Clean Angling News October 2011

Missouri To Ban Felt in 2012    The Missouri Conservation Commission has approved a regulation change banning the use of "porous-soled waders or footwear incorporating or having attached a porous sole of felted, matted, or woven fibrous material when fishing in trout parks and other specific trout waters. Pending public comment through the Secretary of State’s office, the new regulation will go into effect March 1, 2012, the opening day of catch-and-keep fishing at Missouri’s four trout parks."     The move to ban felt in Missouri is not a surprise as we have been reporting that the rule was in preparation for nearly a year. The intent of the rule is to reduce the spread of Didymo, the invasive algae that has rapidly spread across the Eastern US. Tim Banek, invasive species coordinator for the Missouri Department of Conservation, said Didymo has prompted his agency to begin developing the regulations.  Read More   While Missouri is the latest state to institute a felt ban, we can expect that other states and jurisdictions will be considering felt bans as well. We will continue to provide a comprehensive accounting of all felt ban proposals in the US at US Felt Bans Ballast Water Remains a Threat    Ballast water continues to be the biggest problem for new international aquatic invasions. New York is set to implement strict regulations on ballast water but the move is strongly opposed by many. Perhaps most critically, the US House of Representatives is quickly working on a bill that would prevent the New York Regulations from taking effect.  Read More     While ballast water regulations are being hotly debated, the shipping industry has weighed in with the threat that hundreds of thousands of jobs may be at risk. Pointing at the economic advantages of not regulating ballast water the industry group tries to make a case that preventing invasive species is too costly. Read More Federal Response to 9/11 Benefited Invasive Species   According to a newly released AP report, "Dozens of foreign insects and plant diseases slipped undetected into the United States in the years after 9/11, when authorities were so focused on preventing another attack that they overlooked a pest explosion that threatened the quality of the nation's food supply.      At the time, hundreds of agricultural scientists responsible for stopping invasive species at the border were reassigned to anti-terrorism duties in the newly formed Homeland Security Department — a move that scientists say cost billions of dollars in crop damage and eradication efforts from California vineyards to Florida citrus groves.       The consequences come home to consumers in the form of higher grocery prices, substandard produce and the risk of environmental damage from chemicals needed to combat the pests.”  Read More Asian Carp Stories of Interest      The potential invasion of the Great Lakes bu Asian carp remains the big story. There continues to be action on the legal and legislative front while powers battle of their own interests. Here are some stories of interest.    The fight to close off the potential pathway between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi took a new turn in October when five states asked the U.S. Supreme Court to hear their plea for quicker federal action to prevent Asian carp and other invasive species from moving between the watersheds.  Read More     While the legal fight continues, in a Purdue University Calumet classroom representatives of Great Lakes protection and advocacy groups revealed preliminary concepts to protect the world's largest surface freshwater source from Asian carp and other aquatic invaders.  Finding a cost-effective way to separate the Great Lakes and Mississippi River watersheds to combat invasive species may be a Herculean task. And it appears potential solutions will be a tough sell.  Read More    Not everyone is convinced that Asian carp would actually cause problems in the Great Lakes, including some noted scientists. For a good overview of  both sides of this argument listen to this Podcast from Ann Arbor Science & Skeptics. In it, Dr. Gerald Smith, professor emeritus at the University of Michigan argues that the carp represent far less of a threat than believed while Dr. Michael Murray, staff scientist with the National Wildlife Federation of Michigan presents the case that the carp are a serious ecological threat.Listen Here State by State Wyoming - Wyoming's second boating season following passage of Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) legislation in 2010 was deemed a success based on the numbers of boats inspected, AIS decal sales, and overall cooperation from boaters.  Read More Ohio - Quagga and Zebra mussels are being cited as a likely factor in the record algae blooms experienced on Lake Erie. NASA has released a story with fascinating space photos that show the extent of the problem.  Read More Hawaii - Patrick Dougherty, a world-renowned, award-winning artist, and approximately 150 local volunteers completed a giant, "Invasive Species" sculpture at the Hui No'eau Visual Arts Center in Makawao.  Read More Montana - The discovery of Eurasian Milfoil on Beaver Lake west of Whitefish is prompting the state to close the lake's boat ramp to prevent the spread of the aquatic weed.  Read More   Minnesota - A new electronic gate is ready to drop its arm across the public boat ramp on Christmas Lake, if the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources approves its use in an experiment aimed at stopping the spread of zebra mussels   Read More Oregon -  The northern ringed crayfish, an aquatic invasive species, has been discovered in the Umpqua River system in southwest Oregon. Native to the Mississippi River, the ringed crayfish was first documented in Oregon’s Rogue River in the early 1960s. Read More Michigan - The Tourism Improving Michigan's Economy (TIME) Alliance unveiled radio ads and a special website designed to muster public and industry support to keep Asian Carp out of Michigan waterways.  Read More New York - Is the time of the private boat launch on Lake George over? That question is being posed as local and state officials grapple with stemming the march of aquatic invasive species.  Read More California - A proposal to allow the use of aquatic pesticides at Lake Tahoe drew mixed reactions from the South Lake Tahoe City Council.  Read More Tropical Fish Hobbyists Encouraged to Avoid Invasive Species Fishchannel.com is a leading tropical fish site that is run by one of the major magazines. They recently had a series of three good articles that are aimed at teaching fish keepers about the invasive species threat. The pet trade is often highlighted as a potential source of new invasives and it is great to see a major media company joining in the education effort.  Read Part One - Read Part Two - Read Part Three Potpourri   A selection of stories not directly related to aquatic invasives.    Kudzu – the "plant that ate the South" – has finally met a pest that's just as voracious. Trouble is, the so-called "kudzu bug" is also fond of another East Asian transplant that we happen to like, and that is big money for American farmers - Soybeans. Read More     After more than 10 years of hunting and attempting to remove invasive populations of nutria throughout Maryland, one final push is being made to eradicate the species locally. Over the next few years, officials from the U.S. Department of Agriculture will begin traveling down the Wicomico River seeking out remaining nutria populations. Read More     A Michigan Department of Natural Resources director’s order listing sporting swine as an invasive species took effect on Oct. 8, making it illegal to possess the animals in Michigan. Read More

AIR POLLUTION FROM GAS DRILLING WILL AFFECT EVERYONE - - FROM THE CATSKILLS, TO THE HUDSON VALLEY, TO NEW YORK CITY

If you think fracking will not affect you, think again.

The Millennium, Iroquois and Tennessee pipelines will intersect with a proposed NYMarc connector in Orange County in and around the Town of Minisink.  This map is a clear visual illustration of the pipeline.  There is already an application for one compressor station and more are being considered.

Compressor stations are used to keep gas in a highly pressured state so that it can travel through gas pipelines.  We now know that these compressor stations have negative impacts on the environment and people’s health, which can be as severe as those that are found at gas drilling well pads. They emit carcinogenic and neurotoxin compounds, volatile organic compounds and nitrogen oxides that create ozone (smog) and many more toxins. People who live in areas with compressor stations have reported serious health symptoms such as headaches, dizziness, blackouts, muscle contractions and ruptured ear drums from the constant low frequency roar of the compressors. In parts of rural Texas where gas pipeline compressor stations are located, asthma rates for children have risen from a normal 7% to a very abnormal 25%.
Communities in close proximity to gas production facilities will feel the air contaminants the most.  HOWEVER, BECAUSE AIR CONTAMINANTS TRAVEL VIA AIR CURRENTS THEY WILL ALSO AFFECT SURROUNDING AREAS - WHICH IN THIS CASE WOULD INCLUDE DUTCHESS, PUTNAM, ROCKLAND AND WESTCHESTER COUNTIES AND NEW YORK CITY.
Orange County, NY is the home of many 9-11 responders who are living with health issues as a result of their heroic service to all of us.  In a letter protesting the compressor stations near his hometown, a NYC First Responder said, “There are approximately 10 NYC First Responders (that I am aware of) that live approximately within a half mile radius of the proposed Millennium gas compressor site.”  He further said, “We know all-too-well the result these known carcinogens will have on our health. We do not want to have to move again.”
While it is a travesty to think of these 9-11 responders having their health further compromised by the proposed compressor stations, it is just as unconscionable to subject the entire population of Orange County to these same negative health impacts.  These new emissions will be on top of existing problems Orange County currently faces with pollution from vehicle and industry emissions.  According to EPA records from 1998 to 2008, the latest published, the air quality was considered less than good on over 21.5% of the days of the year and on 75% of those days ozone was the main pollutant.
These planned compressor stations are just the tip of the iceberg. In PA, there is now an average of almost one compressor station application per week. As things stand we can expect the same.
Calvin Tillman, the former mayor of Dish TX, where residents were sickened after 11 compressor stations were built said, “If you don't learn from what has happened here, by the time that the odor gets bad enough for you to not want it there, by the time that the noise gets loud enough that it's disturbing you, it's already too late.”
It is becoming late in the game in New York State. If we don’t take action now to stop fracking in New York, all of us from the Catskills and the Southern Tier down to the Hudson Valley and into New York City will pay a personal price. 

In order to let Governor Cuomo know that we don’t want fracking to ruin our health and our environment, today we are starting a call campaign called “DON’T FRACK FRIDAYS”.  Please call the Governor’s office EVERY Friday to let him know that you don’t want fracking in New York State at (518) 474-8390.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) controls the regulation of interstate pipelines. Please click here to tell them not to build a compressor station in Minisink or anywhere else in Orange County because of the potential for serious long-term negative health ramifications to all New Yorkers, especially our children.  The deadline to comment is November 14, 2011.

Next month hearings will be conducted regarding the conditions and rules under which gas drilling would be allowed in New York State. We can’t stress enough the importance of having huge turnouts at these hearings. Please reserve these dates on your calendar and plan to attend.  You’ll hear more from us as we get closer.           

            November 16 – Public Hearing on the dSGEIS - Dansville, NY

            November 17 – Public Hearing on the dSGEIS - Binghamton, NY

            November 21 – DRBC Hearing - Trenton, NJ 

            November 29  - Public Hearing on the dSGEIS – Loch Sheldrake, NY

            November 30 – Public Hearing on the dSGEIS – New York City

Click here for the dates and times of the dSGEIS hearings, and here for more information on the DRBC hearing.  Use the  Catskill Mountainkeeper website as a resource.

Forward this message to your friends, family and neighbors and ask them to forward it on. Get educated, especially about the health issues and threats.

Your support is needed now more than ever.  Please give as generously as you can.

or mail a check to:  Catskill Mountainkeeper, PO Box 381, Youngsville, NY 12791
www.catskillmountainkeeper.org

845.482.5400

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About Catskill Mountainkeeper
Catskill Mountainkeeper is an independent, not for profit, 501c3 community based environmental advocacy organization, dedicated to creating a flourishing sustainable economy in the Catskills and preserving and protecting the area's long term health. We address issues of water integrity for the Delaware and Susquehanna River Systems, the defense of the vast woodlands that encompass the Catskill Forest Preserve and the New York City Watershed as well as farmland protection. We promote "smart" development that balances the economic needs and concerns of the Catskill regions' citizens and the protection of our abundant but exceedingly vulnerable natural resources.

National T-U Leaders Raise Drilling Concerns

 

Chris Lawrence
Washington DC

A representative of Trout Unlimited urges members of Congress to consider enacting legislation putting federal controls on Marcellus Shale Drilling.

Katy Dunlap, T-U's Director of Eastern Water Projects tells members of a Senate subcommittee waste water from drilling near trout streams could have long lasting negative impacts on those waters. She further adds the impact of access to drilling sites could also cause surface impacts equally harmful to those same streams.

“From what we see on the ground, regulation of gas development is not adequate to protect water resources,” Dunlap said. “While Trout Unlimited is concerned about the potential contamination of water resources that can be directly caused by the hydraulic fracturing process, we are equally concerned about the surface impacts that can result from the associated activities of hydraulic fracturing and natural gas development."

One of those concerns beyond potential water contamination from fracturing is the potential for erosion after excavation work on drilling sites.

“By far the most prominent and concerning impact that Trout Unlimited members are seeing on the ground is the failure or lack of erosion and sediment controls on well pad construction sites and access roads,” Dunlap said.

Dunlap told committee members the organization is concerned the state will be incapable of properly regulating the drilling with proper protections for streams for native brook trout and other species. She points to a bill now in the Pennsylvania legislature to remove the present 150-foot buffer required between a well pad and high quality waters.

"If passed, this bill would allow well pads to be built right up against streams, creating unacceptable risks to Pennsylvania’s waterways and its aquatic life,” Dunlap said.

Dunlap and T-U are urging Congress to carefully examine the potential impacts of Marcellus Shale drilling on water and land resources. She tells Congress Trout Unlimited volunteers are already working independently in the Marcellus Shale region to test water quality and monitor stream conditions in areas where gas development is underway.

Ramblings

I have a few things I’d like to give you today. The first being a podcast from The Orvis Company, Tom Rosenbauer :

Tom Rosenbauer's Fall Fly-Fishing Secrets

Crisp days in autumn bring another worldly beauty to the forest and winding Matapedia River. This is a time to get to know the river in an entirely new way.
Credit: Charles Cusson/Atlantic Salmon Federation

In the podcast this week, I go on a minor rant about the ethics of crowding on today's trout streams, and pretty much tell you if you don't like the crowds, take a hike (literally). I do give some suggestions on how to handle crowded situations if you have no other choice, but there is almost always another choice. And in the main part of the podcast, I share with you some fall fishing secrets. We have touched on this subject before, but since the last time I have received some more tips from all of you that I really should share.
I also announce a very special contest for the best suggestion for next week's podcast. The prize is an autographed copy of my new book, The Orvis Guide to The Essential American Flies, which is a large format book with spectacular color photos

Click the play button below to listen to this episode. Go to orvis.com/podcast to subscribe to future episodes
If you cannot see the podcast player, please click this link to listen.

Share my fall fly fishing tips with your fishing buddies:

 

 

The second is a neat video about An American Eagle that was raised by some folks after being found blown out of its nest when just five weeks old:

http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=oOZF4vTAF2M&vq=medium

A Rainy Afternoon

I have been sitting here looking out the window at the cars driving by with their windshield wipers working as they have been for two days now, the squirrels don’t seem to be bothered by the rain. I am bothered as I watch on the computer from USGS Water Alerts as Oatka Creek, my home water go up. Then I was watching Fly-tying Videos and I thought you might like to see this one from The Orvis Company.

Tying the LaFontaine Sparkle Emerger Posted: 26 Oct 2011 05:50 AM PDT Gary LaFontaine's book Caddisflies, published in 1981, completely revolutionized the ways that anglers understood caddisfly behavior, how trout reacted to it, and how imitations should be tied and fished. LaFontaine, who died of Lou Gehrig's disease in 2002, had spent a decade studying caddisflies, even donning SCUBA gear to observe the underwater lives of these varied insects. One of his most important findings was that many species of caddisfly pupae rise to the water's surface via an air sac that surrounds the abdomen. This "bubble" became the signature feature of the patterns LaFontaine invented to mimic these pupae. In this video, by Tim Flagler of Tightline Productions, Matt Grobert ties his version of a LaFontaine Sparkle Emerger. Grobert, an author and blogger, deviates from LaFontaine's original, making the tying process somewhat simpler. Designed as an emerger, this pattern can quickly transformed into a Deep Sparkle Pupa by simply cutting off the deer-hair wing. As usual, there are a couple of neat tying tricks on display that you can use for tying all the LaFontaine patterns. For instance, note how Matt ties one bunch of Antron slightly larger than the other, so he can snip some of the fibers later for a trailing shuck. You'll also learn why it's important to keep the materials sparse to create a translucent effect in the water. LaFontaine Sparkle Emerger from Tightline Productions on Vimeo.           LaFontaine's Sparkle Emerger Hook: Standard dry-fly hook (here a Tiemco 100), sizes 12-18. Thread: Black, 6/0.           Underbody and shuck: Golden yellow Antron, carded. Body: Yellow-brown Antron. Wings: Natural deer hair, cleaned and stacked.           Thorax: Brown Australian possum dubbing. Note: Pick out the Antron to create a "bubble" around the body.

Fly Selection Made Easy from the Orvis Company

 

Posted: 24 Oct 2011 08:33 AM PDT

Many anglers are turned off by fly-fishing because they think it is too technical. Oftentimes, experienced anglers try to impress new fly fishers by spouting off about the “Baetis hatch” or talking about the “Ephemerellas” they saw yesterday. It can seem a bit overwhelming for a beginner, and learning the Latin names of all the insects one encounters on-stream seems a daunting task. Fear not, because the fish know less Latin than you do!

What is important when fly-fishing is to be observant. If you see the fish are eating small olive-colored bugs with gray wings, that is all the information you really need to select an appropriate fly. Simply look into your fly box and pick the fly that best represents the natural insects. You don’t need to know that you are in the midst of a Baetis hatch.

Rather than taking courses in Latin, taxonomy, and entomology, there are a couple of things you can do to to find out what available food items the fish might be taking advantage of.

1. Shake some of the streamside bushes, watch what flies out, and match these creatures to an imitation in my fly box. The bugs in the bushes are usually those that have recently hatched or are about to mate and die.

2. Turn over some rocks. If there are no bugs in the bushes and you don’t see any fish rising, then you can look for food sources under the surface of the stream. Shallow areas with some current are a river’s food factory. Try picking up a few rocks from the river bottom or holding a fine meshed net downstream while stirring up the bottom a bit. You will find lots of potential food items on the local trout’s menu. Take a look at these creepy crawlies and select your fly accordingly.

3. Collect some bugs in film canisters filled with rubbing alcohol. (If you use river water, you will be surprised at how much stink can come out of a small film canister filled with rotten bugs!) A local fly shop or club can be invaluable in helping you identify your drunken-bug collection and select those flies that imitate your collection and work for local hatches. Over time, you will begin to pick up the names of the important local bugs, learn when these insects hatch, and know how to be prepared with the right patterns.

This trout was fooled by a pheasant tail nymph, yet it does not know the latin name of the bug it represented. photo by Steve May

Before long, you will also begin to recognize the major types of insects that trout eat, as well as what a mayfly, caddis fly, midge, or stonefly looks like in both its adult and nymph form. This will be helpful when you talk with other fly anglers. Put your observation skills to the test and present your fly well, and you’ll be able to tell the old-timer who asks what fly fooled that big fish you just landed, “It ate a little brown fly that looks just like the ones flying around.”

You have to impress the fish, not other anglers, and trout do not study Latin.

Steve May is a fly-fishing guide at Grand River Troutfitters, as well as an Orvis contract fly tier.

Appetite for Catch and Release Is Tempered

 

By ADAM CLYMER

Published: October 22, 2011

• LEENANE, Ireland — After my years of faithfulness (well, almost) to the religion of catch-and-release fishing in the United States and Canada, I found it heretical to be told that the salmon I caught would have to be killed.

 

Delphi Lodge

The waters at Delphi Lodge in Connemarra, on Ireland's northwest coast. Delphi, which got into the hatchery business in 1990, releases 50,000 smolts each year; perhaps 1,500 return.

For the first five days, I fished in continual rain at Delphi Lodge in Connemarra, on Ireland’s northwest coast, it seemed a moot point. One tap, perhaps, but no real strikes. Nothing to test my faith.

But then on my last day, in another steady rain, I had a solid hookup on a Willie Gunn, a tube fly tied with yellow, orange and black bucktail. Two leaps and 15 minutes later, a seven-pound spring salmon was netted by Dave Duffy, the ghillie who rowed me around Finlough, the smaller of Delphi’s two lakes on the Bundorragha River.

Once the fish was in the boat, Duffy was excited to see that it was missing the adipose fin. That meant it was a keeper, not because it was deformed, but because Delphi runs a hatchery and clips those fins off before releasing the smolts. And the fish have to be killed to prevent interbreeding with the smaller stock of natural wild salmon. Indeed, when the season ends each fall, the remaining hatchery fish are netted and killed; the wild fish are released to spawn and return to sea.

read more:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/23/sports/appetite-for-catch-and-release-tempered-at-delphi-lodge.html?emc=tnt&tntemail1=y

Riverkeeper Launches Campaign to Pass Sewage Right to Know Law in New York

On Friday, October 14, 2011, Riverkeeper, along with two dozen partners and supporters, testified in support of a state law that would require public notification of sewage contamination in our waterways. Currently when sewage is discharged into the waters in which we swim, boat and fish there is no requirement that the public be notified. This leaves millions of citizens at risk of contracting waterborne illnesses from exposure to pathogens in sewage-laden water. Nationwide, waterborne illnesses are on the rise.

Tracy Brown testifies on behalf of Riverkeeper. Video on YouTube

In five years of testing, Riverkeeper’s patrol boat found that Hudson River water is unsafe for swimming more than 20% of the time we tested. Too often, our monthly water quality emails were the only public notification of these unsafe conditions. Riverkeeper thanks everyone who has joined our call for the public's right to know by signing our petition and submitting testimony. There will be many more opportunities to participate in and support this campaign in the coming months so stay tuned! “Sometimes people don’t see the sewage coming up and children are playing in it.” - Susan Cleaver Journalist, Clean Water Activist “Individuals get sick from microbial infections that occur from exposure on a single day, at a specific location. They do not get sick from exposure to “average” conditions.” - Gregory O’Mullan, Ph.D. Assistant Professor School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Queens College, CUNY “We want informed residents, not only for their own safety, but also so that they can be part of developing solutions for these problems with government officials, scientists and environmental activists.” - Connie Coker MSN, CNM Rockland County Legislator "For improved notification “groups like MWA and Riverkeeper are probably the most effective because they are talking directly to the people who are planning on getting on the water and those are the people we are most concerned about, but everybody has the right to know.” - Venetia Lannon NYS Department of Environmental Conservation “I would suggest that this bill be called not the Sewage Right to Know but the Sewage Need to Know because we all have a need to know about this issue.” - Neal Halloran Clean Water Activist Read more about Friday’s Hearing and see video of the testimonies. Thank you for caring about our waterways! John Lipscomb, Tracy Brown  & Robert Friedman Boat & Water Quality Program Riverkeeper Sign Riverkeeper's petition in support of notification! Share!   Forward this email

Are Atlantic salmon on the way back?

from OrvisNews.com Fly Fishing Blog

North American anglers often think of Atlantic salmon populations as being in a perpetual state of decline, but higher numbers of wild Atlantic salmon and excellent water conditions are contributing to an outstanding fishing season in parts of Newfoundland, Labrador, New Brunswick, Quebec, and Nova Scotia. Fish-counting facilities on the rivers that provincial governments monitor to assess the number of salmon returns are showing numbers well above previous five-year averages. To understand the excitement of anglers who are experiencing firsthand the signs of a banner year, it is important to consider what has happened over the last few decades.

The number of adult wild Atlantic salmon that spend two years at sea before returning to home rivers numbered about 900,000 in the mid 1970s. According to the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES), in just over two decades, salmon numbers fell by almost 90% to about 100,000. For those salmon, called grilse, that return to home rivers after only one year at sea, the decline in the same period has not been as steep, falling from 800,000 to about 400,000 to 500,000. Wild Atlantic salmon face daunting challenges to their survival throughout their traditional range. Over-harvesting in fisheries, dams, impacts from industry such as forestry, salmon farming, and changing environmental conditions in the ocean have resulted in a decline in populations to only 20% of their historic levels.

The decrease in numbers of the large salmon that spend two or more years feeding at sea is especially troubling, as these fish are predominately female. Due to their large size at spawning, they carry a much larger number of eggs relative to the smaller grilse. It is these large fish that migrate from North America to feeding grounds off Greenland.

The gin-clear waters of Gaspé rivers are probably the best place on earth to take underwater photos while releasing large Atlantic salmon.

photo by Kelsey Taylor

The decline in salmon numbers has not occurred evenly across eastern Canada. Many rivers, primarily in the southern range, have suffered the greatest losses. All wild Atlantic salmon in Maine have been listed as endangered under national legislation. In Canada, the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) recently recommended endangered status for additional southern populations of wild Atlantic salmon, including the outer Bay of Fundy.

Rebound
In 2010, anglers throughout Atlantic Canada raved about the amazing fishing, especially for grilse. Rivers like the Exploits in Newfoundland, which has a predominately grilse run, broke all-time records. This year, the rivers have been alive with both large and small salmon. Even the Penobscot River, one of the rivers listed as endangered in Maine, has seen the best run since 1986, with more than 3,000 returning fish. What’s making the difference? There are as many explanations as fishermen out there, but we can rest assured that a significant influence on the strength of runs comes from a conservation agreement with Greenland fishermen that has suspended their commercial fishery since 2002. The Atlantic Salmon Federation of the US and Canada and the North Atlantic Salmon Fund of Iceland established a fund that helped get the Greenland fishermen involved in alternative employment and fisheries, such as that for lumpfish. Certainly it stands to reason that when a fishery that had a quota to kill 60,000 large salmon in 2001 is stopped, then more salmon will make it back to their home rivers to spawn.

Another big help has been the growing inclination of anglers to release their salmon— even when regulations allow retention. ASF’s affiliated organizations are also pushing government to reduce the number of tags available to anglers for retention. This groundswell of support for live release is ensuring that more salmon make it to the spawning grounds, return to sea, and come back as even bigger salmon to spawn.

Releasing wild Atlantic salmon is an exciting prospect in the Gaspé rivers, where the clarity of the water allows anglers to watch salmon gracefully swimming away into deeper pools.

photo by Charles Cusson/Atlantic Salmon Federation

Finally, it seems that the salmon’s survival at sea is improving. Whether this is due to improved temperatures, better forage opportunities, fewer predators, or a combination of factors is not clearly understood. The Atlantic Salmon Federation’s scientists carry out research that tracks salmon at sea to try and get a full comprehension of where, when, and why mortality occurs to inform management measures that will better protect the species.

The ASF also works with Provincial and US affiliates to do hands-on work in rivers—keeping banks stable and fighting disruption of river habitat—and these restoration programs are paying off. A $50 million restoration project, being spearheaded by ASF and other conservation partners, on Maine’s Penobscot River to remove two dams and circumvent another promises to boost the celebrated run of more than 3,000 in 2011 to much higher numbers.

All this hard work by the ASF has been well rewarded in the 2011 season. Reports from anglers, wherever they fish—the Miramichi and Restigouche in New Brunswick; the Matapedia, Bonaventure, and Grande Cascapedia in Quebec; the Margaree in Nova Scotia; the Sand Hill in Labrador; and the Humber in Newfoundland—all tell of the best salmon fishing they have ever experienced.

Crisp days in autumn bring another worldly beauty to the forest and winding Matapedia River. This is a time to get to know the river in an entirely new way.

photo by Charles Cusson/Atlantic Salmon Federation

It is too early to tell if the runs of 2010 and 2011 are the norm for the future. If they indeed are, then it just might be possible to restore salmon to something approaching historic runs. Good runs often mean more people want a piece of the action, though. To restore the runs permanently, we must stay the course, making sure as many salmon get to the spawning beds as possible. Greenland fishermen are seeing a lot more salmon off their coast, and, in negotiations on quotas at the North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organization (NASCO), they are demanding a return to their commercial fishery. Catch-and-release angling is working and needs to continue and grow as a practice. The challenge is to keep harvest down and habitats healthy. Only if that challenge is met will the King of Gamefish continue its brilliant comeback of the past two years.

If you would like to participate in that comeback, you may donate to and check out the work done by Atlantic Salmon Federation.

Charles Gaines is a world-renowned writer and outdoorsman. Among his many works, he is co-author of Leaper: The Wonderful World of Atlantic Salmon with Monte Burke.

CITES Aims to Protect America's Largest Aquatic Salamanders.

CITES Aims to Protect America's Largest Aquatic Salamanders. Earlier this month, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) listed the eastern hellbender (http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/7160.html) and the Ozark hellbender in the Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species of Wildlife Fauna and Flora (CITES). This listing aims to control and monitor the international pet trade of hellbenders to help prevent these species from becoming extinct, particularly as they become rarer and, consequently, more valuable in the trade industry. More details of the hellbender CITES listing (http://www.fws.gov/midwest/endangered/amphibians/ozhe/NRFinalListingozhe.html) can be found on the USFWS website.

Eastern hellbender's are found in the Susquehanna and Allegany Rivers in New York State. ~Photo credit: John Ozard~

HOW GAS DRILLING THREATENS TO LOWER YOUR PROPERTY VALUES

 

If you have a gas lease, your neighbor has a gas lease or if you live in a community that has a lot of gas leases, it is likely that the value of your property will decrease and it may become almost impossible for you to sell your home. This is because almost all banks and insurance companies consider gas-leased land to be an unacceptable risk and will not give mortgages on or refinance properties that are leased or have gas wells.

In today's New York Times Ian Urbina examines these issues in depth:

"But bankers and real estate executives, especially in New York, are starting to pay closer attention to the fine print and are raising provocative questions, such as: What happens if they lend money for a piece of land that ends up storing the equivalent of an Olympic-size swimming pool filled with toxic wastewater from drilling?" Click here for the complete article "Rush to Drill for Natural Gas Creates Conflicts With Mortgages", NYT
Lenders such as the FHA (Federal Housing Administration) and the Department of HUD (Housing and Urban Development) will not provide financing if surface or sub surface gas rights have been leased within 300 feet of a residential structure OR within 300 feet of property boundary lines.   This can affect you if one or more of your neighbors has leased, even if you haven’t, and can also affect you if you are subject to New York State’s compulsory integration laws, which allow wells to be drilled under your property if 60% or more of the property adjacent to you has gas leases.

Experts say that the inability to get mortgages for pending residential sales will eliminate as much as 90% of potential purchases. This dynamic will create a dramatic negative impact on property values due to their lack of marketability and therefore demand. As real estate values decrease, assessment rolls will be impacted and ultimately the tax base.  Some local communities will likely have no choice but to raise taxes to pay for the shortfall.
Communities are already seeing a softening of home sales as buyers are holding off making any investment until the issue of fracking is resolved. Ulster County real estate brokers report that the potential of hydrofracking is hurting their important second-home buying business. The permit conditions and regulations that the New York State DEC has released to govern hydraulic fracturing (the dSGEIS) makes little mention of how fracking will devalue property and lower tax assessments, nor does it provide any remedies to those affected.  In fact Section 6.8.3.4 of the Document says about Propert Values:

"At this level of analysis, it is impossible to predict the actual impacts of developing the Marcellus and Utica shale natural gas reserves on individual property values. However, some predictions can be made with regard to the general impact of mineral rights on property values and the impact of well development on adjacent properties.

Revised Draft SGEIS 2011, Page 6-250, 6-251."

This is only one of the many problems and issues that will affect you, your family and your community.  Click here to see a summary of what’s wrong with the DEC’s plan, and click here to submit written comments to the DEC.Tell Governor Cuomo and your legislators NOT to let fracking destroy your property values.  Click here to send them an email

There are a number of very important public hearings coming in November.  It’s critical that we get a huge turnout at each one.

            November 16 – Public Hearing on the dSGEIS - Dansville, NY

            November 17 – Public Hearing on the dSGEIS - Binghamton, NY

            November 21 – DRBC Hearing - Trenton, NJ

            November 29 -  Public Hearing on the dSGEIS – Loch Sheldrake, NY

            November 30 – Public Hearing on the dSGEIS – New York City

Click here for the dates and times of the dSGEIS hearings, and here for more information on the DRBC hearing.  Use the  Catskill Mountainkeeper website as a resource. Get educated, especially about the health issues and threats.

Join over 3,600 people to ask Governor Cuomo and DEC Commissioner Martens to extend the comment period on the dSGEIS to 180 days so a thorough review can be done. Sign our petition

Forward this message to your friends, family and neighbors and ask them to forward it on. Get educated, especially about the health issues and threats.

We are now in the end game.  Your support is needed now more than ever.  Please give as generously as you can.

MOUNTAINKEEPER PARTNERS WITH THE NORTH MISSISSIPPI ALLSTARS

Join us for an evening of amazing music and important conversation about the Catskills

Radio Woodstock 100.1 WDST Presents:

The North Mississippi Allstars at the Bearsville Theater

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Doors 7pm - Show 8pm

Tickets:  Reserved Balcony $35.00

General Admission:  $20:00

For Tickets Click HERE

General Admission Tickets are Standing Room Only.  Reserved Seating tickets are for Balcony Tickets.
Catskill Mountainkeeper will be at the concert to talk and share information about our High Peaks progams, Fracking and our Catskills Agricultural Initiative.

All tickets purchased online will be available at Will Call at the theater Box Office on the day of the show. Tickets will NOT be mailed out.  Limited seating is available in the bar/lounge area. No flash photography please.
The North Mississippi Allstars were founded in 1996; a product of a special time for modern Mississippi country blues. RL Burnside, Jr. Kimbrough, Otha Turner and their musical families were at their peak; making classic records and touring the world. Brothers Luther and Cody Dickinson soaked up the music of their father, Memphis music legend Jim Dickinson, and absorbed the North Mississippi Blues legacy while playing and shaking it down at the juke joints with their blues ancestors. Luther (guitar and vocals) and Cody (drums and vocals) joined up with bassist Chris Chew to form the core of their own band, the North Mississippi Allstars. Through the filter of generations of Mississippi Blues men, the Allstars pioneered their own blues-infused rock and roll. After touring as an opening act for a variety of artists and honing their chops as a unit, the North Mississippi Allstars issued their debut album, Shake Hands With Shorty in the spring of 2000. Their debut proved to be a success and earned them a Grammy nomination for "Best Contemporary Blues Album". Bringing their style of hill country blues-infused rock & roll to stages all over the country and the world (including multiple tours in Europe and Asia), the Allstars quickly gained a loyal fan base. By 2005 the North Mississippi Allstars' had released 4 studio records, 3 of which were Grammy nominated and earned the reputation as one of the most intriguing acts to emerge from the loam of Southern blues and roots rock. After more than a decade touring together the Allstars decided to branch out in 2008 and pursue other projects. Luther played guitar and mandolin on the Black Crowes release "Warpaint" and soon became a full time member of the band. Meanwhile, Cody formed his own group Hill Country Revue, releasing 2 albums and touring the US extensively with his new band. Chris Chew briefly joined Hill Country Revue before moving on to pursue his own projects. In August 2009, Luther and Cody lost their father only months before Luther became one. Jim had always told them, "You need to be playing music together. You are better together than you will ever be apart." Coincidentally, the Dickinson brothers were not together when Jim passed. At that moment, they were both off on their own, Luther with the Black Crowes and Cody with Hill Country Revue.
So in the spring of 2010, the North Mississippi Allstars reformed and went into the Zebra Ranch, the family's recording studio where they had spent countless hours together with their dad, to create a record that could help them cope with the loss, and, at the same time, rejoice in his honor. The first line of Jim's self-written eulogy was, "I refuse to celebrate death." Luther, Cody and Chris Chew took heed and aimed to celebrate life instead; and the songs for the latest record, Keys to the Kingdom, came pouring out of their souls. Keys to the Kingdom is a song cycle, a celebratory declaration of life in the face of death as well as a musical interpretation of the Dickinson family's recent experience with the cycle of life, written and recorded honestly, fast and raw. There are moments of rock 'n roll rebellion andsexified blues, but the heart of the record reflects the journey that traverses through the mirrored gates of life and death. At the same time Keys to the Kingdom was being recorded, Luther and Cody began performing together as a duo. In early 2011, the NMA Duo released their official bootleg entitled 'Live in the Hills', taken from their performance at the annual North Mississippi Hill Country Picnic in Potts Camp, MS. As a duo Luther and Cody have toured extensively with Robert Plant and the Band of Joy, played many major festival stages, and toured throughout Europe.  See Shake 'Em On Down, by the Mississippi Allstars on YouTube

Free Download

Keys to the Kingdom

Click below to stream and download
‘Hear The Hills’

Hear The Hills

Download

WE DON’T NEED INDIAN POINT OR ITS POWER! AND HERE’S THE PROOF...

New York’s energy supply is secure and abundant even without electricity from Entergy’s Indian Point nuclear reactors, according to a new study commissioned by Riverkeeper and its partner, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). If Indian Point’s reactors are shuttered in 2015, as we believe they should be, New York will still have excess energy through 2020. By that time, we’ll have another 4,500 megawatts (two Indian Points!) of energy alternatives available to replace the power Indian Point generates today. This new power will be cleaner, far safer, and will ONLY cost the average home owner between $1 - 5 per month. This authoritative new report undercuts Entergy’s longstanding argument that New York needs Indian Point’s power. Put simply, we don’t need Indian Point, and we can’t afford the risk of an accident at a nuclear plant just 35 miles from Midtown Manhattan. Riverkeeper is fighting on multiple fronts to make this argument. We will lead state hearings beginning today, and federal hearings beginning soon, all with the goal of preventing Entergy from obtaining a 20-year extension on its license to operate Indian Point. We’ve never been closer to our goal of shutting down this dangerous plant. To join Riverkeeper’s efforts, share this important new report with your friends and make a contribution to our Close Indian Point campaign. Read more about the groundbreaking report on the TRUTH about New York’s energy future WITHOUT Indian Point on Riverkeeper’s website. Download Report Share!   Forward this email

The Economics Associated with Outdoor Recreation, Natural Resources Conservation and Historic Preservation in the United States

Summary Findings
Outdoor recreation, natural resources conservation and historic preservation in the United
States all have measurable economic impacts. Some selected facts from the following
report are highlighted here. These are illustrative of the entire picture that can be
developed following a close study of the economics of these sectors at the national level.
All dollar figures are reported in 2011 dollars, except as noted.

read more:

http://www.nfwf.org/Content/ContentFolders/NationalFishandWildlifeFoundation/HomePage/ConservationSpotlights/TheEconomicValueofOutdoorRecreation.pdf

Giving in to Fly Fishing

Posted: 14 Oct 2011 06:40 AM PDT Cross-Posted from the Women in Fly Fishing blog: Fly Fishing was never on my radar screen until I moved to Vermont and started working for Orvis in the mid 1990s. I worked for the company for four years and learned what an “angler” was (I really had no idea), that fishing poles were actually “rods,” and that “wading pant” was not the correct term for those funny water pants. They are just called “waders.”  And I was surprised to learn that an office discussion about “nymphs” was not even remotely suggestive. I also learned that the target audience of the typical fly-fisher was pretty much the polar opposite of me. A few years later, I ended up marrying a fly-fishing addict—one who works at Orvis and has the sport so ingrained in his being that when he isn’t actually fishing, he thinks about it all day, and then comes home to write about how others can learn the sport at night and on weekends. Can you imagine? Before we were married, I was asked, “Are you sure you can live with this? This is just how I am.” so I knew what I was getting into before taking the next step. But I still did not want to learn to fish. “Nah, not for me,” I said whenever I was asked if I wanted to try.  When my husband would fish, if I came along, I would read or hike. I never actually picked up a fly rod.  This fact seemed to stun most people I know, but I was actually secretly proud of my steadfast resistance over the last decade. Recently, though, I had a change of heart. Robin receives casting tips from her instructor at the Orvis Manchester Fly-Fishing School. photo by Tom Rosenbauer Earlier this year, I felt I was in a rut. I needed to get out of my comfort zone and learn something new.  I set a goal for myself to try a few activities I have always assumed I would hate. These activities were primarily centered on fitness. But one day this spring, when my husband broached the subject of whether our son was ready to learn to fly-fish, the topic of me finally learning as well resurfaced. Me?  Hmmm… Instead of replying with my typical “Nah, not for me,” I actually thought about the learn-something-new goal I had set earlier in the year. I thought about the activities I didn’t think I would ever like, but which I now love, and realized this just might be the right time to give in to my stubbornness and give fly fishing a try. A few months later, I took the next step. Because women always need a partner-in-crime, I enlisted my friend Kiernan to take the Orvis Manchester Fly-Fishing School with me for two full days last month. The Verdict? I had a blast! This was against my expectations, as you can imagine. I had many preconceived notions of what fly fishing would be like from watching from afar all these years. I had expected that the class would be filled with all men (aside from us), and that I would feel out of place. This was not so at all—the class was actually half women and half men. I thought the instructors would be kind of boring and stuffy and serious, and that laughing, not-very-serious women might be judged as “not authentic enough” for the sport. Again, I found the opposite was true. Those people who teach the sport love it; they want you to do the same. Now that the vest is on, it's time to talk less about casting and more about fishing. photo by Tom Rosenbauer I expected I would be terrible at casting. What I learned? It takes practice, and basically it doesn’t matter what your cast looks like. The fish do not care if your cast looks like it came out of “A River Runs Through It.” What is important is that you cast so you can get the fly where you want it to go. I had expected that hanging out in the water waiting, waiting, waiting for the fish would be boring. Actually, I was incorrect there, too. Time went quickly as I was thinking of some key things: keeping myself from slipping and falling, not spooking fish, what fly I was using, if I had tied the right knot on the end of the line, not hooking trees. You may not look like you are doing anything out there, but I realized there is a lot of active brain power being used. I really enjoyed learning to cast. There are a few rules for success, and once you get the hang of it, it’s easy to tell the difference between a bad cast and a good one.  I felt the same satisfaction when getting the line where I wanted it to go, as I would if I were aiming for any target, like a soccer ball in a net. For any competitive, driven person, it’s really cool to see the gradual improvement with every new cast. There were other parts I liked, as well. I liked that we could look around by the stream and see what the fish were eating and try to mimic those insects with the flies. I enjoyed trying to look at the water and anticipate where a fish might be. I enjoyed wading in the water, taking in the scenery on a beautiful day. Most of all, I loved spending the day like this on the water with a great friend. Robin and her partner in crime, Kiernan, enjoy a pond-side laugh. photo by Tom Rosenbauer Did I think I would catch a fish? Never. Actually, catching a fish never even crossed my mind. I was having too much fun doing everything else.  I was told by the instructors that this will change after my first catch, but I’m not so sure. So, what didn’t I really get into? Well, honestly, I didn’t really want to think about the nitty-gritty details. I know fly fishermen love to talk about which rod specifically they need to use, which reel, which leader and tippet, sizes, shapes, lengths….to me, I say, “Whatever.”  All the knots, and all the different flies?  I don’t think I have the patience to learn any more than two or three knots and do not really want to think about all the fly choices or learning all the names of each. I would just want someone to give me the right rod, set it up for me, tell me which five flies might do the trick, and send me on my way. And from what I learned from this experience, that’s okay, too. I came to realize we can embrace the details if we like, or we take the parts of the sport that are enjoyable to us and make it our own. I’m not sure what my next step is in the learning process, but I just ordered my waders and boots, borrowed a rod from the basement, and started casting practice in the yard. My new fishing license is only valid for a few more weeks—I have some work to do! Robin Kadet is a former Orvis employee and is married to Tom Rosenbauer. Share this with your friends:

Team up with Sonoran Institute to Help Protect the Colorado Delta

The Colorado River Delta (where the Colorado River ends in a series of wetlands at the Gulf of California) is less than 10% of its original size and getting smaller. Without a dedicated flow of water into the Delta, several indigenous communities (Cocopah in the U.S. and the Cucapa in Mexico), 380 bird species, and freshwater marine wildlife are in danger. To protect the Colorado River Delta: tell Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar to help save what Jacques Cousteau once called, “the aquarium of the world.” Team up with Sonoran Institute to Help Protect the Colorado Delta It’s not a lost cause. With help from groups like the Sonoran Institute, there’s still a chance to return water to the Colorado River Delta, and make sure the mighty river once again reaches the sea. PETE MCBRIDE Download free wallpaper

THE SONORAN INSTITUTE   Working to restore water, life and hope to the Colorado River Delta.   Learn more at the Sonoran Institute’s website

Help Save "The Most Important Fish in the Sea"

Send a message to the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission today
in support of stronger conservation for menhaden, an important forage fish

The Situation

Menhaden, a key food source for many popular sportfish - especially striped bass - are the most important fish in the sea according to noted historian and author H. Bruce Franklin. Unfortunately, menhaden stocks have declined 88 percent over the last 25 years and are at their lowest abundance in recorded history.

Commercial harvest continues

Despite growing concerns over the condition of the menhaden population, managers have allowed commercial harvest to continue at high levels, resulting in overfishing which seriously threatens some of the East Coast's most prized recreational fisheries, including striped bass. In an effort to increase menhaden abundance and its availability as a forage species, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission is in the process of establishing new population targets and fishing limits for the species.

Disease is taking its toll

The declining status of menhaden has taken on more significance with the increasing prevalence of Mycobacteriosis infections among striped bass in the Chesapeake Bay. There is growing evidence that a lack of suitable forage, notably menhaden, has stressed these important sportfish and made them particularly vulnerable to this fatal disease. Stronger conservation measures are required for the appropriate management of the menhaden fishery and will help bolster its population.

A management solution

The Commission has proposed several management alternatives, including a range of population target levels that are more in line with the standards set for other key forage fish. As commercial fishing continues to threaten the sustainability of Atlantic menhaden populations, stronger conservation measures are necessary to ensure the survival of this important forage fish and the sport fish that feed upon it.

Click here to send a message to the Atlantic States Marine Fishery Commission in support of stronger menhaden conservation measures. Comments are due by November 2, so take action today to conserve menhaden and the sport fish species that it supports.

Cleaning and storing your gear for the off-season from The Orvis Company

Always make sure you follow the manufacturer's instructions for cleaning and lubing your reels.

While the fishing season is by no means over, it may be time to start thinking about putting away some of your equipment—dry-fly rods, the 2-weight you use for native brookies, etc.—for the long winter. Although most fishing gear will last for years if you treat it right, incorrect storage can shorten that life span or ruin the aesthetics of a fine rod or reel. For instance, C. Boyd Pfeiffer, the godfather of tackle craft, tells of how he put a fly rod away wet, and when he retrieved it in the spring it was covered by tiny white blisters under the finish. Here are some tips to help you avoid such an unwelcome surprise.

1. The end of the season is the perfect time to clean all your gear. Before you store rods, reels, waders, and lines, you should wash them and allow them to completely dry.

Rods: An old toothbrush is perfect for lightly scrubbing around the hardware and guides. Pfeiffer notes that taking several rods into the shower with you is a convenient way to get the job done quickly. Make sure you rinse the rods thoroughly and allow them to air dry.

Reels: You can use the same toothbrush for getting all sand, salt, and grime off your reels. Take the lines off all reel before you wash them (although you can leave the backing on). Again make sure you rinse all parts thoroughly and put them on a towel to dry. When one side is completely dry, flip the parts over, so any water hiding in nooks and crannies can run out. Do this a few times.

Waders: Rinse them completely, wiping off any dirt or salt, and hang them to dry. Then turn them inside out an allow them to hang for awhile longer to air them out.

Fly lines: Always follow the manufacturer’s instructions for cleaning your lines. Using dish soap will actually remove the slick coating. A moist rag will usually do the trick.

2. Now it’s time to inspect and perform routine maintenance.

Rods: Check all the guides and ferrules to ensure they are in good shape. Apply ferrule wax to the male ends of the ferrules. Check the reel seat to make sure the threads are clear of debris.

Reels: If your reel requires lubricant (although few modern models do), follow the manufacturer’s instructions for doing so. Make sure all screws are tight. Do a final inspection to see if you missed any sand or salt residue.

Waders: Check them for wear and tear or leaks. If there are abrasions or nicks that look like they may become leaks, you might want to do a prophylactic repair with a patch kit.

Fly lines: Check the line for nicks, and test the loops at both ends to ensure that they are still strong.

3. Storing your gear correctly will ensure that it’s good as new when you need it.

Rods: Again, make sure the rod is completely dry before you put it in its sock or tube. Arrange your rod tubes horizontally, rather than standing upright. Finally, Pfeiffer suggests that you leave the end caps off entirely to allow the rods to “breathe” during the long months of storage.

Reels: The big enemy of reels is corrosion, so make sure they are fully dry. You can choose to store them in their bags, but leave a gap in the opening to allow any moisture to escape. Before you put a reel away for the winter, back the drag off completely. This will reduce wear and tear on the discs or other components.

Waders: The best way to store breathable waders is to hang them, but not by the suspenders or the boot feet. Instead, drape them over a hanger, allowing air to circulate all around them. This way, you don’t stress the suspenders or where the wader and boot material come together.

Fly lines: Fly lines should be clearly labeled and hung in loose coils over a hook or a nail. This will keep them from developing too much memory over the winter.

It goes without saying that all your gear should be stored somewhere that’s dry and is relatively climate-controlled—that is, a place that doesn’t experience wide swings in temperature.

New Date for Don’t Drill Day!

New Date for Don’t Drill Day!

November 21, 2011 is Don’t Drill the Delaware Day!
DRBC may lift the current moratorium on gas drilling in the Delaware River Basin – join us to insist on No Fracking!
CALL to ACTION November 21, 10 am-12 pm
Rally at 8 am

Patriots Theater at the War Memorial
1 Memorial Drive Trenton, N.J.

The previously announced October 21 meeting date is being delayed for a month to allow for the publishing of the modified draft regulations on the DRBC web site (www.drbc.net) two weeks in advance of the expected vote by the commissioners.

For over three years, environmental groups have been fighting to protect the Delaware River Watershed from pollution from toxic gas drilling; 69,800 people filed comments with the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) during the comment period on their draft natural gas development regulations, breaking all past records of public interest. In August, Riverkeeper filed a lawsuit along with other environmental groups seeking to stop the DRBC from moving ahead with these inadequate regulations without completing environmental studies required by federal law. 

But now the DRBC has scheduled a special meeting from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm on November 21, 2011 at the War Memorial in Trenton, NJ to “consider adoption of the regulations”, which would lift the current moratorium on gas drilling in the Delaware River Basin.  This would allow fracking to begin in areas of the Basin where the state has given the go ahead (Pennsylvania currently allows fracking; New York will not allow fracking at least until the completion of its fracking environmental impact statement).  The DRBC gas drilling regulations would pose a major threat to the New York City Watershed, as the Basin area currently provides 50 percent of the clean, unfiltered drinking water that nine million New Yorkers depend on daily. 
If you want to make a statement about gas drilling and fracking in the Delaware River Watershed, come stand with us on November 21 in Trenton. This is our chance to stand together and insist on protecting our water!
More information on how to get to this hearing and other logistics will be posted on our website in November.  In the meantime, please mark your calendars and plan to make your voices heard on November 21!

More Information

The American Museum of Fly Fishing

After Irene:  Assessing Our Streams Saturday, October 22 2:00 p.m. When seemingly small streams become raging rivers, fish and other inhabitants have to fight their own battle to survive the rushing water, increasing amount of silt, and after effects of a depleted food source as insect nymphs are washed downstream.   Join fish biologist, Ken Cox, from the Vermont Fish & Wildlife as he talks about the damage done to our local rivers from Tropical Storm Irene and all of the work that is being done to protect and rebuild the wildlife habitat.

Annual Membership Meeting

Saturday, October 22 9:15a.m. The annual members meeting will be held at the Orvis Fly Fishing school at 9:15 am on Saturday, October 22.  Join us that evening for a celebratory dinner at the Wilburton Inn.  Here you'll enjoy fine wines, a gourmet dinner, and good company among your fellow anglers and members!  For more details and to make a reservation, contact Kim Murphy.

A Graceful Rise Exhibition Catalog The museum is pleased to announce that funds have been secured to publish an exhibition catalog to complement our current exhibition, A Graceful Rise: Women in Fly Fishing Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow. The catalog will include the profiles of each of the women as well as some of the images and personal artifacts on display in our gallery. We hope to have these available by early December for your holiday shopping.  Check our website for details.

Improvements Continue Around our Casting Pond

After a site review by the Natural Resources Conservation Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, we were approved for funds to remove the invasive plants along the banks of the back stream (which eventually deposits into the Battenkill). Over the three-year grant period, this will enable wildlife to again use these natural resources for subsistence. This past fall, the low-growth bushes were removed, and the overgrown weeds in the yard were trimmed and maintained. Most of the fish that were restocked in fall 2010 survived the winter weather and the high waters brought about by Tropical Storm Irene. As always, the public is en- couraged to cast a line or two in the pond (and to practice catch-and-release so others can enjoy!).

ABOUT THE AMFF

The American Museum of Fly Fishing promotes an understanding of and appreciation for the history, traditions, and practitioners of the sport of fly fishing.  It collects, preserves, exhibits, studies, and interprets the artifacts, art, and literature of the sport and uses these resources to engage and benefit everyone.

Fly-Fishing: Suspending laws allowed damage to trout streams

 

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Morgan Lyle

A crew uses heavy machinery to scoop out the bed in Styles Brook in the town of Keene late last month. -(AP)

 

By now, most of us who spend a lot of time hanging around creeks have heard about the so-called emergency repairs done to protected trout streams in the Catskills and the Adirondacks in the wake of Tropical Storms Irene and Lee.

Numerous environmental groups, including the New York State Council of Trout Unlimited, have lodged protests with Gov. Andrew Cuomo for issuing a month-long blanket exemption from stream protection laws — an “emergency authoriz­ation” that was supposed to cover only imminent threats to life, property, etc.

Local governments and property owners appear to have taken the emergency authorization as a green light to go in and bulldoze, without penalty, streams they’ve wanted to bulldoze for years. The result has left streams all over eastern New York scraped flat and smooth, with sloping sides, like irrigation ditches, and local officials demanding the emergency auth­orization be extended so they can continue bulldozing.

This kind of work obviously

ruins trout habitat. But channelizing streams also makes them more dangerous, not less. Removing the boulders and contours — the “roughness” of the streambed — serves to accelerate water.

READ MORE: http://www.dailygazette.com/news/2011/oct/06/1006_FlyFishing/

The Underground’s Short Casts for 2011-10-07

 

by Tom Chandler on October 7, 2011 · 0 comments

• Ready for another "brutal" winter? Brutal Winter Predicted for U.S.: Scientific American http://ow.ly/6PIoe #
• It's not just Vermont; New York suspends stream protection laws, trout streams getting hammered: http://ow.ly/6PIuW #

Theodore Gordon Flyfishers Presents Conservation Award to DEC Biologist.

 

Jack Isaacs, recent retiree from the Division's Bureau of Habitat, will be honored with the Theodore Gordon Flyfishers prestigious Conservation Award. Before his retirement in 2010, Jack worked in DEC's New Paltz office where he managed the regional habitat protection program. During his more than 30-year career with DEC, he worked tirelessly to protect world-renowned trout streams like the Beaver Kill and Willowemoc Creek. The Conservation Award will be presented to Jack at the Theodore Gordon Flyfishers' Annual Conservation Dinner held on October 15 at the Rockland House near Roscoe, NY. See www.theodoregordonflyfishers.org for details.

Trout-killing program slowed by poor conditions

 

By ROB THORNBERRY Idaho Falls Post Register | Posted: Thursday, October 6, 2011 12:00 am

Tough fishing conditions have put a damper on the Idaho Department of Fish and Game’s efforts to kill rainbow trout in the South Fork of the Snake River.

Biologists have fitted 1,175 fish with tags that are redeemable for rewards of between $50 and $1,000. There are 14 fish with $1,000 tags.

The goal is to trim the river’s population of rainbows, a nonnative trout that competes with native Yellowstone cutthroat.

The worry is that nonnative rainbows will displace the native fish population. If that happens, Yellowstone cutthroat could be listed as a threatened or endangered species and river management — everything from fishing rules to irrigation releases — could be altered to favor the fish and not anglers or irrigators.

Last year between June and August, anglers turned in 1,642 rainbows. This year during the same time period, anglers turned in 339.

Read more: http://billingsgazette.com/lifestyles/recreation/article_1f7c6a97-108b-56ae-a02c-09f5297b7d54.html#ixzz1a0hOImi8

Beacon Water Quality Notification: Update #1, as of Friday evening 9/30/11

 

Riverkeeper returned to the Beacon Harbor discharge on Friday and found the flow from the pipe was stronger than when we sampled last on Friday September 23rd. The characteristic sewage smell and grey color were still evident. 

We sampled the water quality at 9 PM sharp, just before low tide when the sewage discharge was separate and distinct from river water. We were unable to resample earlier in the day because the tide was unusually high and up to the discharge pipe.

The Enterococcus levels were again higher than our measurement limit using a 1 in 10 dilution, >24,196 Entero per 100 ml.  That is greater than 397 times the EPA guideline for acceptable water quality for primary contact - 61 Enterococcus per 100/ml. The water from this discharge pipe is very contaminated with sewage.

As of 9/30, this discharge has been active since Friday the 17th (at least) when it was first reported to Riverkeeper  -  that's 14 days. There was no signage or police tape at the site to warn the public against contacting the contaminated water.

Sample tray from 9 PM, 9/30 sample, 1/10 dilution. All wells fluorescing indicating result >24,196 Entero per 100 ml - more than 397 times the EPA guideline for acceptable water quality (61 Entero per 100/ml).

Stop the proposed hatchery program on the Klickitat River

Take Action!

 

The Klickitat River in southern Washington is among the crowned jewels of the Pacific Northwest. Long revered for its large native steelhead and spring Chinook, the river has some of the most intact habitat for fish and wildlife in the Middle Columbia Region.

Unfortunately, decades of hatchery released non-native Coho, Skamania steelhead and fall Chinook threaten the survival of Klickitat native salmon and steelhead. Since 1999, native Klickitat winter and summer steelhead have been listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. Similarly, the native run of wild spring Chinook which once numbered in the thousands has a thirty year average of 300 fish.

Potential expansion of hatchery operations in the Klickitat basin, detailed in the July of 2011 Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) released by Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) and the Yakama Klickitat Fisheries Project (YKFP) will further imperil the river’s wild native salmon and steelhead.

The actions within the DEIS do not rely upon the best available science to recover wild native fish, jeopardizing wild runs by continuing most releases of non-native hatchery fish at or above their current numbers.

BPA and YKFP are required to solicit and respond to public comments during the DEIS process. This means that before anything is changed on the Klickitat BPA and YKFP must respond to the concerns raised during the public comment process.

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http://alerts.nativefishsociety.org/campaign/5-klickitat