LONG BEACH — Razor clam digging will open for eight straight days beginning Thursday on the Long Beach Peninsula, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife announced Monday.
Copalis Beach will be open Friday and Saturday.
It will be the first digging at Long Beach since last spring. Domoic acid, a natural toxin produced by certain types of marine algae, resulted in shellfish harvesting closures along Washington’s coast for much of 2015.
“The season opener at Copalis over the Christmas holiday was a huge success with most diggers filling their limits,’’ said Dan Ayres, coastal shellfish manager for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. “We’re excited that we can open Long Beach for the first time this season.’’
Razor clam digging will remain closed on Washington’s other beaches until domoic acid levels drop below the 20-parts-per-million threshold set by state public health officials.
Domoic acid is harmful or even fatal if consumed in sufficient quantities. Neither cooking nor freezing destroys domoic acid in shellfish.
Low tides on the beaches will be: Thursday, 4:57 p.m, 0.1 feet; Friday, 5:37 p.m., -0.4 feet; Saturday, 6:16 p.m., -0.8 feet; Sunday, 6:55 p.m., -1.0 feet; Jan. 11, 7:34 p.m., -1.0 feet; Jan. 12, 8:14 p.m., -0.8 feet; Jan. 13, 8:56 p.m., -0.4 feet; and Jan. 14, 9:40 p.m., 0.2 feet.
The best digging normally is one to two hours before low tide.
Diggers may take 15 razor clams per day and are required to keep the first 15 they dig. Each digger’s limit must be kept in a separate container.
Diggers age 15 and older must have a 2015-16 license. Licenses range from a three-day razor clam license to an annual combination fishing license. A three-day clam licenses costs $9.70. An annual license costs $14.10.
Ayres said the state is monitoring toxin levels at all Washington beaches and will open other areas as soon as the clams are safe to eat.
