The PA Fish and Boat Commission says they are considering increasing the minimum size of trout that can be caught and kept. They say the increase could bring many benefits for both trout and other species of fish.
The last time the minimum size for trout was changed was 40 years ago, when it was increased from 6 to 7 inches. PA Fish and Boat Commission staff say they are now reviewing regulations to see if another increase is appropriate.
Nathan Walters of the PA Fish and Boat Commission says increasing the minimum size limit may provide further protection to wild brook trout, but says the studies have not confirmed this yet. “Right now we’re in the early stages of this, to make sure we’re collecting the data to make the best recommendation. But if we would move forward with an increased size limit, a minimal size limit, the thought would be to protect those fish to an extra size length.” says Walters.
Officials say the last time the minimum size for trout was changed was in 1983, when it was increased from six to seven inches. They say this was done primarily to protect older and faster growing brook trout for an additional year, before being subjected to harvesting. Walters says the data from when the size was last increased is outdated, and that the majority of fishers agree.
He says “In the statewide trout angler survey that we’re conducting here in 2023, one question we did ask is if anglers would support an increase in minimum size, and the majority of people, approximately 85 %, say they would support that. Again, staff need to go back and actually take a look at some of the additional data, to see what the best recommendation and management approach would be in the future.”
Commission officials say the next step is a statewide field-based creel survey to be conducted in 2024. This will assess angler use, harvest, and economics of our wild and stocked trout fisheries. Officials say the last time an undertaking like this was done was 2004, for wild trout and 2005 for stocked trout. They say this will further inform our evaluation of trout minimum size and harvest limits.
The president of a trout club in our area, Lindon Gamble, shares why he sees this topic as big as it is in the commonwealth, saying “That’s the problem with Western Pennsylvania, with our type of streams, we don’t have these monster volumes of water, like in other places. We do our best to try to provide a habitat that holds them longer and keeps them safe, so people can enjoy them.”
Walters says a full recommendation will likely not be available until after the survey is complete, in 2025.
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