Great news from Arlen Thomason of the McKenzie Fly Fishers, reporting on the recent September 7th meeting of the ODFW Commission in Hermiston, OR…
I’m writing to you from a motel room in northeast Oregon, having just arrived after attending the ODFW Commissioners meeting on angling regulations in Hermiston. I’m pleased to tell you that the vote went in our favor for both of the regulation proposals where our club took a strong position. Regulation 31S, which would limit the use of bait to protect wild fish in the Hendricks to Hayden stretch of the McKenzie, was passed by unanimous vote. Regulation 6P, which we opposed, would have redefined soft plastic or rubber lures as lures, rather than as bait; a move which seems sensible on the surface, but is contraindicated by substantial evidence that such lures have incidental mortality rates similar to live bait. The Commission rejected this proposal, with one dissenting vote.
On both of these issues, the public correspondence to the Commission was overwhelmingly in favor of the positions we took. Much of that correspondence came from you. I think it had a very positive effect on the outcome. So a big thanks to all of you who took the time to write to the Commission, and congratulations on a job well done!
OregonFlyFishingBlog echoes Arlen’s thanks to all those who took the time to write to the Commission. These decisions mark substantial victories for McKenzie Redsides, and serve as clear evidence that our voices are being heard in Salem!
Let me broaden my thanks to include all the readers of this blog, and the members of TU, who worked for and wrote letters on behalf of wild fish. The support for wild fish during this session was gratifying, and I believe it made a difference. From our conversations with ODFW staff, it’s clear that they were also impressed by the public response. And let’s note that in this case, ODFW stood up for the McKenzie’s wild fish, too, despite some much-publicized criticism.
Congratulations guys. Nice work!
I have a picture of my dad fishing the McKenzie in the 50’s, standing on a rock, bamboo rod in hand. It was his favorite river, he fished the river from childhood when they took a horse drawn wagon up from Springfield. He passed in 1974, but I know what he’d say. “Good goin’, boys.”
Such great news, thanks to all involved!!
Amen on all accounts.