Exotic Species Are Killing Loons --- Not Lead

As preservationists --- many with an anti-fishing agenda --- continue to press for bans on lead fishing tackle to protect loons, read the following story to see what is really killing the birds. This is a real danger, not one manufactured to support an ideology, with little basis in science and fact.

And it provides a tragic example of how introductions of exotics can have unforeseen consequences.

Chain of Environmental Consequences Slaughtering Birds

State Funds Needed in Nebraska to Fight Invasive Species

Editor's Note: This is a speech that Teeg Stouffer of Recycled Fish prepared in support for state funding to fight invasive species in Nebraska. His actual presentation differed a bit, but not the message: State money is needed to combat mussels, carp, and other invasive threats to Nebraska waters.

My name is Teeg Stouffer, I’m the Executive Director of a non-profit fisheries conservation organization called Recycled Fish. Although our work is national in scope, we’re proudly centered right here in Nebraska. I appreciate the opportunity to testify in support of LB 63.

Since our organization is national in scope, I see the threat of invasive species all over the country firsthand.  It’s to our shame as Nebraskans that it’s a problem that’s being better addressed elsewhere than it is here, and we need more comprehensive support in our state.

LB63 is an important step in that direction. When federal funding runs out, we will be left defenseless against threats like zebra mussels and quagga mussels, which we’ve been able to keep out of our waters for now.

The thing with these invasive species is that once they’re established, there’s virtually no getting rid of them. Smart money chooses low costs today to prevent a problem rather than high costs tomorrow to solve a problem. LB63 is smart money, and that’s why we support it, and we hope you will, too.

Let me paint a quick picture – some of you have seen it. Imagine a lake floor that spans for hundreds of acres. Every rock, every log, every wrecked boat on the bottom is coated, blanketed, with dime-sized mussels – like little clams. They breed by releasing veligers --- little larvae that float in the water. A current pulls them into a pipe --- like the outlet at Lake McConaughy.  And all of a sudden, they’re headed downstream, to cling to a rock, or an irrigation intake, to start a new colony. That’s how it happens. Or it could start with one uninspected boat. The solution is simple. But it’s not free. LB 63 provides the funds.

Colorado invests millions in the prevention of these invaders because of how that state moves water in big concrete tubes between its reservoirs to provide a water supply for their cities. If they get an infestation, the removal costs could 10-times everybody’s water bills.

Imagine what an infestation in the Tri-County Canal systems might look like, and how that would impact farmers. In the span of a couple of years you can have mussels clinging to mussels --- choking out a three-foot diameter tube, so water can’t flow. Sounds like a horrible impact for Nebraska’s farmers, who are reliant on irrigation, doesn’t it?   

Now, I don’t speak for the Nebraska Fish & Game Association, but I’m a member, and I do know that in a poll of its members, anglers in this state supported LB 63 with about a 2/3 majority. That’s a strong show of support from the state’s sportsmen, and it speaks to the fact that sportsmen want to see our natural and wild places protected. They’re counting on you.

I speak for Recycled Fish and our 15,000 stewards across America --- perhaps 500 of which are in Nebraska --- when I ask you to support the bill on behalf of anglers.

But in closing, I speak for myself --- not for my organization --- but for myself, when I say that I’m a person of faith, and I bet some of you are, too. Way back there in Genesis God said to us, “Hey, take care of this place that I made,” and in the time since, we’ve done a pretty terrible job caring for His Creation. This is a chance we’ve all got to do one thing right, so let’s do it. The generations to come are counting on us. 

Funds Needed to Combat Invasive Species in Nebraska, but 'Nobody Cares'

In Nebraska, those who care about protecting the state’s waters from invasive species are trying to raise awareness and obtain funding to do battle. The legislature tasked the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission with the job, but provided no money.

As proposed in Legislative Bill 63, introduced by Sen. Ken Schliz, $1.2 million from taxes generated by motorboat sales or leases would fund a program to monitor and control aquatic invasive species.  

“What it comes down to is that the bill's sponsors feel that this allocation of sales tax revenue on boats is the best way to get the measly $1.2 million to at least get some education programs going, start some inspections, and maybe get a few wash out-stations set up at some lakes around the state,” a source told Activist Angler.

Teeg Stouffer, executive director of Recycled Fish, was one of those testifying on behalf of the proposal in a committee hearing.
“There were a bunch of testimonies for our bill and none against it, so these Senators would really have to have an agenda to not pass it out of committee and onto the floor,” he said.

He also made another observation, one that troubles, but does not surprise me:

“When I walked into the hearing room at 1:05, I was the first one there for a 1:30 hearing. Perhaps 1 out of 10 seats wound up being filled in the room.

“Meanwhile, there was a sea of people clogging one hallway --- more than could fit in a hearing room. That’s the difference between a hearing on a gay adoption bill and a natural resources bill.

“The thing that's a shame to me is that most people will never have anything to do with gay adoption, but we all drink water, eat food, and power our homes. Zebra mussel infestations could decimate our irrigation systems and heap more hardship on our farmers, which translates to higher food prices. Zebra mussels could 10x our water bills, and 10x our power bills. Nobody knows. Nobody cares.”

New Hampshire Latest Front for Loon-atic Assault on Fishing

In case you missed it, preservationists and their political allies in New Hampshire are pushing for a broader lead ban as part of an ongoing campaign to restrict recreational fishing. They profess that their objective is to protect loons. It is not, as no evidence indicates that loon populations are at risk because the birds ingest lead fishing tackle.

This is part of the same offensive that includes an attempt to ban the use of plastic baits in Maine, as well as implement “marine protected areas” in the nation’s coastal waters, where fishing would not be allowed. Some also are using concerns about the spread of invasive species such as zebra and quagga mussels --- real threats--- as means to force restrictions on access to inland waters. 

Recreational fishing is under assault, no doubt about it. And you can either help defend it or stick your head in the sand until it’s too late.

New Hampshire Senate Bill 89 would ban the use of any lead sinker or jig weighing 1 ounce or less. That would make use of just about any small fishing lure illegal in state waters.

Keep America Fishing makes these points:

• This bill would expand an already restrictive policy on the use of lead jigs with no scientific data to back up such a ban.
• The ban would have a significant negative impact on the state’s economy and fisheries conservation, but a negligible impact on the waterfowl populations it seeks to protect. In fact, New Hampshire’s loon population is increasing.
• This ban is more restrictive than the Consumer Products Safety Commission’s levels for lead in paint, children’s toys, plumbing fixtures and non-toxic shot for waterfowl hunting.
• Technology does not permit manufacturers to supply alternative metals 100 percent free of lead so the practical impact of the legislation is to ban all sinkers and jigs less one ounce or less.
• This size range represents the most commonly used sinkers.

And it adds, “By banning lead completely the state is effectively banning fishing!

“Join us by signing the petition and protect recreational fishing by stopping this overly restrictive and unrealistic ban on fishing tackle!”

 Go here to voice your opposition.

Anglers Paying for Consequences of Invasive Species

Photo from Tahoe Regional Planning Agency

Anglers aren’t responsible for introducing aquatic nuisance species to our waters, even though they are going to be the ones who pay the highest price in terms of cost, inconvenience, and diminished access.

Certainly some have spread mussels and plants inadvertently via their trailers and boats. Even a few have moved illegally moved plants in ill-advised attempts to improve fisheries.

But the aquarium and plant nursery industries brought milfoil, water hyacinth, and other troublesome aquatic plants to our waters, while commercial ships introduced mussels in their ballast water, via the Great Lakes.

Still, fishermen, especially B.A.S.S. members, are showing that they can be the adults in the room for this battle.

“As anglers, we know about invasive species; others are not as educated,” says Ken Snow, conservation director for the Wisconsin B.A.S.S. Nation. “That’s why our members spend days at the ramps to help educate.”

New Mexico’s Earl Conway adds, “We have several members that volunteer to do boat inspections, and we are very close to being able to do our own inspections at club and state level tournaments. The state officers know that bass boats are clean and that we are educated and cooperating with them.”

In West Virginia, Jerod Harman has been training anglers to clean livewells and boats for two years. “We do this training at meetings and on our website,” he explains. 

He’s also working with the state to create segments about aquatic nuisance species for the television program “West Virginia Outdoors.”

In Oregon, Lonnie Johnson has recommended that clubs hold their own inspections during tournaments, while Washington’s Mark Byrne says, “We’ve been talking about this for a long time.”

Anglers, he adds, are not complaining about doing what they can to help prevent the spread of aquatic nuisance species.

What can they do. What can you do?

“Clean, drain, dry.”

If you’re a bass angler, this phrase should become as familiar to you as “catch and release.”

It’s included in the new voluntary guidelines being developed for recreational activity by the Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force (ANSTF), an intergovernmental organization chaired by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

The ANSTF also has recommendations for motor boaters (nonanglers), non-motorized boaters, scuba divers and snorkelers, and seaplane operators.

The hope is that this advice will help prevent the spread of problematic invasive species such as zebra and quagga mussels, Eurasian watermilfoil, Asian carp, golden alga, and didymo (also called “rock snot”).

Of course, many states , counties, and municipalities aren’t content with voluntary guidelines. Economies, water supplies, and recreational activities all could be devastated by these invaders. As a consequence, inspections, sticker programs, and other strategies designed to minimize risk are being initiated, with collateral damage taking shape as increased fees and more limited access.

For example, Colorado has implemented a mandatory boat inspections program, with funding provided by a hike in registration fees. In California, registration cost could go up as much as $10 in 2014 to finance a mussel monitoring, inspection, and eradication program. Concern is understandable, as Lake Tahoe could sustain economic losses of as much as $20 million annually if mussels are introduced, according to officials.

Attentions these days mostly are focused on the West, Great Plains, and Upper Midwest. Mussels and Asian carp are expanding north, threatening inland waters, while the shellfish have crossed the Continental Divide. But even southern waters are at risk, as evidenced by Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission making “permanent” last fall an emergency order for some of the state’s waters, after zebra mussels were found in Lake Ray Roberts. The order requires boaters leaving any of the listed waters to drain their boats completely.

“We see tougher inspection programs coming up more and more,” cautions Susan Shingledecker, director of environmental programs for the BoatUS Foundation. 

She helped develop the ANSTF’s new proposed guidelines, and urges anglers and boaters to follow them, showing that “we are doing all we can.”

Concurrently, she hopes that states will bring consistency to their programs to reduce confusion and  anxiety among anglers and other boaters.  “State by state would be preferred to lake by lake,” she adds.

Here are the angler recommendations in more detail:

Inspect and clean off plants, animals, and mud from gear and equipment including waders, footwear, ropes, anchors, bait traps, dip nets, downrigger cables, fishing lines, and field gear before leaving water access. Scrub any visible material on footwear with a stiff brush. 

Drain water from boat, motor, bilge, bladder tanks, livewell, and portable bait containers away from ramp.

Dry everything at least five days, unless otherwise required by local or state laws, when moving between waters to kill small species not easily seen OR wipe with a towel before reuse.

(This article appeared originally in B.A.S.S. Times.)