The Canyon Bass Club of San Marcos has applied to become the newest Friends of Reserviors Chapter. The CBCSM will be adopting Lake Dunlap and Canyon Lake. Chapter partners, work with controlling authorities and state agencies to enhance habitat and improve fishing on their home lakes.
| Friends of Reservoirs Friends of Reservoirs (FOR) is established to improve public understanding and knowledge of fish habitat conservation in the reservoirs of the United States, and to support and better enable government agencies, and other partners at all levels, to manage fisheries and fish habitat in the reservoirs and associated watersheds of the United States for the benefit of the American people. To meet its mission, FOR will provide technical and financial support to agencies and others having management jurisdiction over or interest in reservoirs, provide outreach and education to the public on health and conservation of fisheries and fish habitat in reservoirs and reservoir systems, and supports implementation of reservoir conservation activities consistent with the mission of the Reservoir Fisheries Habitat Partnership (RFHP) – a certified Fish Habitat Partnership of the National Fish Habitat Action Plan. FOR will have four primary activities. First, FOR will support the mission of the RFHP. FOR will raise funds for reservoir-based fish habitat conservation projects. These projects will be implemented by the RFHP in cooperation and coordination with Federal, State, Tribal, and local governments, and other citizen and NGO partners. These projects will address reservoir and related watershed issues as identified in State Wildlife Action Plans, State and Federal agency plans, the National Fish Habitat Action Plan, and other planning documents as appropriate. FOR will work in coordination with the RFHP to develop outreach and educational materials and programs to broaden and advance the awareness and understanding among the general citizenry of fisheries and fish habitat in reservoirs and reservoir systems. Included in this responsibility will be periodic assessments of the health of reservoirs and reservoir systems in the United States. FOR will also publish in coordination with the RFHP technical materials concerning best management practices for conservation of fish habitat and fisheries in reservoirs and reservoir systems. FOR will make those materials available to Federal, State and local authorities with responsibilities for reservoir administration, and others with interests therein. Additionally, FOR will create and maintain a web-based information center to facilitate both its general educational outreach programs and its more specific provision of technical assistance to governmental agencies, and others. FOR will establish networks of communication and cooperation between itself and allied friends groups whose conservation responsibilities and interests coincide with or overlap in part with those of the RFHP. This will include coordination with the National Fish Habitat Action Plan and participation and support for the activities of other associated Fish Habitat Partnerships. Friends of Reservoirs will administer the Partnerships for Fish Friendly Waters program – an alliance of certified local FOR chapters whose purpose is to support and advance the mission of FOR and the RFHP. Individual Partnerships for Fish Friendly Waters will be established for single reservoirs, groupings of reservoirs within a drainage, or as assemblages of reservoirs within a watershed. Upon application to and recognition by FOR, each local chapter will, in cooperation and coordination with governing Federal, State, tribal and local jurisdictions, and other partners, identify reservoir conservation needs and opportunities within their respective areas, raise funds to support those activities, and provide necessary financial and volunteer support to governmental agencies, NGOs, and others to implement them. Additionally, Partnerships for Fish Friendly Waters will contribute to the other activities of FOR and will have access to the technical expertise and assistance of the RFHP. |
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We have been hearing discontent from some of the anglers in the Jacksonville area regarding the 18-inch minimum length, 5-fish/day daily bag limit for largemouth bass in effect since 2000. With changes in habitat following release of grass carp in 2006 and 2007 and the floods of 2007 these anglers are concerned that although 14-16 inch fish are still abundant, fish over 18” are hard to find and this interferes with their ability to conduct several very popular night time tournaments. This was such a concern that at least one of the tournaments has temporarily moved to Lake Palestine. These angers have requested that TPWD consider a modification to the current regulation. Craig Bonds, Dan Bennett, and myself met with the anglers before Christmas to try to understand their concerns. Although they wanted to revert the regulation to the statewide 14-inch minimum length, 5-fish daily bag our concern was that doing so would cause the size distribution of largemouth bass to pre-2000 conditions where the population truncated at 14 inches with few fish over 14. The 18-inch minimum length limit has been successful in restructuring the population and maintaining fish up to 18” in length but has never produced a real surplus of fish over 18” (see attachment). This is understandable and is a function of how a minimum length limit works on relatively infertile systems like Lake Jacksonville. Although the anglers could understand what we were saying about the current regulation they felt that it still interfered with tournament activity. During the meeting we discussed several possibilities including changing tournament format to a “paper” tournament or a format similar to TTBC where fish could be weighed in the boat and immediately released but they did not think these were workable options. They also asked about a tournament exemption to allow them to temporarily retain fish 14-18 for later release but this is just not an option available in our regulation tool box at this time. We did discuss a compromise regulation that would remove the minimum length limit; however, only two largemouth bass less than 18 inches could be retained each day. Combined daily bag limit for all species of black bass would remain 5-fish/day; (this regulation is currently in effect at Lake O. H. Ivie in West Texas). Because the compromise regulation is already in use it is much easier to justify than an entirely new type of regulation. Although they would have preferred the 14”-minimum length they could see the benefit (to them) of the compromise regulation and they are currently preparing a petition to propose it. They understand that there are potential risks associated with revision of the regulation, including the possibility of fewer fish over 18 inches, but they believe the benefits to tournament activity resulting from the ability to retain two fish below 18 inches justify those risks.
