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Methow Valley News November 4, 1999 Endangered Species Coverage Local anglers outraged at proposal By Craig Northrup When you call Mazama Fly Shop, the answering machine gives you a summary idea of the feeling in the Methow Valley. "Hi, thanks for calling. You’ve reached the Mazama Fly Shop. Our last weekend of operation will be Nov. 6 and Nov. 7, and then we’ll be closed for the season...If you have questions or comments on the proposed NMFS closing of the river next year—they want to close the whole river, no fishing whatsoever—please leave your name and number, comments or questions that you have, and we’ll get back to you. We need all the help we can get on this." "This" is a recent proposal from the state Department of Fish and Wildlife, a plan that has created an angered reaction among the fishing community in the Methow Valley. The proposal, released last week from Fish and Game and backed by the National Marine Fisheries Services, could close the Methow, Entiat and Wenatchee rivers and trbutaries to all fishing, except for winter whitefish angling, in an effort to rebuild the endangered steelhead population. The proposal would also close the Okanogan River to trout fishing. (See story Page 1.) Scooter Rogers of the Mazama Fly Shop says the proposal would kill his business without saving the steelhead. "I think it’s crazy," he said. "Common sense is gone, I’ll tell you that. I think there has to be a compromise with this, but the communication is all fouled up. Nobody has come to the people who fish the river and ask them for their opinions. They just made the decision." While the decision is by no means final, the impact would be, Rogers said. "(The closure) would mean a total shutdown," he said. "The Fly Shop will be gone, and a lot of people will lose a lot of money." Ben Dennis, owner of Fly Rod Ranch outside Winthrop, said the proposal is another example of big government turned huge, and the political dimensions of the issue will grow even further. "The truth is, it’s driven by NMFS," Dennis said. "They are the ones with the big hammer. Fish and Wildlife is just going along with it...Right now, this is a hot potato. The state legislature has been bombarded with it, the federal legislature knows about it. We’re going all the way to Al Gore on this issue." The Methow Valley Flyfishers club is planning a counteroffer, a plan that might include designating the lower Methow and the upper ends of the tributaries as sanctuaries, leaving the upper Methow for catch and release. Dennis said that until a plan was formalized, the next step was heading to Vancouver Dec. 11 for the Fish and Wildlife commissioners’ meeting. For more information on that trip, call 996-2784. Bill McAdow, owner of the Carlton General Store and local fishing expert, believes the answers could be far-reaching on the political spectrum. "Pull the nets out," he said. "Without the removal of the nets, we’ll never have a decent fishery again." He also noted the duplication of a historical revolt as a possible solution. "Other than another Boston Tea Party, I don’t know what else we can do," McAdow said. "The Boston Tea Party was over a less-than-one percent raise in a tax. This is over our livelihood." McAdow added he was pessimistic about the proposal being set aside. "Who’s kidding who," he asked. "It’s not a proposal. It’s going to be done. I think unless some people in Washington, D.C., put a stop to it, it’s going to happen." The three fishermen all agreed the proposal would severely damage the Methow Valley. "The end result is no tourism," McAdow said flatly. "It’s basically eliminating what little livelihood we have." "I just look at it as foolishness," Rogers added. "I’m not saying (the agencies) are totally on the bad side. They’re doing what they think is right, but this isn’t going to work. They need communication with the people in the Methow Valley...I don’t think anybody there has any idea how many people come here to fish." Opinion | Sports |
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