Lake Champlain United - Forums

I personally like the sturgeon program. I would love that species to return to a stable level where catch release fishing could be brought back. They look mighty fun!
Also I think Louis is following orders. I think we will see that become more clear the more support we get for our side.

You are younger than me Keith, but I was told that I would never see any kind of fishing season for sturgeon in Champlain. 25 years until they reach breeding age, how many years must the study continue to get reproduction numbers? A continuing drain from FandW funds. Your grandkids will be paying for this and there will be no more or less sturgeon because of it. They have found them, they know where they spawn, live and breed. Better left alone at this point, unless they can get kayakers and bicyclers to pay for them.

This is a new twist that Will Nolan just posted on FB from Vt. Digger. It appears that after the hatchery is closed, DEC wants F and W to keep the pumps on from the well that supplied the hatchery, so the man made brook won't dry up. WTF! This is the brook that the efluent is polluting. Go back to the original monitoring point! What a bunch of dicks. I thought things were out of hand in Mass.

Heres an article from Vermont Traditions Coalition

To summarize:
There is a $250,000 budget shortfall for operations, this can be addressed with a minor fee increase, provided we can convince the administration of the value of raising the license fee. The bigger issue is that DEC is calling for approximately $13M in upgrades to the hatchery to address effluent concentrations in its outflow. The hatchery pumps water from a well to supply itself. This well is the genesis of the flowage DEC is measuring. They originally took measurements where the man-made stream met the natural waterway a mile downstream from the hatchery, and it fell within the standards at that point. Roughly ten years ago, the DEC spoke with the hatchery manager about moving the sample point to the discharge of the hatchery itself with the assurance that it would still be in compliance. Because of this change in the monitoring point, the hatchery is now deemed out of compliance with clean water standards. If DEC were to measure a mile down at the confluence(as was the historical norm), the concentrations would likely remain within acceptable limits. To compound the nuance of this situation, should the hatchery close, the DEC wants the pumps left on because if the pumps are shut off, the stream they are measuring will generally cease to be there and the F&W Department will be guilty of “de-watering” the stream. We are being asked to mothball a productive national historic site, but keep the lights on and the pumps running, while losing all productivity. This would be a truly wasteful expenditure.

The time for action is now!

-Please contact Governor Scott and Secretary Moore to voice your opposition to this closure. At the very least, make a phone call; and if you are able, email as well. Contact information for both is included at the bottom.

-Speak to them of the impact this plan will have on your families and communities.

-Explain to them your support of taking measures to find an alternative to closing this crucial facility.

-Urge Governor Scott's administration to work with Secretary Moore's DEC and restore the historical and appropriate monitoring point.

-Forward this information to as many people as you can.

Finally, Vermont Digger will host Governor Scott in a public forum about the budget on Tuesday, February 12 in the Snelling Room of the Vermont History Museum, located at 109 State Street in Montpelier. Please follow the VT Digger link below where you may leave a question for the governor. Ask what the administration is doing to ensure continued operation of the Salisbury hatchery and secure the future of our trout fishery. Then attend the forum if you are able.

https://vtdigger.org/2019/02/05/vtdigge ... 2-12-19-8/

Governor Scott may be reached at
tel:802-828-3333
and emailed at this link
https://governor.vermont.gov/contact-us/message

Secretary Moore may be reached at
802-828-1294
and emailed at
julie.moore@vermont.gov

My Best Regards,





Mike Covey

Executive Director

Vermont Traditions Coalition

802-461-378

The change.org petition that I started yesterday is closing in on 1000 signatures. If we keep sharing I have no doubt we can easily surpass that number. I am not sure what our target should be but there are 10's of thousands of vermonters who benefit from our trout fishery.

keithm87 wrote:The change.org petition that I started yesterday is closing in on 1000 signatures. If we keep sharing I have no doubt we can easily surpass that number. I am not sure what our target should be but there are 10's of thousands of vermonters who benefit from our trout fishery.

EXCELLETNT

I aalso call the office this morning to tell my message

Contacted Phil Scott and Secretary Moore.

We are at almost 1700 signatures on the petition. Keep sharing it out!

Thanks Keith for starting the petition it's people like you that get the ball rolling. The Fish & Wildlife Department needs an Audit from an independent Firm and put out a report for all to see where the money comes from and where it's spent. We hear about Hunting & Fishing & Trapping not bringing enough revenue this maybe true. On the other hand you see Game Wardens patrolling snowmobile trails and on drug bust, looking for missing people and so on. My point is the F&W Dept. gets or should get revenue from other division but we don't hear anything about that. I attended a meeting a few weeks ago about changing the Trapping laws on nuisance trappers that get compensation and after talking with Mr Porter and the fish and game board i found out just how screwed up this Dept. is.
Thanks again Keith
Don & Traci Sawyer
Wildlife Management & Consultant
Woodstock VT

"The hatchery pumps water from a well to supply itself. This well is the genesis of the flowage DEC is measuring. They originally took measurements where the man-made stream met the natural waterway a mile downstream from the hatchery, and it fell within the standards at that point. Roughly ten years ago, the DEC spoke with the hatchery manager about moving the sample point to the discharge of the hatchery itself with the assurance that it would still be in compliance. Because of this change in the monitoring point, the hatchery is now deemed out of compliance with clean water standards. If DEC were to measure a mile down at the confluence(as was the historical norm), the concentrations would likely remain within acceptable limits"

WHAT IN THE WORLD MADE DEC DECIDE TO MOVE THE SAMPLING POINT?!
Appears to me this was a total boneheaded move on the DEC's part, and F&W should've pushed back harder on this.

BTW, I signed the petition too.

Here's another short interesting read on the subject. I like the mention of the "canned" form letter everyone is receiving.

https://vermontbiz.com/news/2019/februa ... -286688321

And another:
http://www.addisonindependent.com/20190 ... fBfVdKZsjc

The Independent article is spot on