Machado Lake and its surrounding environment are in need of a major recovery effort. The Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board has identified the lake as an impaired water body for DDT, PCBs, pesticides, ammonia, algae, eutrophic conditions, trash, and odor, all of which have negatively affected human as well as aquatic health. This restoration project needs the support of the community to meet the goals of clean water, wildlife improvements, and healthy parks for Los Angeles.
Engineers for the project CDM Smith, specifiy artificial products from Fishiding.com for numerous reasons. The inert, reclaimed PVC limbs will last for decades or more underwater. The PVC material attracts bio-film and peripyton growth excessively, superior to other products. The ability to bend to shape and drop in the water landing upright, is another key feature.
American made from post consumer materials with no manufacturing process, these multi-faceted and species specific habitat units excell in developing protection and food, in the purest and natural form. Leading the Nation and the World in cutting edge design and engineering experience, CDM Smith is the firm, policy makers look to for advice and decisions utilizing BMP’s for our Nation and beyond.
Non native turtles such as red eared sliders as well as snapping turtles have been found, all dumped by people. Essentially, Lake Machado has turned into a repository for unwanted non native aquatic pets. Which is a shame considering the fact long ago , the lake was a natural body of water supporting indigenous species that no longer reside there.
Not everything about the lake is unpleasant. Amazingly, it attracts a wide variety of wading and aquatic bird species: snowy egrets, blue herons, green herons, black crowned night herons, cormorants, coots, ducks, bitterns, Caspian terns and least terns.
Driving by Harbor City’s 231-acre regional park, Machado Lake looks to be a serene and picturesque oasis. Close up, the reality is harsh.
For years the lake, which holds runoff storm water from the area, has collected everything from pesticides to swarms of mosquitoes and piles of trash.
What once was a pristine spot for bird watchers has deteriorated through the decades. The park now draws homeless encampments and has become a haven for lewd activity.
Habitat products both natural and artificial, are designed throughout the lake, creating a perfect environment for aqautic development and health. Hundreds of Fishiding Keeper and Safehouse models will be installed in clusters of five. These models allow engineers to place the habitat structures on ranging degrees of slopes, overseeing detailed specifications regarding spacing, type and texture.
The plan looks like a well designed landscape, only to be submerged for the fish. Large tree trunks, boulders and native plants will also be installed in abundance. Spawning gravels and aggregates will be spread in key areas to promote a yearly, healthy spawn of native fish and aquatic life.
Laddie Flock, owner of Floating Islands West, will be a key player in the installation and maintainence of the Floating Islands.
Floating islands will be created for nesting areas to support native habitat, as well as providing support for additional habitat products to be suspended from the islands, which act as floating treatment wetlands. These magical islands not only provide habitat for fish, birds, bugs etc. , but even more amazing, they remove unwanted, over abundant nutrients and convert them back to food for the fish, naturally without chemicals. Fishing will be fantastic and the water quality will impress anyone and all that enjoy it’s surroundings.
Benches and other park amenities also will be added to the 231-acre Ken Malloy Harbor Regional Park that surrounds the body of water.
“There are four goals: water quality improvements, recreational enhancements, wildlife habitat improvements and flood control,” said Michelle Vargas, public information officer for the city of Los Angeles.
“Clearly this will be a major improvement over what we’ve seen in decades of neglect,” said Jess Morton, also of the Audubon Society.
“You won’t see the summertime die-off of fish and birds caused by nutrient loads,” Morton said.
Algae, pesticides and pollutants such as metals from area industry are likely to be found in the sediment at the bottom of the lake once dredging begins and safely removed.
Once known by locals as “the slough,” the area was owned by the Dominguez family in the 1700s and American Indians remained prevalent around the lake. The property later went to the Sepulveda family.
It was annexed in 1906 to the city of Los Angeles and eventually was designated as a regional park.
In the 1990s, the park was named for Ken Malloy, a San Pedro environmentalist who died in 1991 at the age of 78.
Malloy came upon the undeveloped area in the 1930s when his car bumped into some cows grazing on the property and spent years nurturing it.
Convinced it could someday become a grand regional park, Malloy later formed the 62-acre Machado Youth Campground within the park. He was instrumental in planting hundreds of trees in the park as well, working with the California Conservation Corps.
Much more information coming soon as this 2-1/2 year projects begins this spring. For questions about fishing habitat products call 815-693-0894 or e-mail david@fishiding.com
Turn the T.V. off, let’s go fishing. That’s the rule Rosie DeAnnuntis stands by and school kids and the community are listening. Dozens of unique habitat models at fishiding.com
The first Annual North Augusta Border Bass Invitational set for March 2nd 2013 is well underway, and Rosie won’t sleep until it’s all over. She explains “We are a team of folks from North Augusta Middle and High Schools, who promote the sport of fishing and resource conservation through education.”
North Augusta Fishing Team (NAFT) goals are to promote environmental conservation & efforts including Tournament Fishing and getting kids off couches, away from TV and video games, and getting them outside to fish and enjoying the great outdoors! After all, our youth are our future!
When we heard about the tournament and what these kids find important, David Beasley and Matt Phillips from Solitude Lake Management and myself knew we could help. After numerous converations with Rosie, we found out that her group wants to get involved in giving back even more. Habitat projects involving youth are sprouting up all over the Nation and kids are learning the benefits that come with the hard work.
Corporate America is also involved in habitat restoration projects from Coast to Coast. Power companies, manufacturing and chemical firms are all taking proactive stands to improve our environment, learning from our mistakes of the past.
Solitude Lake Management’s David Beasley promotes habitat improvemnet with Fishiding habitat products
Solitude is no stranger to community involvement. Owner, Kevin Tucker runs a tight ship, providing lake,water quality, fisheries and pond management services throughout the south and Eastern seaboard. All of the employees at SOlitude get involved in giving back to the community and the environment on an annual basis. Check out their you tube page here about helping the SOlution.
Matt Phillips one of Solitude’s Fisheries Biologists, will be on hand to talk to the kids and answer questions related to fishing, habitat and pursueing and education in the field. Matt is just one of the many excited Biologists Solitude has available to discuss habitat projects with fishing groups, State and Federal agencies as well as private water owners.
Along with product displays, handouts and give away prizes, Fishiding will be on hand as well to discuss potential future habitat projects with the kids and major Corporate sponsors on hand. “I spoke to Potash yesterday afternoon & let me tell you they are extremely excited about working with Fishiding & SOLitude!”
Fishiding habitat installed before full pool
Support these kids and what they stand for. Preserving our waters and giving back for future generations. Being responsible for their own actions, utilizing the endless teenage energy to better themselves and the environment. Being aware of our environment, continued education and getting involved in your community sounds like a formula for success!
Official Tournament Rules:The following rules are designed to promote sportsmanship among the anglers and to provide a fair competition. Failure to comply with any rules may result in a weight penalty or disqualification from any tournament.
1. Inclement Weather Plan – In the event of unfavorable weather on the day of the event, the event will continue as scheduled during rain only. In the event of lightning or thunder, all boats will be secured and participants asked to return to the nearest, safest location. It is the responsibility of the Tournament Coordinator to determine whether or not the event should be called or wait until the weather clears. If the event is called, the winning weights will be determined by the fish that were caught up until that point in the day. Cancelling the event may occur if unforeseen dangerous natural events, low water levels, or unexpected problems occur that may impede the tournament.
2. All participants must be back at the boat landing no later than 3:00 pm. There will be a one pound deduction every minute a participants is late getting back to the landing up to 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, no weight will be allowed for that boat’s participants. Boat captains are responsible for making sure the boat is back to the dock by 3:00 pm and at the weigh-in no later than 3:00 PM EST. Boat captains are responsible for notifying the Tournament Coordinator in advance of the 3:00 pm closing time of any problems that may have occurred. 3. Each boat must have a bump board or way to measure the length of the fish. No fish fewer than 12 inches may be kept. Fish brought to the scales at weigh-in less than the 12 inches will not count toward the cumulative weight for a middle or high school club. There will be a five (5) fish black bass limit per individual. Black bass includes largemouth, smallmouth, spotted and/or redeye bass. Fish may be culled if an individual has 5 fish in the live well. No more than 5 fish can be in the live well at any one time individual. All fish must be kept alive. Penalty will be 1/2 pound per each dead fish. If an individual is caught with more than the 5 fish limit in their livewell by tournament officials, the fish will be culled starting with the largest fish until they are down to the stated limit of 5 fish. 4. Ties will be broken, if the poundage is equal, in the following manner: First criteria will be the largest fish; second criteria will be the number of fish. Any fish found to be altered or in poor condition (mashed, mangled or mauled) will not be counted at the discretion of tournament officials. 5. All student anglers and boat captains must wear a US Coast Guard approved Personal Floatation Device (PFD) while boat motor is engaged. Anglers will be disqualified if found to have removed their PFD. 6. Participants must only use the gear that is in the boat when the boat leaves the dock at the start of the day. Permitted methods of fishing will be the use of artificial lures only, no live bait of any sort. Each angler aboard shall have no more than 3 rods. Only one fishing rod may be in use at any one time by an angler. Bass may be landed by use of conventional hook and line. No snagging of fish allowed. In addition to tournament limits, all SC freshwater fishing laws must be adhered to. 7. Nets are allowed. 8. Every boat must have an adult captain, age 21 years old or older, for driving purposes and only that captain can drive when the outboard motor is in use. Student anglers may operate the trolling motor when the outboard motor is not in use. 9. No live bait or trolling is allowed. 10. Boats provided by volunteers must be a minimum of 16 feet in length, have front and rear casting decks, a front mounted trolling motor, an aerated live well capable of keeping alive the [two-man team’s or individual’s] five bass limit. Boats must also have console steering (no tiller), an ignition safety kill switch, and all safety equipment as required by the United States Coast Guard. Boats participating in this tournament must have current boat registration. All boats must be subject to a safety check prior to the blast off. 11. Anytime the gasoline engine is in use, boat captains must be seated in the driver’s seat and anglers should be seated in the appropriate locations aboard the vessel. 12. Boat captains must operate boats in a safe manner abiding all boating laws when carrying student anglers to fishing locations. Student anglers make the decisions on what areas to fish on the lake and what direction to go. Boat captains cannot make suggestions on areas to fish. 13. Boats shall not exceed the maximum horsepower capacity on the boat’s maximum horsepower rating affixed to the boat by the manufacturer or a maximum of 250 hp. The maximum capacity rating must be legible. 14. Use of cell phones by student anglers is prohibited during the tournament. Captains may use cell phones to communicate emergencies only. All boats are required to have a cell phone and must provide the Tournament Coordinator the number of that cell phone in case of an emergency or to notify of bad weather conditions. Any use of a cell phone or any other communication devices to exchange fishing information is prohibited and will result in immediate disqualification. In the event of an emergency, all boat captains should call 911 first and then notify tournament officials. 15. All participants 16 years of age and older must have a valid South Carolina or Georgia Recreational Freshwater Fishing License. 16. Anglers may assist one another in netting fish. Coaches may also assist in netting fish, but are not allowed to assist tying lures or handling fish or gear. 17. After the weigh-in, all fish must be released immediately. All fish that are put in the live well must be kept alive. Dead fish will have a 1/2 pound deduction and cannot count as the large fish for that angler. 18. Dead fish may not be culled. 19. Each school is responsible for bringing 1 boat per 2 anglers. Only two students in each boat. [The total weight of the 5 fish limited to that boat will count for the total weight of the 5 fish limited to each angler will count for the cumulative weight.] 20. The total weights for each of the 5 fish limited to an individual will count towards the overall team total for the tournament. Individual weights will be recorded for the top fish designated by each boat. The largest fish award and most weight boat captain award will be given at the tournament. 21. Participants must stay completely in the boat unless they are using an authorized restroom facility or due to some other emergency or malfunction. If an emergency or malfunction occurs, the boat must contact the Tournament Coordinator prior to leaving the boat. In the event of a needed restroom break, the boat captain needs to contact tournament officials. Student anglers may leave and return to the boat at the official checkpoint designated by tournament officials. 22. Any transfer of fish from one live well to a different live well in another boat due to malfunction must be made in the presence of the Tournament Coordinator or other adults as approved by tournament officials. 23. On the day of the tournament, teams will be limited to putting into the water the number of boats based on the number of participating anglers. No additional boats, contacting coaches or other competitors from a team can be put into the water unless approved by tournament officials. Contestants may not obtain fishing patterns or locations from non competitors, follow a non-competitor’s boat or participate in the practice of “hole-sitting,” a practice wherein a non-competitor sits on a fishing spot, holding it for a contestant. In addition, non-competitors may not place markers for contestants. All of these acts are prohibited and will result in the immediate disqualification of the boat. 24. Only the designated boat captain and the two anglers assigned to that boat may be aboard the boat during competition. 25. At the time of check-in, all student anglers and their boats must comply with all the rules applied by tournament officials. At check-in, boat captains shall report their tournament boat identification number and anglers must present their limit and report any dead fish. Once the individual’s catch has been verified, anglers will proceed to the weigh-in. Boat captains must check in even if they don’t have any fish. North Augusta Fishing Team North Augusta Fishing Team Booster Club Facebook Page Tournament : http://www.facebook.com/NaftBorderBassInvitationalTournament/events 26. At the weigh-in location, each individual must carry their limit to the scales. 27. In the event of a tie, the following will be used in order to break the tie: schools with all three of their two-man teams weighing in a full 5 bass limit will automatically place higher; schools weighing in with dead fish will be automatically placed lower; and taking the tied teams and seeing which school landed the larger fish will automatically be placed higher. 28. No livewell culling system may be used that pass through the fish’s operculum or gill flap. Culling systems that attach via the fish’s lip are allowed. 29. Student anglers are encouraged to wear school uniform shirts or jersey which may include outside sponsor logos. 30. At the discretion of tournament officials, any participant can be disqualified for any unethical or unsportsmanlike behavior. 31. All boat captains subject to polygraph.
Toys for the Tots
Annual NAFT/CHC Angler/Mentor Champion Tournament 1. NAFT host a NAFT/CHC Mentoring Championship Tournament e. Top 6 teams will consist i. 3 middle school teams ii. 3 high school teams f. See 2012 & 2013 NAFT Booster Club calendars 2. Championship a. At Clarks Hill Lake b. Open to all angler’s and their assigned boat captain c. June 2013, after State tournament d. Trophies/Prizes awarded to winning Champions i. middle school and high school age group champions and their boat captains i. 2nd and 3rd placed prizes for both age groups e. Massive potential bragging rights at stake! 3. Proposed pre-determined destinations and Championship Tournament Location: a. Wildwood Park Boat Landing b. With permission from Wildwood Park i. NAFT Booster Club will obtain all required permissions
The tournament is on March 2 at Wildwood Park Landing, Appling, GA. They have invited all TBF Georgia & South Carolina youth clubs/teams and have requested each participant complete an Angler Bio with their registration. The plan is to offer a packet of bios to each of the recruiters. Rosie’s personal goal of this tournament is two fold, “First is to show our anglers and the world what a college education can bring them, and second the various industries associated with fishing and the tournament environment”.
Please help us spread the word about our tournament to college recruiters & various fishing industries from all over the US. We would like to show our youth the endless opportunities available when one follows his dreams.
Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in California and the Gold Ridge and Sotoyome Resource Conservation Districts have teamed up with a number of local government agencies, nonprofit groups, agribusinesses and landowners to improve fish habitat in five northern California watersheds. The goal is to increase salmonid populations while also sustaining productive agricultural operations. California is one of three western states included in this program.
James Gore, NRCS Assistant Chief from Washington, D.C., attended a special event in Camp Meeker to provide information on the programs during a walking tour of the Dutch Bill Creek restoration project that has been in process since 2009. This work included removing an old fish barrier dam, constructing a new pedestrian bridge, installing rock wiers for fish migration, and other stream and habitat restoration efforts.
Funding for these projects is available to landowners in watersheds along the Russian, Lower Eel, Big River, Navarro& Garcia rivers, Gualala and Salmon rivers. These funds will be used for barrier removal, streambank stabalization and restoration, and off-stream ponds to store water for irrigation and frost protection. Landowners are not required to participate, but are encouraged to become involved on a voluntary basis. Gains in fish habitiat because of private landowner participation is evident in the current Dry Creek Habtat Restoration Projectand the Biological Opinion Project progress.
Applications will be accepted at the Petaluma NRCS office until mid-March. Funding will be made available to landowners through the NRCS Environmental Quality Incentives Program – a federal cost-share program, through the Farm Bill, to help landowners implement on-farm conservation practices.
For additional information, eligible producers in these counties are encouraged to contact their local NRCS Service Center. Service center locations and more information on the programs can be found at www.ca.nrcs.usda.gov. NRCS office located at 1301 Redwood Way, Suite 170, Petaluma, CA 94954.
In late 2012, a diverse set of more than two dozen government agencies, nonprofit groups and other stakeholders assembled to expand restoration efforts of salmonid habitat and historic salmon runs throughout Northern California. The Russian River Compact Executive Committee will explore a number of steps that local groups and landowners can take to improve salmonid populations to benefit both the species and local agricultural production.
The story of the Dutch Bill Creek Restoration Project is available with a slide show, video documentary, and project documents the Gold Ridge Resource Conservation Site website. As part of the Dutch Bill Creek Restoration Project, a new footbridge was installed across the creek. Watch the YouTube slideshow. You can stay tuned to updates at the Camp Meeker Community web site: www.campmeeker.org
Additional information about the program, progress, and people involved can be found at the OAEC Water Institue web site: www.oaecwater.com The WATER Institute has been involved with many projects in the Dutch Bill Creek watershed such as landowner outreach and education workshops, first flush water quality monitoring, coho recovery efforts, watershed road signage installation, watershed divide display construction & installation, active membership in the Dutch Bill Creek Watershed Group and numerous watershed friendly land management projects on our own 80 acres property in the headwaters of the Dutch Bill Watershed.
Volunteers, schools and more throught the adjining communities have been taking part in this ongoing restoration for the past several years. Students at Guerneville School took part by raising hatchlings then rleasing them into the creek as part of the fish restoration project. As of January 2012, endangered coho salmon, which had taken a fifty-year hiatus from spawning in Dutch Bill Creek, were spotted in the creek, and a snorkel survey of the creek in August if that year recorded a small school of wild coho on film, and the observers on the Russian River have counted at least 87 adult coho returning to that river and its tributaries (including Dutch Bill).
In December 2012, Congressman Mike Thompson (CA-1) announced that the Russian River watershed was selected as California’s Habitat Focus Area within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration(NOAA) Habitat Blueprint. NOAA’s habitat conservation experts felt that the Russian River offered the greatest opportunities for NOAA-wide collaboration on habitat conservation among the 17 candidate areas identified by the staff this fall.
This designation recognizes the Russian River watershed as one of the most promising regions in the nation for improvements in fish habitat. Efforts by volunteers at river clean-up days, adopting fish-friendly farming practices or creating habitat on private property is part of what made this region attractive to for funding and support.
The Russian River drains 1,485 square miles, including much of Sonoma and Mendocino counties and is home to three fish on the endangered and threatened species lists: coho salmon, Chinook salmon, and steelhead trout.
The habitat enhancement work includes supplementing cold water releases by providing the shady, complex habitat critical for young coho and steelhead, along with other habitat restoration and enhancement projects are being done throughout the Russian River watershed. These efforts are accompanied by extensive monitoring in order to measure success and to continually improve projects and programs.by Vesta Copestakes
When last we left them, the Department of Environmental Protection and the Fish and Boat Commission were publicly sparring over the definition of “impaired.”
Some things just don’t change. It seems the two state agencies are still playing in the kiddie river.
A smallmouth bass collected from the Susquehanna River near Selinsgrove displays the black spots that have anglers concerned.PA FISH & BOAT COMMISSION PHOTO
He points to the plunging population of smallmouth bassin the river from Sunbury to the Holtwood Dam as his evidence. Dozens of unique habitat models at fishiding.com
During that time, DEP Secretary Mike Krancer has said the commission’s concerns — young-of-year die offs, lesions on adult bass and inter-sexing of the species — are real and being actively studied by DEP experts. Full Story………
If you look through the ice on a winter day, or peer into the water during a rare summer moment when the wind is calm, you might glimpse the tips of the trees that make up Ocean Lake’s underwater forest.
Below the surface is a Christmas tree forest “planted” by sportsmen and Wyoming Game and Fish in an effort to enhance fish habitat. In more than two decades some 8,000 trees have been left on the ice of Ocean Lake, tied to cement blocks to sink to the bottom providing fish habitat. It is an effort that began in the early 1980s by four friends who loved to ice fish on the lake and noticed the fish population dwindling. It has grown into a Fremont County community event where more than 500 Christmas trees are donated to the project each year.
Kelsey Dayton
The result? Healthier fish populations and happier fishermen.
Howard Johnson of Riverton, always loved ice fishing. It’s a sport that takes little gear as long as one person has an ice auger. No boat is needed to catch as many fish as you would in the summer. And the cold adds a challenge and bonding experience.
“You just have to weather the weather and that’s the fun part of it,” he said.
In the early 1980s he started ice fishing with Bob Wilczewski and Scott Stanley of Riverton, along with Bob Baumann of Shoshoni at Ocean Lake.
They’d gather with their families and campers, playing cards and games and baking biscuits to go with the fresh fish they’d catch on the ice.
After a few years of bountiful hauls they noticed their catches diminishing. They knew the history of the lake, and it didn’t seem right. Dozens of unique habitat models at fishiding.com
Christmas trees are left on the ice of Ocean Lake. Each year recycled Christmas trees are left on the ice to sink to the bottom of the lake where they provide fish habitat. (Photo courtesy Wyoming Game and Fish).
Until the 1930s, Ocean Lake was basically a pond, about 225 acres in size, known as Dry Lake and surrounded by sagebrush and rocks, said Nick Scribner, a habitat biologist with the Wyoming Game and Fish. The Riverton Reclamation Irrigation project started in 1922.When new irrigation systems were developed in the area, water started draining to the low spot in the area, where the pond sat, covering the weeds and willows with water and making the pond more of a lake. It kept rising until the Bureau of Reclamation built an outlet off the east side to drain to a creek, stabilizing the water level, Johnson said.
Fish stocking began in the 1930s, bringing black crappie, bluegill, burbot and largemouth bass to the lake, Scribner said. Walleye stocking began in 1954 and became an annual practice starting in 1972.
Old-timers told stories of the incredible fishing in the area, especially walleye and perch, Johnson said. As the plants on the bottom began to thin and decompose, the smaller fish had no place to hide, the bigger fish had easy feasts and thrived. Fishermen caught fish “by the washtub full,” Johnson said.
For several years Johnson and his friends found Ocean Lake’s fishing bountiful. Then a few years later the fish stopped biting.
On a particularly slow day, the four men lay on the ice, put their coats over their heads and peered down to the bottom. There was nothing but mud.
“It was just like a carpeted floor down there,” Johnson said.
Ocean Lake sits northwest of Riverton in an open area exposed to Wyoming’s wind. The gusts create waves, which stir up the silt in the bottom, Scribner said.
The silt makes it hard for plants to grow and there is little natural vegetation on the bottom of the lake, he said. Small fish have little cover to hide from predators.
With no place to hide, the small fish population was decimated by the larger fish, whose population then suffered because there wasn’t enough food.
Most of Johnson’s fishing group came originally from the Midwest, where using old Christmas trees for fish habitat is common. They decided to see if they could help the fish of Ocean Lake. That winter they wandered alleys and picked up about 50 Christmas trees they hauled to the lake, tying on cement blocks and letting them sink to the bottom. A strong believer in that anyone who fishes should donate at least one day a year to projects to that helps habitat, Johnson and the group continued to collect and “plant” Christmas trees each year.
The effort became an annual event and now, with the help of the Fremont County Solid Waste Disposal District, Wyoming Game and Fish and about 20 volunteers, about 500 trees are planted in Ocean Lake each year. Johnson estimates they’ve planted about 8,000 trees since they started the project. One year, when an area business sold trees where the needles fell off quickly, they received about 1,000 trees — too many for the small number of volunteers, Johnson said.
Volunteers bundle Christmas trees at Ocean Lake. Each year recycled trees are gathered and planted in the lake to help fish habitat. A date for this year’s event hasn’t been yet. (Photo courtesy Wyoming Game and Fish).
The trees are tied together in bunches and attached to concrete blocks and left on the ice. Eventually they drop through the ice, settling on the bottom- about 15 to 25-feet below the surface, where for three or four years they’ll provide fish habitat before decomposing. The trees provide cover for small fish and perch spawn in the branches, Scribner said. Other species, like tadpoles use the habitat as well, he said. The cement blocks are left on the lake bottom, but don’t cause any environmental harm, Scribner said.
The trees come in all shapes and sizes from small “Charlie Brown”-like ones to the full and tall that would dominate a room. All of the trees break down quickly once submerged, Scribner said.
While the practice of using Christmas trees isn’t common in Wyoming, similar efforts have been done elsewhere in the state, Scribner said. In Boysen Reservoir cottonwood and pine tree stumps are put in into the lake.
While Game and Fish monitors the area and knows the trees benefit fish habitat, it’s hard to quantify the impact of the project on fish populations, Scribner said.
Johnson doesn’t need numbers. He knows the fishing is better. They are seeing more age groups of walleye. The locations the trees are dropped are tracked by GPS and those areas have noticeably improved, if a fishermen knows the lake — when and how to fish it.
“It’s all how you do it, where you do it and when you do it,” he said.
And that information, he added like any good fishermen, is a secret.
Get involved:
A date hasn’t yet been set for this year’s tree “planting.”
To volunteer with the project, contact Howard Johnson at (307) 856-1145, or contact Wyoming Game and Fish Lander office at (307) 332-2688.
To donate your Christmas tree, recycle it at no cost at the Lander landfill, Riverton bale facility or the Dubois landfill.
— “Peaks to Plains” is a blog focusing on Wyoming’s outdoors and communities. Kelsey Dayton is a freelance writer based in Lander. She has been a journalist in Wyoming for seven years, reporting for the Jackson Hole News & Guide, Casper Star-Tribune and the Gillette News-Record. Contact Kelsey at kelsey.dayton@gmail.com.
Old concrete poles donated by Florida Power & Light Company are sunk by McCulley Marine Services to create two artificial reefs off the coast of St. Lucie County, Fla., Friday, Dec. 28, 2012. Photo: PRNewsFoto/FPL
Repurposing a bunch of hefty power line poles yielded a project intended to attract plenty of interest.
Various species of fish likely are interested, as are scuba divers and anglers.
Officials in St. Lucie County, Florida used power poles as the prime source of material for twoartificial reefs about six and 12 miles off of Fort Pierce.
The poles are stacked in two free-form piles about 25 feet tall at depths of about 60 and 100 feet in the ocean and are among the newest additions to a total of about 2,900 artificial reefs in the Florida area.
Florida Power and Light provided 130 poles that were replaced during recent upgrade projects. If not recycled this way, the poles might have otherwise been trashed, a spokesman said.
Some of the other reefs in St. Lucie County are formed with a mix of allowable materials, including bridge and dock pilings, said Jim Oppenborn, St. Lucie County’s Coastal Resource Supervisor.
In addition to the poles supplied by Florida Power and Light, a grant of about $60,000 went into the project for the two reefs. The money, distributed by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, is from a pot of federal tax revenue from specific fishing-related and boating-related purchases.
A tugboat hauls 500 tons of old poles donated by Florida Power & Light Company to create two artificial reefs off the coast of St. Lucie County, Fla., Friday, Dec. 28, 2012. Photo: PRNewsFoto/FPL
Where artificial reefs are placed and the types of materials used are among the various factors regulated by agencies that issue permits. For the power line poles, St. Lucie County received permits from the Florida Department of Environmental Regulation and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Oppenborn said.
Like other artificial reefs and natural reefs, the poles are intended to provide hard-surface habitat that fish and other sea dwellers use for shelter, feeding and spawning.
Even with regulations and restrictions governing manmade structures, opinions on artificial reefs are mixed.
Advocates say the artificial reefs provide beneficial habitat for marine life, enhance recreational opportunities and help reduce impact on natural reefs.
Opponents, such as PETA, don’t share the enthusiasm. Dozens of unique habitat models at fishiding.com
“Artificial reefs are unnecessary encroachments that only benefit fishers, divers, and oil companies—they do nothing to help local ecosystems and the animals who live there,’’ according to a statement from PETA.by Patti Roth
Endangered species status, habitat proposed for fish in Arizona, New Mexico
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Friday proposed listing a small freshwater fish as an endangered species and setting aside almost 300 miles of Arizona and New Mexico streams as critical habitat for the fish.
No one is sure how many Zuni bluehead suckers are left, but biologists say the fish is no longer found in 90 percent of its historic range. Dozens of unique habitat models at fishiding.com
“This fish is in really big trouble,” said Tierra Curry, a biologist for the Center for Biological Diversity, which spent years pushing for the fish’s protection.
The 8-inch-long, algae-eating fish is native to the waters of the Canyon de Chelly, the Little Colorado and Zuni rivers, according to the government. But its numbers were severely diminished decades ago by poisons that were used to kill native fish and introduce trout for sport fishing.
Logging and erosion also damaged habitat for the sucker, said Melissa Mata, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife biologist. She said sediment from erosion filled streambeds, covering the pebbles and stones that are home to the algae the fish feeds on and smothering its eggs.
In addition to ongoing concerns about sedimentation, Mata said drought, wildfires and overgrown vegetation now threaten the remaining isolated populations of the fish.
In a companion proposal to the endangered species listing, the government also identified 293 miles of streams in northeastern Arizona and northwestern New Mexico as critical habitat for the fish.
The critical habitat designation requires an additional level of review – by the Fish and Wildlife Service – for any activity that would require a federal permit, from building a bridge or a road to proposals for major development projects.
Active restoration of the fish’s habitat will depend on available funding, Mata said.
Curry believes the endangered species designation will help the fish’s population stabilize and grow, noting that 14 other endangered fish – including the Gila Trout, native to Arizona – have made significant comebacks since being listed as endangered.
Restoring the Zuni bluehead sucker population will help maintain an important food source for larger fish and mammals, as well as helping to keep waterways cleaner, Curry said.
The fish spent decades as a candidate for endangered species status. But in 2004, it and 757 other species were included in a lawsuit by conservationists aimed at getting the Fish and Wildlife Service to act. In a 2011 settlement of that case, the agency agreed to consider all the species in the suit and determine by 2018 whether they should be listed as endangered species.
Sometimes the effects of an animal extinction aren’t noticed for 10 to 15 years but eventually they surface, said Wally Murphy, a field office supervisor in New Mexico for Fish and Wildlife.
When a species becomes extinct “it generally has cascading effects that, in some cases, are irreparable,” he said.
The notices on the Zuni bluehead sucker was published Friday in the Federal Register, starting a 60-day public comment period on the proposal. Currently, Fish and Wildlife staff said they do not know of any opposition.By MARY SHINN Cronkite News
Sardis, Miss….. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Vicksburg District (Corps) will host the annual Sardis Lake Fish Habitat Day, Saturday, 9 February 2013. Volunteers will assist Corps biologists and rangers in the creation of new fish habitats using stake beds and donated Christmas trees.
As reservoirs age, flooded timber and brush deteriorate, leaving aquatic life with less protective cover. Replacing the cover and bedding areas are important in maintaining healthy fish populations. This event also gives fishermen an opportunity to become familiar with the locations of these structures around the lake.
Volunteers are asked to report to the new Sardis Lake Field Office location at the north end of Sardis Dam Saturday, 9 February 2013 at 7:30 a.m. Volunteers are encouraged to wear outdoor work clothing and gloves. All terrain vehicle (ATV) use is allowed with proper riding gear to include helmets.
A hot stew lunch at the Corps of Engineers maintenance shop will be available for the volunteers. For further information, please contact Hayden Sullivant at the Sardis Lake Field Office 662-563-4531.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers public lands offer an array of safe recreational opportunities that include fishing, boating, camping, hiking, bicycling, swimming, and photography. The four Corps lakes in Mississippi draw approximately 5.5 million visitors per year, support approximately 1,500 jobs and contribute more than $130 million to regional tourism. Dozens of unique habitat models at fishiding.com
01/22/13 — The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and local partners today announced $2 million in financial assistance to help landowners take additional steps to boost local salmonid and other aquatic-species populations in several north coast counties.The funding will be divided amongst five Northern California watersheds located in Humboldt, Mendocino and Sonoma counties: the Lower Eel, South Fork Eel, Big-Navarro-Garcia, Gualala-Salmon and Russian River watersheds. Dozens of unique habitat models at fishiding.com
“This has long been a priority for us at NRCS,” said James Gore, assistant chief. “I know how important it is for local landowners and other stakeholders to support these fish and restore them back to record numbers. The steps we are taking today will go a long way to accomplishing this.”
A number of partners met today for the announcement and to tour a sample restoration site in Camp Meeker, Calif. An old fish barrier dam had been removed, a new pedestrian bridge was constructed, and rock wiers for fish migration were installed along with other stream and habitat restoration efforts. These types of practices and more will be available to landowners through this new financial investment.
Eligible practices include stream habitat improvements, wetland wildlife habitat management and other complementary conservation methods. The funding will be made available to landowners through the NRCS Environmental Quality Incentives Program – a federal cost-share program, through the Farm Bill, to help landowners implement on-farm conservation practices.
“This is a great opportunity for local landowners to enhance the riparian corridors which pass through their properties within the Russian River Watershed. The efforts made by the Natural Resource Conservation Service and the local Resource Conservation Districts are validated by the many successful projects implemented in our watersheds,” said Joe Pozzi, Gold Ridge Resource Conservation District manager.
Today’s announcement is part of a larger effort to restore salmonid and other aquatic species back to abundant and sustainable levels along the Pacific Northwest.
For additional information, eligible producers in these counties are encouraged to contact their local NRCS Service Center. Service center locations and more information on the programs can be found at ca.nrcs.usda.gov.
Growing big fish starts with growing lots of food to feed them. In order for the fry and forage fish to thrive and reproduce, they need mass amounts of food to develop and prosper.
Minnows, small panfish and fry feed on film that grows on surfaces underwater called peripyhton. This magical micro-floral community of bacteria and fungi, protozoa and zoo-plankton, dance together forming this wonderful highly efficient, nutrient converting fish food.
Phosphorus and nitrogen are often the biggest culprits in abundant weed growth and eutrophic waters. Converting these nutrients into fish food and ultimately fish, is not new and has been being used with ongoing success sometimes called brush parks. Create the food source and the fish will come.
The more surface area available, the more food can grow. Weed beds are a good example of surfaces for this film to grow and hiding places for the small fish.
The Hangout is where the smaller fish will congregate and eat this highest form of food available, within the protection of the maze of vinyl limbs that surround the feeder bag.
The plastic mesh feeder bag holds an incredible 400 square feet of surface area from a matrix of woven plastic recycled from drinking bottles. Weighing just over two pounds and approximately ten inches diameter and two feet long, these bags hold the key to fish development.
Over thirty two square feet of flexible vinyl limbs, the same material in all fishiding fish habitat products, complete this protective eating establishment. Dozens of unique habitat models at fishiding.com
Bend limbs and pinch crease with fingers, no tools or additional supplies needed.
Opens to a full 46″wide by 48″ tall, hang at any depth, unit sinks.
Each unit comes with 5.5 pounds of pre-drilled vinyl limbs, ranging in length from 12″-28″ long and 1″-4″ wide with feeder bag with ten feet of mono bait-ball line.
Hang unit from underside of dock or pier for year around fishing action.
Suspend unit from raft or tree limb to keep predators close by your food source.
Attach unit to full size habitat unit or anchor and add foam to feeder bag to add buoyancy.
Tie multiple units together for deep water applications.
The story of the Dutch Bill Creek Restoration Project is available with a slide show, video documentary, and project documents the 
A smallmouth bass collected from the Susquehanna River near Selinsgrove displays the black spots that have anglers concerned.PA FISH & BOAT COMMISSION PHOTO
Kelsey Dayton
