SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources is proposing changes to the current fishing regulations in Utah, as well as a few other rule amendments.
A child learns to fish during the national Latino Conservation week, location and date unspecified | Photo provided by the Hispanic Access Foundation, St. George News
A recent media release said the proposed changes for fishing regulations will be for consideration for the 2025-26 year.
“In order to implement some needed fishery management updates at various waterbodies across the state and to accommodate angler feedback, the DWR is recommending several regulation changes for fishing,” the press release stated. “If approved, the changes would go into effect on Jan. 1, 2025.”
Wildlife officials are seeking public feedback on the proposed changes. More information can be found from Utah officials at this link.
The proposals note ideas for several bodies of water in Southern Utah, including:
Southeastern Utah
Recapture Reservoir: Closing Recapture Reservoir to underwater spearfishing for largemouth bass from April 1 through the fourth Saturday in June (during the spawning period).
Southern Utah
In this file photo, the sun sets over Gunlock Reservoir at Gunlock State Park, Utah, March 13, 2024 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News
Manning Meadow Reservoir: Allowing bait and increasing the daily trout limit at Manning Meadow Reservoir to four fish. (The current daily limit is two fish.) The seasonal closure to protect spawning cutthroat trout there would remain in place.
Barney Lake: Allowing bait and increasing the daily trout limit to four fish. (The current daily limit is two fish.)
Gunlock Reservoir: Allowing a daily limit of six largemouth bass of any size. The DWR also proposes increasing the daily limit for black crappie to 100 fish. (Currently, the statewide daily limit for black crappie is 50 fish.)
Quail Creek Reservoir: Allowing a daily limit of six largemouth bass of any size.
Sand Hollow Reservoir: Increasing the daily limit for largemouth bass to eight fish of any size. (Currently, the daily limit is six largemouth bass, with only one fish over 12 inches.)
Mill Meadow Reservoir: Decreasing the current daily limit of eight tiger muskie at Mill Meadow Reservoir to match the statewide daily limit for tiger muskie of one fish over 40 inches.
Statewide fishing regulations
A lone ice fisherman on Flaming Gorge Reservoir, date not specified | Photo courtesy of Utah Division of Wildlife Resources
Allowing spearfishing to take place any time of day or night. (Currently, it’s only allowed between sunrise and sunset.)
Allowing the use of artificial light while spearfishing at any location for Utah chub.
Allowing spearfishing at 15 high-elevation waterbodies in the Uinta Mountains, including Alexander Lake, Wall Lake, Fish Lake, Hoover Lake, Whitney Reservoir, China Lake, Hoop Lake, Chepeta Lake, Papoose Lake, Wigwam Lake, Moccasin Lake, Paradise Park Lake, Hacking Lake, Upper Stillwater Reservoir and Spirit Lake.
Reducing the number of hooks allowed per setline from 15 to 8. (Setline fishing typically targets channel catfish, which have a statewide daily limit of eight fish.)
Limiting setline tending to only those anglers who have a setline permit.
Prohibiting the mechanical retrieval of a setline.
Requiring a setline to be checked at least once every 48 hours.
Requiring that a setline be permanently marked with the angler’s setline permit number.
Allowing the use of airguns (archery tackle) to remove carp at any open waterbody, as long as the airgun is only capable of firing arrows or bolts, is pneumatically powered and is solely pressurized through a separate charging device.
Removing the “bonus” brook trout limit at lakes and streams in the Uinta Mountains in Daggett, Duchesne, Summit, Uintah and Wasatch counties. (Currently, there is a “bonus limit” of four brook trout.)
Adding four community fishing ponds across the state, including Dry Creek Highland Pond, Provo River Delta Gateway Park Pond, Jordan River Big Bend Pond and the Willow Spring Pond.
Allowing anglers to kill and possess the fish they catch that are included on the prohibited species list and asking anglers to report those fish to the DWR. (Currently, anglers must release all prohibited fish species that they catch, including potentially harmful species.)
The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources stocked over 10 million fish across Utah in 2023, date and location unspecified | Photo courtesy of the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, St. George News
Proposed updates for property transactions
Wildlife officials are also proposing a few updates to the rule that provides the standards and procedures for how the state may buy, sell or exchange land. The proposed updates are primarily minor rule wording changes to provide additional clarification and detail about the process — these proposals don’t change the process itself.
The proposed changes include restructuring the rule to create different sections for acquisition, disposal and exchange of properties owned by wildlife resources. This will help with clarity in separating those processes and to create congruence of value established in each section. A few other minor clarifications to the rule and associated definitions were also proposed.
Want to give feedback?
The public meetings for the recommendations can either be viewed virtually or attended in person. View the biologists’ presentations before the meetings and share your feedback about them on the Department of Wildlife Resources website.
The public comment period opened on Aug. 6 for each of the five Regional Advisory Council meetings and for the Utah Wildlife Board meeting. Public comments submitted within the online-comment timeframes listed below will be shared with wildlife board members at each respective meeting.
Members of the public can choose to either watch the meetings online or attend them in person. If you wish to comment during the meeting, you must attend in person. Online comments will only be accepted until the deadlines listed below. The meetings will be held on the following dates and times:
Central Utah RAC meeting: Aug. 27 at 6 p.m. at the DWR Springville Office at 1115 N. Main St. in Springville. (Online comments must be submitted by Aug. 22 at 11:59 p.m.)
Northern Utah RAC meeting: Aug. 28 at 6 p.m. at the Weber County Commission Chambers at 2380 Washington Blvd. #240 in Ogden. (Online comments must be submitted by Aug. 22 at 11:59 p.m.)
Southern Utah RAC meeting: Sept. 3 at 6 p.m. at the DNR Richfield City Complex at 2031 Industrial Park Road in Richfield. (Online comments must be submitted by Aug. 29 at 11:59 p.m.)
Southeastern Utah RAC meeting: Sept. 4 at 6 p.m. at the John Wesley Powell Museum at 1765 E. Main St. in Green River. (Online comments must be submitted by Aug. 29 at 11:59 p.m.)
Northeastern Utah RAC meeting: Sept. 5 at 6 p.m. at the DWR Vernal Office at 318 N. Vernal Ave. (Online comments must be submitted by Aug. 29 at 11:59 p.m.)
Utah Wildlife Board meeting: Sept. 19 at 9 a.m. at the Eccles Wildlife Education Center at 1157 South Waterfowl Way in Farmington. (Online comments must be submitted by Sept. 10 at 11:59 p.m.)
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