Thurston said.

In a separate action, the commission agreed to expand the work window for mineral prospecting on the Similkameen River to include the month of June from Enloe Dam to Palmer Creek in Okanogan County. That decision was based on a new study by WDFW that found no evidence of incubating trout or whitefish eggs there in June, Thurston said.

"Prospectors urged us to conduct the study, and they were right about the results," she said.

Under the new rule, the work window for prospecting on the Similkameen River from Enloe Dam to Palmer Creek will extend from June 1 through Oct. 31.

For more information about mineral prospecting in Washington, see https://wdfw.wa.gov/licensing/mining/.

Contact: Mineral prospecting: Randi Thurston, 360-902-2602

North Central Washington Prospectors Gold and Treasure Show is Next Weekend

My prospecting club is hosting its annual Gold and Treasure show next weekend.  Here are the details:

North Central Washington Prospectors presents its 19th Annual

                                             

                         GOLD TREASURE AND MORE SHOW

                                          April 14 & 15



The show will have over 50 vendors that will be selling prospecting and rock hound supplies, metal detectors, jewelry, art, gems & minerals, rocks, gold pay dirt bags, fudge, ATVs, leather goods, thrift store items and MORE.

Truck and cars on display.  Something for everyone!



Metal detecting hunt with paid admission both days, 10 AM.  Coins and metal tags for prizes will be buried on the fairgrounds for this event.  Top prize is a metal detector for both days.



Haystack Hunt for kids ages 2 - 10 both days (coins & toys), 11 AM.



Door and gold raffle prizes each hour.  Large kitchen serving breakfast and lunch items.



The big club gold show raffle will be held on Sunday.  1st prize - $2,000; 2nd prize - Whites MXT All Pro metal detector; 3rd prize - $500; 4th prize - large gold nugget.



Chelan County Fairgrounds in Cashmere, WA.

Saturday, April 14, 9AM - 5PM; Sunday, April 15, 9AM - 4PM.

Cost: $5, children 12 and under free.  Info: (509) 860-1145

Motorized Dredging Not Yet Safe in Washington

In what appears to be a contingency move, the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission will hear from WDFW staff regarding "options and possible timeline necessary for rulemaking should the Commission direct the Department to remove motorized prospecting methods from those approved under the Gold and Fish pamphlet."

This presentation is set to be conducted by Randi Thurston, Protection Division Manager and Teresa Scott, Environmental Planner, Habitat Program at the 9:30 am portion of the Saturday, April 14 Commission meeting.

Public input will be heard on this agenda item for those interested in providing same.

The meeting will be held at the Natural Resource Building, 1111 Washington Street SE, Olympia, WA 98501, on the First Floor – Room 172.

Small Changes to the HPA Rules Proposed at Fish and Wildlife Commission Meeting

At the March 17 session of Washington's Fish and Wildlife Commission meeting in Wenatchee, Habitat Program Protection Division Manager Randi Thurston outlined the proposed changes to the HPA rules that affect mining activities in Washington's waters.

One change would be to the authorized work times on the Sultan River in Snohomish County above the City of Everett's dam.  On the grounds that Coho and other fish can now reach the section of the river above the dam, the new permanent rule would change the authorized work times from July 16 — February 28 to August 1 — 31.

Another change involves the work times allowed on the section of the Similkameen River between Enloe Dam and Palmer Creek in Okanogan County.  Last summer, biologists from WDFW determined that the part of the river mentioned above is not suitable for resident trout spawning.  As a result, the authorized work times may move up one month from July 1 to June 1.  According to Ms. Thurston, this change would still protect the Mountain Whitefish that spawn in that reach.

The remaining requested changes are minor administrative ones, including some designed to make the HPA application process easier and clearer.  No specifics were given.

WDFW intends to formally ask the Commission to adopt these revisions to the HPA rules at the April 20 telephone conference call.

Be sure to sign up for email updates from the Miner to stay informed of matters affecting small-scale prospecting and mining in Washington State.  The sign-up box is at the bottom of the right-hand sidebar on this page.

Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission to Hold a Public Hearing on Proposed HPA Rule Changes

At 9:10 AM on Saturday, March 17, the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission will receive a briefing from Randi Thurston, WDFW Habitat Program Protection Division Manager, on the proposed amendments to the Hydraulic Code (Chapter 220-660 WAC).  Following the briefing, the Commission will hold a hearing during which the public may provide input on these proposed amendments.

For those interested in attending this meeting, it will be held in Wenatchee at the Red Lion Hotel at 1225 N. Wenatchee Avenue in the Wenatchee & Chelan Rooms.

If you are interested in providing input on this matter, please read the procedure to follow here.

Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission set to hear input on Small-Scale Mining

Moving forward with their intent expressed at the January 5 telephone conference, the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission will hear input from various panels, including Trout Unlimited, Tribes, and small-scale mineral prospectors at their meeting on Saturday, February 10, 2018.  The Commission will also accept input from the general public and WDFW staff will provide the Commission with a briefing.

The meeting is scheduled for 11:15 A.M. in Room 172 on the first floor of the Natural Resources Building, 1111 Washington Street SE, Olympia.

Those intending to provide information should read the Procedure for Public Testimony.  Each speaker has 3 minutes to present their information.

You can find the entire agenda for the February meeting here.

Washington Fish & Wildlife Commission Votes To Deny Trout Unlimited Petition

The Washington State Fish and Wildlife Commission voted on January 5 to deny the Trout Unlimited petition banning motorized dredging.

Listening to the recording of the meeting, I learned that Jeff Davis of the Habitat Program declared that WDFW would be willing to work with the Ecology Department to coordinate mining regulation in line with the latter's water quality mandate.

Randi Thurston, also with the Habitat Program, reviewed the highlights of the Trout Unlimited petition for the commissioners and stated the WDFW staff's recommendation.

There was also some discussion on the language of the law regarding the definition of small-scale mining and that it should be clarified this summer by the outcome of current court cases.  A few of the commissioners indicated they don't want to wait for the court cases to be resolved before proceeding with this matter.

After the discussion, there was a motion to support the recommendation of the WDFW staff:

I move to deny the Trout Unlimited petition at this time. I request that staff schedule sufficient time at a future Commission meeting to provide an in-depth briefing on the science related to mineral prospecting; potential risks to fish life; avoidance, minimization and compensation options; and policy considerations.  We also request that representatives from Trout Unlimited and the mineral prospecting community be given an opportunity to present at that meeting. The Commission will decide what action to take after the briefing.

The motion carried on a voice vote (I heard no dissent, but the audio was a bit garbled) with the understanding that the intention of the Commission is to solicit general public comment as well as to invite representatives of the mineral prospecting community, various environmental groups, commercial fishermen, tribes, etc to present their views at a designated Commission meeting in the near future.

The entire discussion went on for just under a half-hour.