Commercial Dungeness crab fishery to reopen on January 5 along the Central Coast

CENTRAL COAST, Calif. (KION-TV) -- The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) announced Friday that they will be reopening the commercial Dungeness crab fishery from the Sonoma/Mendocino county line to the U.S./Mexico border beginning January 5, 2025 starting at 12:01 a.m.

They also said that the pre-soaking will begin January 2, 2025 at 8:01 a.m.

This area includes the Fishing Zones 3, 4, 5 and 6, and is subject to a 50% trap reduction, which the California Department of Fish and Wildlife hopes will reduce entanglement risk for humpback whales.

The Dungeness crab season in the Northern Management Area (Zones 1 and 2, California Oregon Border to the Sonoma/Mendocino county line) will continue to be delayed due to the inability to conduct industry-sponsored meat quality testing.

“My action today strikes a balance between the needs of the fishery and the needs of California’s marine species," said CDFW Director Charlton H. Bonham in a statement. "Reducing the number of traps in the water is a successful management measure we have utilized before."

And although many crab fisheries are excited about the opening announcement, so environmentalists are weary.

"I'm worried that opening the commercial Dungeness crab fishery, even in January, will worsen California's deadly whale entanglement problem, which is already at a crisis point," said Ben Grundy, oceans campaigner at the Center for Biological Diversity. "Entanglement numbers are higher than they’ve been in years, and officials can’t confidently identify when and where they’re happening, so they can’t really say the coast is clear."

Grundy goes on to explain that he thinks the best solution for protecting whales, is to start fishing with pop-up gear, urging the state to implement this as soon as possible.

California Department of Fish and Wildlife delay recreational Dungeness crab fishing again

CENTRAL COAST, Calif. (KION-TV) -- The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) announced Thursday that it is delaying the Dungeness crab season once again until around December 15.

The Sonoma/Mendocino County line through Lopez Point (Fishing Zones 3 and 4, the later including the Bay Area and Central Coast) is continuing the temporary recreational crab trap restrictions because of the presence of humpback whales, according to the CDFW.

They said that crabs caught via other methods like hoop nets and crab snares are not affected by the restriction.

In addition to the CDFW's whale-related crab restrictions, the northern portion of California's coast experienced unhealthy levels of domoic acid, which prevented crab meat quality tests from happening, according to the CDFW. They said that prompted a Fleet Advisory for all of California's fishing zones.

As far as the Central Coast, the CDFW says that, "the delay will allow whales to continue their migration to winter breeding grounds and away from the fishing grounds, thereby reducing entanglement risk."

For more information about Dungeness crab fishery, visit CDFW’s crab web page.