Fishing Bans Imposed on Drought-Hit Washington State's Olympic Peninsula

"U.S. authorities banned fishing from Monday in most rivers and streams within the Olympic National Park in western Washington state, citing ongoing severe drought conditions that have harmed fish along the U.S. West Coast.

The emergency ban on Washington state's Olympic Peninsula imposed restrictions on recreational fishing on the Bogachiel, Sol Duc, Queets, and other rivers, as well as their tributaries in the Pacific Coastal area, the National Park Service said in a statement.

"Current conditions have made Pacific salmon, steelhead and bulltrout exceptionally vulnerable because of low stream flows and high water temperatures," Olympic National Park spokeswoman Barb Maynes said."

Eric M. Johnson reports for Reuters August 10, 2015.