River bass need YOUR help

My apologies if this topic has already been addressed on this page. I just ran across an article in the CR Gazzette from Feb. 15 regarding proposed budget cuts to the Environmental Management Program. The article states that the Bush Administration’s 2003 budget proposal reflects a 40% cut in the EMP. The EMP is the main source of funding for habitat restoration projects. This cut will delay if not eliminate critical projects. John Pitlo’s (Iowa DNR) research has proven that largemouth bass, bluegill, and crappie on the river have very specific requirements for overwintering habitat. Unfortunately, sedimentation is reducing the depth in many backwaters to the point where there is not sufficient dissolved oxygen. No overwintering habitat = no bass (or gills and crappies).

You boys up north on the river still have a lot of good fishing. But every pool down you go, the fewer backwater lakes there are to begin with, and the worse the sedimentation problems.

The article says that unless Congress restores some money this session, funding will drop from $20 million to $12.2 million. The article urges those of us who love to bass fish on the river to urge their reresentatives and senators to restore full funding. I don’t know when this will be on the congressional agenda (I am basically politcally ignorant until bass fishing comes up), but I think we are all obligated to make our wishes known. Bass fishing contributes an incredible sum of money to the Upper Mississippi Valley (boats, motors, fuel, lodging, food, tackle, licenses, etc.). That will all go away if the bass can’t survive the winter anymore.

I’ll get off my soap box now…

Yo-sf, Holley Molly another down river guy speaks !! The up nort guys don’t realize how good they’ve got it from an environmental aspect of the river. Pool 4 gets 3′ of high water and it’s still clearer than mid January water from Dubuque on down !

I’ve emailed the Corp. of Eng, so much they know me !! The Bush Admin. is already relaxing the clean air & water statutes as we speak !! He campaigned, saying that he was going to do it, and by god he is!!!!!! He just cut the Corps. budget by .2 billion – you watch the first projects to go by the wayside will be the “backwater dredging and rehab” programs.

Another thing that frosts me – is the money given to consultants for river studies !!! All they have to do is talk to some of us “river rats” and we can tell’m whats go’n on with the river , that would save plenty of tax-dollars.

OOOPS I’m on a soap box now !!

Gofish

I hear you kreading…pools 16, 17, 18, and even 19 are practically on life support now. Luckily, 13 has received some funds (Mickelsen’s, Brown’s, Spring Lake). Pool 12 needs a lot of help, too. I often dream about how awesome the river was in the early days after impoundment. A buddy of mine who has been on the river for nearly 40 years has pointed out spots that used to be good…now you could plant corn in them. I’d like my son to be able to enjoy bass fishing on the river. If the rehab projects don’t happen…he may have to learn to walleye fish or cat fish.

“Relaxing clean air and water regs….” – Not really true. This was all extremely clever manuevering. After GW won the election, #42 basically threw a bunch of regs into the books that would have ran thousands of small towns across the US into bankruptcy had they done what they needed to to comply. Everyone knew that W would have to repeal them, and it was just a ploy to make him look anti-environment. Double check your Constitution – there is no authority to do this in the first place.

This is another good reason that we need check-offs for every dollar that go into taxes. In addition to a 1040, fill out a survey listing all programs and let people split up their tax dollars amongst those that they support.

Do a google search and find a few programs that you would like to see killed before writing your rep. Suggest that those dollars go to fund this.

Yo Gianni — I see you haven’t been pay’n taxes to long !

W. has aready turned back EPA issues that has taken decads to enact !! And if you think industry is going to voluntarily police themselves as W. proposes, you must be eat’n bellied up carp.

Gofish

My tax dollars at work!

Email your Senators

Here is what I sent:

In reply to:

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It has recently come to my attention that the proposed budget calls for a 40% decrease in the Environmental Management Program. This program handles habitat restoration, and has been key in improving fishing and hunting opportunities along the Mississippi River in recent years.

While I am a true believer that Environmental issues are best handled by the states and Congress has no constitutional authority to intervene, I feel that the Mississippi River is a true exception. The river is (appropriately) federally controlled by COE as a commercial shipping route. Habitat for fish and wildlife should play an important role in the management plan.

Local and state governments cannot raise sufficient funds to perform these projects in the current tax environment. I feel confident that many people would agree with me in saying that, if you are going to take money from me, that money should be spent on something I would find worthwhile. In light of that, I would like to ask that Iowa’s share of the funding for the National Endowment of the Arts, foreign aid to hostile countries, grants for politically motivated ‘studies’, and any federal involvment in education be diverted to support the habitat restoration project. I have seen enough crucifixes in urine, and no amount of money can overcome parental apathy in the education of their children.

Additionally, I would like to see us retain foreign aid to Afghanistan until Hamid Karzai(sp?) takes responsibility for police activities within his borders. He has publicly stated that Osama Bin Laden, Mullah Omar, and other known terrorists in Afghanistan are “not his problem” and that the US needs to handle it. Did he miss President Bush’s speech? Bin Laden and Omar are currently more a threat to his government than to the American people, and yet he refuses to take action agianst them. Perhaps this is just political manuevering, as I suspect is the case with the Saudi’s, but if the leaders of these countries will not take a stand against radical Islam and terrorism then it is clear that they are part of the problem.

I would also like to thank you for doing what you could to try and stop the campaign finance reform bill. Very few people seem to understand that “interest groups” are actually composed of ordinary citizens who have banded to gether to pool their resources. This bill will give the media the power to pick the president from now until the collapse of our republic, and my hope is that the president stands on principle and vetoes it. By waiting for the SCOTUS to strike it down, he is abrogating his responsibility to uphold the constitution – as have a majority of Iowa legislators.

Thank you for your time,

Gianni (FTR’s official freedom-loving radical)

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With any luck, we can discuss the merits of an progressive (read: oppresive) tax system at the get-together.

You are correct Gianni ,that last skunk in the Whitehouse ran things into the ground. He pulled alot of those 11 th hour schemes to improve his parties chances in the next election. Arsenic levels are a prime example. No water districts could economically aford to comlpy with them. I say good riddence, and go G.W.

i would agree with you, but unless you are a high contributor towards them or they are close to re-election don’t expect much of a response or a push towards your belief , And that unfortunately is politics

I’m not a believer in CFR, just beacuse I know that votes are worth more than dollars come election time, and the power of the 4-million member NRA and groups like Ducks Unlimited has very little to do with money, in spite of the amount they spend.

The best thing anyone can do for this country is be involved. Take the Nuge’s advice and get to know everyone who represents you – otherwise they’re not really representing you, are they?