Subchapter A. FISHERIES POLICIES

 It will be the policy of the Commission to protect, conserve and enhance the quality and diversity of the fishery resource of this Commonwealth including reptiles and amphibians and to provide continued and varied angling opportunity through scientific inventory, classification and management of that resource. To achieve the objectives of this policy, the Commission will do all of the following:

   (1)  Establish and maintain a current data base on the quality and quantity of the aquatic and fishery resources of this Commonwealth for effective environmental protection and resource conservation.

   (2)  Develop Statewide management programs to assure consistent treatment of all resources within given class. Similar waters will be managed to meet the same objectives under the same philosophy on a Statewide basis.

   (3)  Manage self-sustaining fish populations as a renewable natural resource to conserve that resource and the angling it provides.

   (4)  Use hatchery fish to provide recreation in those waters where fish populations are inadequate to sustain the fishery at desired levels.

 (a)  The Commission will allocate trout, except fingerlings, to individual waters with the rate and frequency to be determined by the assignment of each water to a resource category

 (b)  The Commission will assign water areas to resource categories based on appropriately weighted biological and social factors, including the status of wild trout populations, stream width or lake area and recreational use potential as indicated by public access, parking spaces, ownership, proximity to roads, proximity to urban areas and activities of resource adoption organizations.

 (c)  The Division of Fisheries Management will maintain a current list of resource categories, trout allocation processes and trout allocations.

 (d)  This section supersedes other Commission policies or operating procedures to the extent inconsistent with this section.

 It is the policy of the Commission to advance and seek, when supported by the current data base, the highest Department of Environmental Protection water quality designation for waters of this Commonwealth in order to achieve the objectives of this chapter.

   The provisions of this §  57.3 amended under section 10 of the Sunshine Act (65 P. S. §  280); and section 506 of The Administrative Code of 1929 (71 P. S. §  186).

 It is the policy of the Commission to maintain the wilderness trout streams program where stream remoteness and populations of naturally reproducing trout combine to offer sport fishing opportunity for the recreation of anglers in a wilderness setting away from roads or vehicular access. It is the Commission’s intent to advocate proper watershed management to maintain the wilderness setting and to advance and seek the highest water quality standards through the Department of Environmental Protection.

   The provisions of this §  57.4 issued under the Fish and Boat Code, 30 Pa.C.S. § §  322, 2102 and 2307.

 It is the policy of the Commission to utilize regulations differing from those in application on a Statewide basis when deemed necessary or desirable to protect, conserve or enhance the quality, quantity and diversity of this Commonwealth’s fisheries, to maintain public access or to provide for the safety of the users of the resource. It is the intention of the Commission to use the minimum necessary regulation to maintain the philosophy of its conservation policy and to minimize variations in regulations on similar waters having like management objectives.

   The provisions of this §  57.5 issued under the Fish and Boat Code, 30 Pa.C.S. § §  322, 2102 and 2307.

 (a)  It is the policy of the Commission to investigate fish kills, seek restitution for damage from those responsible for causing or allowing fish kill and restore through stocking, if necessary, or natural means, those recreational fisheries affected by a significant kill.

 (b)  If stocking is deemed necessary as determined by fisheries management personnel, it will receive a higher priority than those stockings of a normal maintenance or introductory effort and will occur when conditions are deemed suitable for restocking. The species, size and numbers of fish to be stocked will be determined by fisheries management and will be governed by hatchery availability.

   The provisions of this §  57.6 issued under the Fish and Boat Code, 30 Pa.C.S. § §  322, 2102 and 2307.

 It is the policy of the Commission to urge:

 (1)  The Congress and President to take prompt and decisive action to reduce emissions of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides in the eastern half of the United States by the year 1993, as recommended by the National Academy of Science.

 (2)  The Federal government to vigorously enforce existing Clean Air Act limitations on emissions of sulfur and nitrogen oxides until appropriate new legislation is enacted.

 (3)  The Commonwealth, as the keystone State in this national issue, to take a leading role by enacting a unilateral 50% reduction in sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides emissions from Commonwealth sources.

§ 57.8a. Class A wild trout streams.

 It is the policy of the Commission to manage self-sustaining Class A wild trout populations as a renewable natural resource to conserve that resource and the angling it provides. Class A wild trout populations represent the best of this Commonwealth’s naturally reproducing trout fisheries. These stream sections are managed solely for the perpetuation of the wild trout fishery with no stocking.

   (1)  Criteria developed for Class A Wild Trout fisheries are species specific.

   (2)  Wild Trout Abundance Class Criteria include provisions for:

     (i)   Wild brook trout fisheries.

       (A)   Total brook trout biomass of at least 30 kg/ha (26.7 lbs/acre).

       (B)   Total biomass of brook trout less than 15 cm (5.9 inches) in total length of at least 0.1 kg/ha (0.089 lbs/acre).

       (C)   Brook trout biomass must comprise at least 75% of the total trout biomass.

     (ii)   Wild brown trout fisheries.

       (A)   Total brown trout biomass of at least 40 kg/ha (35.6 lbs/acre).

       (B)   Total biomass of brown trout less than 15 cm (5.9 inches) in total length of at least 0.1 kg/ha (0.089 lbs/acre).

       (C)   Brown trout biomass shall comprise at least 75% of the total trout biomass.

     (iii)   Mixed wild brook and brown trout fisheries.

       (A)   Combined brook and brown trout biomass of at least 40 kg/ha (35.6 lbs/acre).

       (B)   Total biomass of brook trout less than 15 cm (5.9 inches) in total length of at least 0.1 kg/ha (0.089 lbs/acre).

       (C)   Total biomass of brown trout less than 15 cm (5.9 inches) in total length of at least 0.1 kg/ha (0.089 lbs/acre).

       (D)   Brook trout biomass shall comprise less than 75% of the total trout biomass.

       (E)   Brown trout biomass shall comprise less than 75% of the total trout biomass.

     (iv)   Wild rainbow trout fisheries. Total biomass of rainbow trout less than 15 cm (5.9 inches) in total length of at least 2.0 kg/ha (1.78 lbs/acre).

   (3)  For a water to be removed from the Class A Wild Trout Streams designation, total trout biomass shall be documented below the set criteria for two consecutive stream examinations.

§ 57.9a. Publicizing stocking of fish.

 (a)  All stockings will be publicly announced.

 (b)  The Executive Director, in his discretion, may announce the date, time, location, number or weight of all stockings and may withhold announcements based on certain factors, including but not limited to, safety.

 It is the policy of the Commission to pursue establishment and preservation of a stable, vegetated riparian buffer zone between waters of this Commonwealth and other land uses on Commonwealth property under the management and control of the Commission. It is the Commission’s intent to improve streambank and shoreline stabilization and water quality and to enhance fish and wildlife habitats in these areas, consistent with available fiscal and personnel resources. It is the policy of the Commission to encourage partnerships with other agencies, conservation organizations, and the private sector to providing funding and volunteer assistance to establish and preserve riparian buffer zones under this policy.

 (a)  Maintenance of list. It is the policy of the Commission to accurately identify and classify streams supporting naturally reproducing populations of trout as wild trout streams. The Fisheries Management Division will maintain the list of wild trout streams. The Executive Director, with the approval of the Commission, will from time-to-time publish the list of wild trout streams in the Pennsylvania Bulletin and on the World Wide Web. Persons with comments, objections or suggestions about the classification of streams listed may submit them to the Commission for review.

 (b)  Criteria for classifying wild trout streams. The classification of a stream as a wild trout stream means that the trout found there have resulted from natural reproduction and that the habitat supports wild trout. Identification of streams for the presence of wild trout typically involves:

   (1)  Location and habitat. Classifications of wild trout streams will involve examination of one or more sites, which may vary in size, within the stream. The exercise of judgment by the investigator is essential in describing the extent of the stream continuum to which the examination applies. The investigator should find that the habitat is such as would support natural reproduction of trout.

   (2)  Exclusion of stocked trout. In classifying a wild trout stream, the investigator should find trout resulting from natural reproduction in the stream section or upstream and downstream areas and their tributaries. In making this finding, the investigator will specifically exclude trout stocked as fingerlings or adults and trout that escape from a hatchery. The exercise of judgment is required in examining the trout for physical appearance such as coloration, fin condition and body configuration as indicators of the source of the trout. Direct evidence of natural reproduction of trout is a factor in making this classification, but it is not required if the other elements are present.

   (3)  Biological criteria. In identifying a wild trout stream, the investigator should find one or more of the following:

     (i)   Young of the year trout less than 150 mm occur at some time in the stream section.

     (ii)   Two or more ages of wild trout occur at some time within the stream section.

   (4)  Tributary linkages. Tributaries to wild trout streams are classified as wild trout streams for their function as habitat for segments of wild trout populations, including nurseries and refuges, and in sustaining water quality necessary for wild trout.

 (c)  Existing list. The streams identified as wild trout streams on or before January 1, 2002, and listed as such by the Fisheries Management Division will continue to be considered as wild streams by the Commission.

 (d)  Requests for evaluation or reevaluation of streams. The Commission staff will evaluate or reevaluate the classification of streams as wild trout streams at the request of the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) in connection with permitting decisions. Requests for evaluation or reevaluation from persons or parties other than DEP will be considered for review consistent with available staff and resources and prioritized based on the status of DEP permitting decisions related to the sites. Requests that the Commission staff evaluate or reevaluate stream sections for inclusion on or removal from the list of streams supporting naturally reproducing populations of trout may be addressed to the Bureau of Fisheries, Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, 450 Robinson Lane, Bellefonte, Pennsylvania 16823-9616. In evaluating requests to remove streams from the list of wild trout streams, the Commission will take into account circumstances where human intervention or manmade changes have diminished the capacity of a stream to meet the criteria set forth in this section. Streams will not be removed from the list of wild trout streams in circumstances where the investigator finds evidence that their characteristics and trout populations have been changed solely or principally as a result human intervention.

 (e)  Appeals. A person aggrieved by the classification of a stream section as a wild trout stream section may appeal the agency action by filing a notice of appeal with the Executive Director, Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, Post Office Box 67000, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 17106-7000 within 15 days after publication of the notice that the stream section had been so classified in the Pennsylvania Bulletin. Nothing in this subsection will be construed to enlarge or diminish the appeal rights of persons or parties in connection with permitting decisions and other actions of DEP.

 It is the policy of the Commission to have its staff fully coordinate agency concerns in the review of wind power development projects with all involved local, State and Federal regulatory agencies to avoid, minimize and mitigate harmful impacts to fish, other aquatic life, reptiles, amphibians and their habitats. Commission staff will seek the collection of adequate data for risk analysis when necessary in the environmental review process, the avoidance of threatened and endangered species and their habitats, the avoidance of ecologically sensitive areas when siting projects, the reduction of habitat fragmentation, and the development of mitigation strategies for unavoidable impacts.

   The provisions of this §  57.12 adopted September 12, 2008, effective September 13, 2008, 38 Pa.B. 5033.