Anglers will be able to retain white sturgeon on the Columbia River from the Wauna powerlines upstream to Bonneville Dam (including the Cowlitz River) on Sept. 10, 14, and 17

OLYMPIA – State fishery managers from Washington and Oregon announced Thursday that a section of the lower Columbia River will open for three days of sturgeon retention in September.

Anglers will be able to retain white sturgeon on the Columbia River from the Wauna powerlines upstream to Bonneville Dam (including the Cowlitz River) on Sept. 10, 14, and 17.

Fishery managers from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) and Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife agreed that the population of legal-sized sturgeon could support a limited retention fishery in this section of the Columbia River in 2022.

“Similar to recent years, we’ll be carefully monitoring catch rates to ensure we’re meeting our conservation goals, as well as determining if we may be able to open additional opportunities after these first few days of fishing,” said Laura Heironimus, sturgeon lead with WDFW.

The 2022 guideline for sturgeon on this portion of river is 800 fish.

Anglers may retain only white sturgeon measuring 44 to 50 inches from the tip of their nose to the fork in their tail (“fork length”). Catch limits during the season are one legal-size white sturgeon per day and two legal-size fish per year. Only one single-point, barbless hook is allowed when fishing for sturgeon. Anglers may not fish for or retain green sturgeon, which is a federally protected species.

For updates to this and other fisheries across Washington, visit https://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/regulations/emergency-rules for all emergency rule changes.

Catch-and-release fishing for sturgeon is also open year-round on many stretches of the Columbia River, including the lower Columbia River on days closed to retention. Be sure to check permanent rules in the Sport Fishing Regulations pamphlet at https://wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/regulations.

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife works to preserve, protect, and perpetuate fish, wildlife and ecosystems while providing sustainable fish, wildlife, and recreational and commercial opportunities.