emergency trout regulations on the white/norfork rivers!

[gotmuddy]

https://www.nwaonline.com/news/2025/oct/16/emergency-trout-regulations-set/?sports

 

The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission will enact emergency trout fishing regulations today for the White, North Fork of the White and Little Red rivers.

For the next 120 days, anglers must release any trout they catch from Bull Shoals Dam to the the boat ramp at the Norfork Access at the confluence of the White and North Fork of the White River.

From the boat ramp at the Norfork Access to the Highway 58 bridge at Guion, anglers may keep only two trout per day. They may keep only one trout longer than 14 inches.

Tackle restrictions for existing designated catch-and-release areas, such as the Bull Shoals and Rim Shoals catch-and-release areas, remain in effect.

On the Norfork Tailwater, anglers must release any trout they catch on the from Norfork Dam to the Norfork Access. Tackle restrictions for existing catch-and-release remain in effect.

On the Greers Ferry Tailwater, anglers may keep only two fish per day, with a maximum length limit of 14 inches.

On the Beaver Tailwater (below Beaver Dam). anglers may keep only two trout per day, with a maximum length limit of 14 inches.

The commission approved the regulations at its regular committee meetings Wednesday. The regulations respond to the collapse of trout production at the Norfork National Fish Hatchery and drastically reduced production at the Game and Fish Commission's Jim Hinkle Spring River hatchery.

Christy Graham, the commission's trout program coordinator, briefed the commission about the lack of fish available for stocking in the state's popular trout waters.

"This is the worst year for trout hatcheries in Arkansas since I've been at the Game and Fish Commission," Graham said. "As the state's trout biologist, one of my biggest nightmares is (what happens) if one of our biggest trout facilities goes down. Now I'm wondering what do I do if one or more of our major facilities goes down?"

There are five government-owned trout hatcheries in Arkansas. A catastrophic flood in the spring halted trout production at Spring River State Fish Hatchery. Trout cultivation is greatly reduced while the facility is being repaired.

Over the past few weeks, trout production at the Norfork hatchery collapsed because of poor water quality. Graham said the Norfork hatchery's collapse is a double whammy because it supplies all of the trout grown out for stocking at the Spring River hatchery.

To offset some of the production loss at the Spring River hatchery, the commission appropriated $80,000 to buy trout from a hatchery in Missouri. Tommy Laird, the commission's chief of fisheries, said the initial purchase will be 71,000 3-inch rainbow trout to fill the gap that the Spring River hatchery would receive from the Norfork hatchery.

For perspective, the Norfork hatchery normally has 3 million to 3.5 million trout of various sizes on station at any time, Graham said. That's brown, rainbow and cutthroat trout. Those are 100% of the trout that are stocked in the Bull Shoals, Beaver and Norfork tailwaters. Only about 300,000 trout are available now.

"The Norfork hatchery (has) not released hard numbers on what has been lost so far," Graham said. "They lost 1 million fish last fall, but we had no issues with with the Spring River hatchery last fall. We started out with less fish this year. As water quality has gotten worse, we estimate they lost 1.2 million fish in the last six weeks alone. They went from losing a thousand fish per day to tens of thousands fish per day."

There will no trout available for stocking in December, Graham added.

"The White River will see over a 50% loss for the next six months, and there will be no fish for the Beaver and Norfork tailwaters," Graham said.

The commission feared that meat fishermen might deplete the supply of trout, and then deplete larger browns and rainbows when the supply of stocker-sized rainbows exhausts. Ultimately, Graham said, depletions would diminish the experience quality for both angler groups.

This (emergency regulations) is a temporary thing," Graham said. "We have no intention for this to be a long-term change to the regulations for this fishery."

Commissioner Rob Finley of Mountain Home said that fishing pressure eases dramatically until spring. Acting now, he added, could avert irreversible damage to the trout streams.

"It's better to be more restrictive and be a little wrong than be under-restrictive and damage a fishery that could produce harm that will last a decade or at least five years," Finley said.

[Quillback]

You have to wonder, with the water quality issues at the Norfork hatchery that don't look to be going away, if this could be the future.  

[Devan S.]

I ran up the Norfork from the confluence Saturday and the water was bad nasty. 

I have no problem with the changes at all. My only argument is that if your not going to stock Beaver Tailwater for the next 6 months, then it should be catch and release only and there should be some level of tackle restriction. 

[gotmuddy]

13 minutes ago, Devan S. said:

I ran up the Norfork from the confluence Saturday and the water was bad nasty. 

I have no problem with the changes at all. My only argument is that if your not going to stock Beaver Tailwater for the next 6 months, then it should be catch and release only and there should be some level of tackle restriction. 

I agree

[Foghorn]

I wonder which hatchery in Missouri sold the trout. Not sure our hatcheries are fairing much better than Arkansas'.

[netboy]

I rarely keep a trout so no problem for me. Practically all of the fly-fishing guides on the White and Norfork are catch and release. It will be interesting to see how they enforce it. I haven't seen any signs at the accesses yet. Hopefully we will see some bigger trout in the catch and keep sections of the river.

[snagged in outlet 3]

6 minutes ago, Foghorn said:

I wonder which hatchery in Missouri sold the trout. Not sure our hatcheries are fairing much better than Arkansas'.

Hopefully they don’t spread the fungus in Shepherd of the hills to AR😐

[netboy]

14 minutes ago, Foghorn said:

I wonder which hatchery in Missouri sold the trout. Not sure our hatcheries are fairing much better than Arkansas'.

Probably Crystal Lake fisheries in Ava. AGFC purchased quite a few trout from them back when the Jim Hinkle Hatchery was severely damaged from the big flood in 2017.

[netboy]

I would like to see them also put a temporary ban on the use of all natural baits. Lots of fish die from being gut hooked.

[Quillback]

4 minutes ago, netboy said:

I would like to see them also put a temporary ban on the use of all natural baits. Lots of fish die from being gut hooked.

That would make sense.  I am going to guess they were worried about pushback from the guides and trout resorts that cater to clients fishing bait.