National Invasive Species Awareness Week

 

        This newsletter is being sent during National Invasive Species Awareness Week (NISAW)  February 27 - March 3, 2012. The week features a full slate of events in Washington, D.C., as well as a host of associated events and activities in all areas of the country. First begun in 2009, NISAW is a great way to get out the message about invasives.   Visit the NISAW Site

     On Thursday March, 1 from 1:00 - 3:00 (Eastern time) anyone interested is invited to listen to a webcast of the Grassroots Partnership session taking place in Washington, DC. This is an audio only broadcast that you listen to on the Web. Learn More

     There are a number of associated activities taking place as part of NISAW. Several of our great Clean Angling partners have efforts that compliment the national activities.
    The Fishing Outfitters Association of Montanan (FOAM) is undertaking several efforts to get their professional guide and outfitter members to better teach their clients about cleaning Read More
     Recycled Fish has kicked off the week at the Bassmaster Classic where they have unveiled the new What-A-Mussel game.  Read More
     Trout Unlimited  has been conducting a national survey about anglers and invasives. During NISAW they expect to release the results of this biggest ever attempt to better understand how anglers relate to invasives. In addition, TU will be providing special training to their volunteer leadership.  Read More
      Patagonia  is highlighting a number of outreach initiatives including their new web content and product hang tags. Unfortunately the Patagonia program has not yet been posted to the NISAW website so we can't supply a link. Visit the NISAW link above to find it when posted.

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US Senator Takes the Pledge!

   Montana senator Jon Tester has joined the ranks of those who pledge to take personally responsibility for reducing the spread of invasives. On February 28, Senator Tester announced that he had taken the Clean Angling Pledge. As part of his remarks Testor said “This pledge is an important step to stop the spread of invasive species so that we can pass down our outdoor heritage to our kids and grandkids.”  Read More

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Felt Bans in the News

   In the  January 2012 Issue of the Clean Angling News we reported about the new felt ban being implemented in Rhode Island. The ban was for all waters, fresh and salt. However, the ban has been modified and now only applies to fresh water. Read More

  Felt bans are one of the hottest topics among anglers and we continue to provide a comprehensive accounting of all felt ban proposals in the US at  US Felt Bans

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Clean Angling Ambassadors Announced

The Clean Angling Coalition has just launched a new program that is sure to attract attention form a lot of anglers. The Clean Angling Ambassador program is an effort to get many of our best known anglers to become active advocates for clean angling. The Ambassadors are all role models for many others and by including a simple cleaning message every time they advocate for fishing they use their influence to educate everyone about the need to be clean.

  The list of Ambassadors contains some very well known anglers and Program Director Leah Elwell tells us to watch for many new additions to the list coming soon.   Read More

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Too Far?

   Any time we do anything we can expect that there will be critics. In the past month a couple of stories out of Minnesota feature those who ask if the AIS fight is going too far.

    Glenn Schmitt is an outdoor columnist who questions a new program that will require all boat owners to take and pass an online test  Read More

    At the same time, Representative Steve Drazkowski, R-Mazeppa, questions the AIS program saying  "The approach is one that creates more government and takes away individual liberties to operate boats on waters," Drazkowski said. "It's full of enforcement and it's full of sanctions to boat owners in order to apparently accomplish the objectives."   Read More

Comment on Proposed Changes to Freshwater Sportfishing Regulations NY State

 

Every two years, DEC proposes changes to freshwater fishing regulations to enhance fishing opportunities and to protect the state's freshwater fisheries. DEC will accept public comments on the proposals through April 2. A summary of the proposals is available on DEC's Freshwater Fishing (http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/fishing.html) webpage. The full text of the draft regulation and instructions for submitting comments can also be found on DEC's Proposed Regulations (http://www.dec.ny.gov/regulations/propregulations.html) webpage. Comments on the proposals can be e-mailed to fishregs@gw.dec.state.ny.us, or mailed to Shaun Keeler, NYSDEC, Bureau of Fisheries, 625 Broadway, Albany, NY 12233-4753. Following a full review of public comments, final regulations will take effect October 1.

Lyme disease map pinpoints high-risk areas: Do you live in one?

 

By

CBS News Staff

(Credit: flickr/jkirkhart35)

(CBS/AP) Lyme disease season is around the corner - which areas of the country face the greatest risk in 2012?

PICTURES: Lyme disease lies - and truths

Yale researchers have an answer. They've spent three years analyzing Lyme disease risk by dragging sheets of fabric through the woods to collect ticks, and have created a detailed map that shows where disease risk is highest (pictured below). The researchers hope their map can help improve prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of Lyme disease.

The map is part of a study published in the Feb. issue of the American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. Though the areas highlighted as high-risk likely won't surprise anyone familiar with Lyme, the research also showed where the disease is likely spreading, and it turned up some surprising information about the rate at which ticks are infected with the bacteria that causes it, researchers said.

The map shows a clear risk of Lyme across the Northeast, from Maine to northern Virginia. Researchers also identified a high-risk region in the upper Midwest, including most of Wisconsin, northern Minnesota and a small portion of northern Illinois. "Emerging risk" regions include the Illinois-Indiana border, the New York-Vermont border, southwestern Michigan and eastern North Dakota.

"The key value is identifying areas where the risk for Lyme disease is the highest, so that should alert the public and the clinicians and the public health agencies in terms of taking more precautions and potential interventions," said study author, Dr. Maria Diuk-Wasser of the Yale School of Public Health. "In areas that are low risk, a case of Lyme disease is not impossible but it's highly unlikely, so the clinician should be considering other diagnoses."

The map is based on data collected between 2004 and 2007. Diuk-Wasser said the high risk areas likely haven't changed, but there might be some changes in the transitional areas. The map is still useful, however, because it highlights areas where tick surveillance should be increased and because it can serve as a baseline for future research, she said.

Named after a small Connecticut town, Lyme disease is caused by Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria, which spreads to humans through bites from infected ticks. Symptoms include a bull's-eye rash, fever, headache, and fatigue. Antibiotics easily cure most people of Lyme, but people who aren't treated can develop serious complications like arthritis, meningitis, facial paralysis, and an irregular heart rhythm, according to the CDC.

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Lyme disease symptoms? Bull's-eye rash isn't whole story

Previous risk maps were heavily reliant on reports of human infections, but those can be misleading, according to the study, because the disease is both over- and under-diagnosed. Where someone is diagnosed is not necessarily where the disease was contracted, and ticks may live in a region long before they actually infect someone, meaning there could be a significant risk even without confirmed cases.

The study also provided new information about the infection rate among ticks, according to Diuk-Wasser. About 1 in 5 ticks collected were infected - more than researchers expected - and that percentage was fairly constant across geographic areas, she said.

The CDC counted more than 30,000 confirmed or probable cases of Lyme in 2010, the latest data available. More than 90 percent of those cases were in 12 states: Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Wisconsin.

This map released by the Yale School of Public Health indicates areas of the eastern U.S. where people have the highest risk of contracting Lyme disease based on data from 2004-2007.

(Credit: AP)