With the overwhelming weight of public comments against stocking hatchery fish in the Batten Kill, the fight to keep the Batten Kill wild (not native) looks to have been won:
The Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife has released a final Trout Management Plan for the Batten Kill which focuses on habitat restoration and the continued management of wild trout populations without stocking.
Read more at the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Web site
The Background
Towards the end of 2006 I posted a few articles about Vermont Fish & Wildlife’s proposal for dropping rubber hatchery trout in the river, where trout populations were plummeting due habitat loss.
The river was is in the midst of extensive habitat recovery efforts funded largely by private sources, who threatened to suspend restoration efforts if hatchery trout were stocked.
Leading the fight was Orvis, who supplied large chunks of money for restoration and orchestrated a media and grassroots effort to fight stocking.
It’s windy as hell out here, but it’s a good day to be a wild trout in the Batten Kill…
[tags]batten kill, battenkill, vermont, fish and wildlife, orvis, fly fishing, conservation, habitat, hatchery trout[/tags]
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Habitat restoration should always be considered the preferred option. This approach is typically most cost-effective and sustainable.
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Mike; I couldn’t agree more, given the efficiencies inherent in growing trout in concrete ponds, moving them to rivers where they compete with wild trout, and then hoping they’ll all get caught before they die, spread disease or interbreed.
I like your company Web site and name. But where’s your blog?
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