I would like to share an article I read in the Washington Post today about declining smallmouth fishing the Chesapeake Bay area.Bay’s smallmouth bass under siege, report says
The fish, which draw millions of dollars in fishing, have been hit by pollution, disease and more.
http://wapo.st/17ZddKx
It notes the usual suspects: pollution, runoff from farms and lawns. It also mentions that these fish are also responding to less obvious pollution from chemical from birth control entering the water systems.
But the article also talks about one way of mediating and cleaning up the watershed is with some forms of government intervention and control. I am not weighing in on either side of do we need bigger govenment and what is the role govenment should play in a democracy.
However, from time to time on this site individuals come out strongly against government, questioning govenment regulation and over control. Generally I agree. But I also raise the question in my own thinking about what is the good that government can and should do. Where should govenment be more regulatory and step in, where shouldnt it. I dont know. But as a sportsman I know that waterquality and spawn are the two essentials for a health fishery. I also know that their are so many competing interests and economic well being and so much of this is focused around the very areas needed to be thoughtfully managed in order to one; insure quality fishing and two) provide and drive economic jobs.
Somehow I do think the balance needs to come more focused that with many of our enviromental issues the health of our systems will reguire government envolvment. And someplace we need to acknowledge the good that government can do. But then again when is it too much. I really dont know. But I do know that to build the health of our environment and ensure our own and future generations fishing opportunities we will all need to create our own systems and this have to be a balanced and forword thinking perpective crafted by local, state and national government and dare I say regulation? It will also need to be driven by sportpeople, local citizens, farmers. Personally, despite the evidence that govenment is fractured and less then effective that we can all focus on the greater long term opportunities to establish and maintain the necessary quality of enviroment as well as human discourse to create the ecosystems of sustainabilty and quality.
