This engagement has been archived.
Status: Completed
Ministry responsible: Environment and Parks
Completed: 2017
Overview
In 2000 and 2003, Pine Coulee Reservoir was stocked with walleye with the objective of creating a sustainable walleye fishery.
Sampling of stock levels since then have shown that the walleye population of Pine Coulee Reservoir has not established itself. That is, the growth rate has been very slow and there has been no population increase due to walleye born in the lake. The stocked walleye are now nearing the end of their lifespan.
Because the walleye population has not become sustainable and time is running out on the stocked population, the Alberta government considered:
- a regulation change to allow for the harvest of walleye until the current population is depleted
- a shift in management objectives to a stocked trout fishery
In 2017, an online survey asked Albertans about changing Pine Coulee Reservoir from a walleye fishery to a potential stocked trout fishery. The survey results indicated that 67.5% of respondents were in favour of the change.
With this mandate, the Alberta government implemented a regulation in 2017 that:
- the Pine Coulee Reservoir is open all year
- walleye limit is 3, with no size limit
- pike limit is 3, with no size limit
- bait is allowed
Life cycle
Online survey: February 21 to March 1, 2017
Survey results released: March 21, 2017
Related links
2019 Fish Consumption Guidance: Mercury in Fish
Fisheries management