San Juan River Quality Waters Trout Stamp

[SJR Foundation]

This post is to solicit your support on a Annual Trout Stamp Bill benefiting the San Juan River Watershed currently in several committees within the New Mexico Legislative session. This Stamp and proceeds will benefit the San Juan River 100%. The funds raised by this Stamp will be utilized in 3 major categories, Trout Stocking, Stream Improvement and Enforcement. None of the funds will end up in a ? general fund ? and will be allocated solely for the benefit of the San Juan River.

Several prominent groups already support this initiative. New Mexico Trout, San Juan River Guide Association, San Juan River Foundation, Federation of Fly Fishers and the Tri-cities of Farmington, Bloomfield and Aztec support this fully. The impact to the consumer will be and annual fee of $ 5.00 for New Mexico residents and $10.00 for Non-residents. This will be charged when licenses are purchased or renewed and will be for fishing the San Juan River Quality Waters only.

We last week received a 100% positive response to this bill and are sending hard copies of this email campaign to Santa Fe so the committees will see the overwhelming opinion of the sportsmen who frequent the San Juan. I just received notice that the Concerned Citizen's Group has emailed their contingency to ask the State to table this bill. This stance continues to disappoint many of us in the community. It is apparent the only thing the Concerned Citizen's care about is to have a platform to lay blame and lobby against the Oil and Gas Industry. They are aligned with Oscar Simpson with NM Wildlife Federation and Trout Unlimited Nationally. If they cared about the river like they say the do, they would be behind this positive contribution for the river 100%.

In addition, the Concerned Citizens were part of the initial idea to sponsor such a bill. Now that want to change their mind. We have wanted to say this for a long time but is their agena about the river, or it is about ego ?

In closing, the current economic climate has prevented the State of New Mexico from funding improvements and projects on our beloved San Juan. This is a way for us sportsmen who love the outdoors and the San Juan to make a difference. In the grand scheme of things, this is a nominal way for us all to contribute to the continued improvement of our watershed for generations to come.


San Juan River Foundation
www.sanjuanriverfoundation.org

[DG]

Just a question or two, since you are asking me for $ to do things.

What is the stocking plan, or what changes do you propose to fund with this money? Do you have science supporting the need to stock more (or less, or differently) than is done now, or is this just to offset the costs incurred by NMFG to stock? Will changes in stocking be subject to public review/environmental analysis?

What sort of stream improvement? Structural enhancements? Flow regime changes? Gravel supplement? Is there research and data available to support any proposed work? If habitat work improves spawning, will stocking be reduced to compensate? Will this pay for the environmental analyses required to do this work on public lands? Will it be used to pay for education, efforts to prevent aquatic nuisance species, wash stations for boats, and the like?

What part(s) of the San Juan will this $ be spent on? Will the $ be spent solely on public lands/waters? Will it be required only on public waters (how far down from the dam, in other words)? Is this an additional fee over the state parks fee you have to pay to fish much of the tailwater? Is the fee $10 for nonresidents for a year, and if so, calendar year or year from date of purchase, or will you need to buy this stamp each time you purchase a short-term nonresident license?

How much $ IS the gas industry contributing to work on the river there?

And, well, I am all for the enforcement.

[Bubba Smith]

OK being a member of this board I am going to step in here.
first off the Oil and Gas industry has already donated well over $200,000.00 towards projects on the juan.
TU and other groups were asked but they declined to help.
We have asked for YEARS for help on the Juan only to be told to take a hike from TU etc.
Studies will be done before any work in stream work is done.
There is a plan in place for much of what you ask, somehow I think you already know that.

[hardhat]

I am all about preserving fishing and hunting for future generations. I am also in support of amendmants stating that hunting and fishing is a citizens right. I do not wish to end up like some other countries where the government and certain individuals control who may have those rights. That being said I would pay the $10.00 as a person coming from out of state to fish your beloved SJ. I know that many people rely on that fishery to make their living. However many people also rely on the oil business and manufacturing for their livelyhood.

I have been a supporter of TU since I was a child in Michigan. I may be mistaken but it seems to me that their mission is becoming more radical inviroment control. They no longer wish to protect and preserve, but now fight against what they consider change. We must all strike a balance between progress, peoples jobs, and preserving rivers and other waters.
Good luck

[DG]

No worries, Bubba, I know good things can happen if people put their minds to it.

Just that the first posting was a little thin on details and heavy on emotional appeal, and a little contradictory. 100% support but some are against it... If you are asking for support, the people you ask deserve to know the whole plan. Hence the long list of questions for people who do not already know the answers.

[Bubba Smith]

DG,
I personally have been working on this for 2 years now. And I can tell you everything you have asked has been looked at and quite a bit more as well. This has taken a lot of work by a lot of people to get it to this point.
For many, many years we have asked TU and NMWF for help in addressing the flows being changed on the Juan and the effect it would have. We were told flat out we were a tailwater and to more or less take a hike.
So we started this with help from the Fly Fishing Federation, local businesses and the local fisherman.
It is frustrating to see TU fighting us on this, they simply don't give a damn about this river our the people that use it. this is about an agenda on oil and gas. They have thrown the river under the bus with negitive and false radio ads, newspaper stories, etc.
I was told by the fellow that runs TU national for New Mexico that TU is no longer an angling group. TU is now an enviromental group.
TU has lost touch with the average fisherman
sorry for the rant guys

[vmabuck]

All of this info about the San Juan is a bit troubling.

Too bad about TU as well. I was about to become a member. I will have to do a bit more research it seems...

[DG]

Bubba, you say that everything I ask has been looked at, and I do not doubt it, but...

What are the answers to those questions I posed earlier? THAT you did not provide us. Just saying that you looked at them doesn't actually give the uninformed reader, who are the people you are asking for support, specific information. All I am asking for is information.

Remember that many, if not most, of the people this will effect do not KNOW the politics of the situation, and assuming that we know the players and why they are, or are not, supporting this, or what conservation measures you are trying to implement.

Even links to where these questions might be answered. I am assuming you have the draft legislation (or something similar) already written up? That would also be helpful.

[hardhat]

Bubba,
You have recomfirmed my thoughts about TU. After reading their magazine over the years it is becoming more apparent that they are moving in a specific direction. Who knows where their actions may lead.

[Shane Cavitt]

I am new to this discussion as I have never had the opportunity to fish the San Juan yet. What exactly is TU against here? What kind of negative and false ads are they running? Are there links where I can view these? Does TU not include tailwaters in their plans? I would love to know more about this so any links to provide me with further information would be greatly appreciated. I have a very close friend who is in the NM State Senate and I would love to be as knowledgeable as possible before discussing it with him.