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News Releases, 2022-Present

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Man holding a salmon with the Golden Gate Bridge in background

After two years of closure, the recreational ocean salmon fishery will open statewide for two days on June 7-8, 2025.

Categories:   Fishing, Salmon
A close-up photo of an adult Chinook salmon in hand.

On Friday, May 16, 2025, the National Marine Fisheries Service published the annual West Coast salmon fishing regulations for federal waters, including those for California’s limited ocean recreational salmon season.

Categories:   Fisheries, Fishing, Salmon

While low Chinook salmon counts have called for the continued closure of Chinook salmon fishing in the Klamath River Basin and mainstem Sacramento River, Chinook fishing opportunities will be allowed in three inland Central Valley rivers for the first time in two years.

Categories:   Drought, FGC, Fisheries, Fishing, General, Klamath Basin, Salmon, Sturgeon, Wildlife
CDFW hatchery workers release juvenile salmon into the Sacramento River from the back of a tanker truck.

In a significant shift of California’s salmon strategy, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) has begun releasing juvenile fall-run Chinook salmon from CDFW-operated hatcheries into the main stem of the Sacramento River for the first time.

Categories:   Drought, Fisheries, Fishing, Salmon
A close-up photo of an adult Chinook salmon being held outside of the water in a hatchery environment.

On April 15, 2025, the Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC) acted to recommend limited fishing opportunities for California’s recreational ocean salmon fisheries through the end of 2025. This decision will allow for the first recreational salmon fishing in California since 2022. The PFMC also recommended a repeat year of closure for California’s commercial salmon fisheries, the third year in a row.

Categories:   Salmon

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