BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 165
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Date of Hearing: April 16, 2013
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON WATER, PARKS AND WILDLIFE
Anthony Rendon, Chair
AB 165 (Gaines, Beth) - As Introduced: January 23, 2013
SUBJECT : Commercial fishing: crayfish
SUMMARY : This bill lifts the ban on sale and purchase of
crayfish taken from Lake Tahoe or the Lake Tahoe Basin and
includes both legislative findings and guidelines for any
prospective regulations authorizing commercial crayfish
harvesting in Lake Tahoe or the Lake Tahoe Basin. Specifically,
this bill :
1)Deletes the Fish and Game Code section barring the sale or
purchase of crayfish taken from Lake Tahoe or the Lake Tahoe
Basin.
2)States that it is the intent of the Legislature that any
commercial taking of crayfish from Lake Tahoe or the Lake
Tahoe Basin be for the primary purpose of reducing and
controlling the crayfish population. Further states
legislative intent that commercial taking of crayfish be
allowed only as is consistent with state goals for management
of invasive species and with state environmental standards.
3)Requires the Fish and Game Commission (Commission) to ensure
that its regulations for the taking of crayfish from Lake
Tahoe or the Lake Tahoe Basin for commercial purposes be
consistent with the Lake Tahoe Region Aquatic Invasive Species
Management Plan.
EXISTING LAW
1)Since 1970, prohibits the sale or purchase of crayfish taken
from Lake Tahoe or the Lake Tahoe Basin.
2)Requires commercial fishing licenses, crayfish permits, and
commercial fishing vessel registration for commercial crayfish
harvest operations. Limits the size of crayfish traps to
three feet in greatest dimension and requires the immediate
return of other species taken in crayfish traps.
3)Confers authority to the Commission to set regulations for the
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take and possession of crayfish and to prohibit the use of
crayfish traps that will injure fish or create "unnecessarily
large" amounts of bycatch.
4)Under regulations promulgated by the Commission, prohibits the
take of crayfish for commercial purposes from all lakes and
reservoirs and limits take in certain California counties,
including Placer and El Dorado Counties, to areas west of
Highway 49. Further requires that crayfish legally caught
under a commercial license be used only for human consumption
or for aquaculture.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
Legislative History: Why is a commercial crayfish fishery in
Lake Tahoe banned? : In the late 1960's, a researcher from
Sweden named Dr. Sture Abrahamsson came to the United States to
conduct ecological research on the crayfish in Lake Tahoe.
During his research, he worked with Dr. Charles R. Goldman, a
noted limnologist at the University of California, Davis (UC
Davis), on a project aimed to protect the future of Lake Tahoe.
On behalf of the Swedish Fisheries Board and with full consent
and knowledge of the California Department of Fish and Game, Dr.
Abrahamsson also collected approximately 100,000 crayfish. The
stated purpose of the crayfish collection was not only
ecological research but also export to Sweden to reestablish the
crayfish population following a deleterious fungus outbreak.
The crayfish from Lake Tahoe, estimated to number over 55
million adults at that time, were immune to this fungus and
were, therefore, an ideal replacement stock.
Despite the researchers' and state agencies' understanding,
rumors abounded that this large extraction of crayfish was for
commercial purposes. In January of 1970, Assembly Member Eugene
A. Chappie introduced AB 465, which created the existing law at
Fish and Game Code section 8490 banning the buying or selling of
crayfish from Lake Tahoe or the Lake Tahoe Basin. Assembly
Member Chappie soon thereafter sent a letter to Dr. Goldman
inquiring about the recent removal of a large number of crayfish
from Lake Tahoe. The Department of Fish and Game, Dr. Goldman,
and Dr. Abrahamsson responded with letters assuring that
crayfish were only taken from Lake Tahoe for the permitted
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purposes of ecological research and limited export to Sweden.
These letters apparently did not ease concerns about the
potential depletion of Lake Tahoe's crayfish by domestic and
foreign commercial operations. AB 456 ultimately became law.
Species and Ecological Background : The signal crayfish
(Pacifastacus leniusculus) is native to freshwaters within the
Pacific Northwest coast. The Truckee watershed was first seeded
with crayfish in the early 1900s. Some of the crustaceans were
planted by anglers to provide food for the trout deposited in
Lake Tahoe in the late 1800's, and some were most likely planted
as a food source for locals.
For years, crayfish were a dietary staple for nonnative trout
and kokanee salmon in Tahoe, and the signal crayfish population
was kept relatively under control. In the 1960's, researchers
from UC Davis estimated that there were 56 million crayfish in
Lake Tahoe. However, around the same time as the crayfish
controversy and the resulting ban on commercial crayfish
harvesting, a species of shrimp (Mysis relicta) was released
into Lake Tahoe. With the opportunity for easier prey, the fish
began feeding on the shrimp instead of the newly protected
crayfish. In 2001, a different group of scientists estimated
that the crayfish population had increased to 220 million. The
author's background materials estimate that there are now 240
million crayfish in Lake Tahoe, and news articles have placed
this number as high as 280 million. The dramatic crayfish
population growth over the past half century has been attributed
to decreased predation due to the shift in the lake trout's
diet. Climate warming may also be driving crayfish production.
Crayfish are still a major food resource for invasive, warm
water fish species, such as smallmouth bass, largemouth bass,
and bluegill species. The increasing numbers of crayfish are
believed to contribute to the population growth of these
species. Crayfish have also been found to excrete nitrogen and
phosphorus, which are important stimulators of algae production.
Thus, crayfish are believed to contribute to the degradation of
water clarity in the lake.
Commercial Crayfish in Nevada : On the Nevada side of Lake
Tahoe, commercial crayfish harvesting is authorized. Nevada had
a statewide ban on the take of crayfish for commercial purposes
until very recently. In 2011, the Nevada Board of Wildlife
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Commissioners amended its regulations to permit commercial take
of crayfish from Lake Tahoe for an annual permit fee of $500,
provided that the Nevada Department of Wildlife approves the
time, place, and manner of the operation and determines that the
operation "is not deleterious to fish or other wildlife
indigenous or planted or propagated in those waters at public
expense." The Nevada Board of Wildlife Commissioners amended
its regulations again in 2012 to explicitly allow the commercial
sale of crayfish from Lake Tahoe, both by a permit holder to a
food wholesaler or restaurant and by a food wholesaler to a
restaurant. At least five businesses have received both
commercial crayfish permits from the Nevada Department of
Wildlife and commercial permits from the Tahoe Regional Planning
Agency (TRPA). These businesses must also work with the U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers and the Nevada Division of State Lands
to obtain appropriate clearances. At this time, one business,
the Tahoe Lobster Company, is harvesting crayfish from Lake
Tahoe.
Related Legislation : This bill is substantially similar to AB
2504 (Beth Gaines) from 2012. On April 24, 2012, the Committee
heard the introduced version of AB 2504, which at that time
merely proposed the repeal of Fish & Game Code 8940's ban on
sale or purchase of crayfish from Lake Tahoe or the Lake Tahoe
Basin. The Committee voted 13-0 to pass AB 2504 with amendments
regarding legislative intent and consistency with the Lake Tahoe
Region Aquatic Species Management Plan. AB 165 includes
provisions nearly identical to the Committee amendments to AB
2504 from last year.
Following the Committee's passage, AB 2504 was referred to the
Assembly Committee on Appropriations, which ultimately voted
17-0 to pass the bill with amendments authorizing the Department
of Fish and Game (now Department of Fish and Wildlife) to impose
a charge upon participants to recoup the "reasonable costs of
implementing and enforcing the commercial crayfish fishery." At
the author's request, AB 2504 was ordered to the inactive file
and, consequently, was not taken up for a vote on the Assembly
floor.
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Author's Statement : The author states that this bill will help
control Lake Tahoe's invasive crayfish population. The author
argues that reducing the number of crayfish in Lake Tahoe will
in turn help address the concerns over both lake clarity and
invasive species. In addition to environmental benefits, the
author states that allowing the buying and selling of crayfish
from Lake Tahoe will help stimulate the state and local economy.
The author notes that, under current law, even California
restaurants near Lake Tahoe must import crayfish from out of the
region or out of the state.
Support Arguments : TRPA, the bi-state planning and regulatory
agency with jurisdiction over the Lake Tahoe region, supports
lifting California's current statutory ban on commercial harvest
of crayfish. TRPA states that commercial crayfish harvesting
from Lake Tahoe "may allow the control of this species by
engaging the private sector to accomplish what otherwise would
not be possible given the limited public funding" for
controlling invasive species. TRPA also states that it will
"conduct an environmental analysis on the commercial boating
associated with each individual harvest operation" in order to
ensure that any resulting commercial operation is consistent
with its standards and ordinances.
Other Issues for the Committee's Consideration : As noted in the
Committee analysis of last year's AB 2504, removal of crayfish
through commercial harvest may have both positive and negative
ecological impacts. For these reasons, some fishery scientists
have urged that any prospective commercial fishery involve
careful planning and monitoring. A noted crayfish scientist
raised several issues regarding the establishment of a
responsible commercial harvesting program for Lake Tahoe,
including avoidance of bycatch, avoidance of spreading signal
crayfish to other ecosystems, limiting the areas of harvest to
protect invertebrate habitat, maximizing cooperation among
agencies and scientists, inter-agency cooperation, and tracking
and analyzing commercial harvest and ecosystem data.
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This bill does not in itself authorize commercial crayfish
harvest in Lake Tahoe. Nor does it require the Commission to
amend its regulations to allow such commercial crayfish
operations. However, given this bill's intent to remove a
barrier on commercial crayfish harvest in Lake Tahoe and the
Lake Tahoe Basin, as well as the State of Nevada's recent
authorization of such operations, it may be appropriate to
consider the potential regulatory and administrative
implications of this bill.
Without Fish and Game Code section 8940, the Commission would
still have to amend its regulations - including those barring
commercial crayfish harvest in any lake or reservoir and in
Placer and El Dorado Counties east of Highway 49 - before a
commercial crayfish harvest operation at Lake Tahoe would be
authorized. As noted in the committee analyses of AB 2504, the
Commission's amendment of its regulations would be a
discretionary action potentially subject to the California
Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Pursuant to CEQA, the
Commission may be required to conduct an initial study and to
prepare appropriate environmental documentation based upon the
potential environmental impact of the project. Additionally,
the Department of Fish and Wildlife would likely have to devote
additional time and resources toward designing, implementing,
and enforcing any potential commercial harvest program in Lake
Tahoe. Although the potential costs of a commercial crayfish
program on the California side of Lake Tahoe are unknown,
Nevada's commercial permit fee for crayfish in Lake Tahoe is
$500. In contrast, the current commercial permit fee for
crayfish in California is $41.97.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
Tahoe Regional Planning Agency
Individual(s): 1
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Steve Westhoff / W., P. & W. / (916)
319-2096
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