LongLine

I hope we'll be okay. I read in the USF&W article (linked in said article) that the annual cost is $1.4 million and that monitoring has occurred every 2 years for 16 uninterrupted years. (Treatments in Champlain) started prior to that. The graph (in linked USF&WS article) shows a reduction from 99 wounds per 100 fish (2016) to approx 35 per wounds per 100 (2022). They also utilized many barriers along with the lampricides. This is a pretty good reduction and took a long time to achieve. (Even though there were a couple of spikes in the data.) Our monitoring of Big-o shows lower numbers. However, the closing statement in the USF&WS article: "Without sustained sea lamprey control, native fish restoration successes will quickly succumb to sea lamprey parasitism and be lost, along with the social and economic benefits to local communities. Continued support of the Lake Champlain Sea Lamprey Control Program is foundational to the restoration gains made and is critical to sustaining the future of these native fish species in the region." Sea Lamprey Control in the Lake Champlain Basin | U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service I hope we'll be okay. I don't know when our major tribs were last treated but I'm very leery of what one or two escaping year classes could do to the fishery. There was no treatment in 2020 and upward wound numbers in 2022. There have also been reports of guys catching fish with wounds and even live lampreys attached.

Spoon - Please accept my apology for interpreting personal hero worship commentary of a political figure as political in nature that deserved pushback. Gator - Someone asked if contributions could be made to sustain the program. I point to article that discussed cost of Lamprey control which would estimate how much private money would be required to keep said program going.

This article from the "journal of Great Lakes Research" (2021) discusses "suppression vs eradication" of the Sea Lamprey. The current program involves suppression. Eradication has a very low probability as eradication programs are never 100%; Lampreys are bust to boom creatures (exponential population growth - like gerbils or Quaggas) and Big-O is open to the sea. If you read the "Cost-Benefit Analysis" section, it states the Great Lakes suppression program has an estimated annual cost of $26 million with eradication approximately 15 times that. Eradication was attempted in Lake Superior years ago but failed. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0380133021000897#s0080 Cost is borne by the Feds, Canada and the bordering states. Timing is critical and the Feds are cutting funds, Canadians are pissed, and states don't know what the heck is going on. Yes, big time sportsman...obviously no reference to the endangered specie he's shot. The protected duck in Italy; the African elephant or the Argail Mountain sheep?

Let's hope this is another "oops." www.bridgemi.com/michigan-environment-watch/trump-firings-hit-great-lakes-sea-lamprey-program-michigan-forestry

Something to work on after the shoveling done:

Gill-T, Heh, heh, heh. yes they do a good job. A3330 goal is to prevent anyone importing LIVE baitfish into NYS. i.e. LIVE minnows from out of state can't be used in NYS. Any live minnows have to have been from NYS waters. Also adds an enforcement/penalty. It was referred to the state assembly conservation committee. I believe we already have restrictions on live bait fish.

Gill-T, That's the Brandon Road project.

Gator - Thanx for the great info. I hope you're not affected. Both the Senate & house have a "Great Lakes Task Force." NY Senate members are Schumer & Gillibrand. NY House members are Kennedy, Langworthy, Morelli and Tenney. Email addresses follow this format: "morelli.house.gov" Think Spring!

The convict thing would have more than paid for itself and returned a "profit" if the fines had been paid. Those alone would have paid for the carp projects in Illinois and Indiana. So who really lost that money? It's "We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union..." NOT "We the People of the United States, in Order to make profit..." Democracy is a political system whereas Capitalism is an economic system. I suppose you could ask a doctor about scheduling surgery but he'd probably refer you to a better source such as the hospital's scheduler. Having personally observed a few "buyouts," it's usually been the best people that take them. A lot of knowledge is always lost which can only be regained the hard way. How much fishing knowledge have you gained from reading/conversing to members of this site? I agree with "Those stinky fish are a waste." ..... or was the reference to the asian carp?

The carp project is at Brandon Road in Illinois. Illinois was promised $226 million by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed by Biden Admin. Last reported (yesterday) halted because federal funds have not been released. Federal gov't and State gov't are two different entities. Although there is some overlapping or "in conjunction with", some confuse which is doing what project and credit/blame one when the other is doing it. We Love Lake Ontario. It's world class fishery has a good payback. But does the Fed or the State deserve the most credit for the fishery we have today? Undoubtably both deserve credit. Feds brought in the first Pacific Salmon stocking after success was shown in Michigan. Unfortunately they've failed with Atlantic Salmon stocking since 1850. Feds reintroduced the Lake Trout which has been somewhat successful, however it doesn't seem to have really caught on with fishermen. Grand prizes in tournaments are always for the largest Salmon; very few fish the SR for Lakers; and I don't know of any charter boat websites that show significant numbers of lakers. (Although probably some.) Feds do Lamprey control throughout the Great Lakes, which IMO is a very good program even though there seems to be some yearly variation. Feds are bringing back the Bloater for which I hope is very successful. Feds monitor water quality. (Though I don't understand how they delisted the Rochester Embayment as an area of concern.) Feds research and publish the Prey fish assessment, for which I'm grateful for. Feds study & try to cure fish diseases, which IMO fully deserves support. Feds control the lake level. (Good luck trying to get out of Braddock's come late August.) Feds have Border Patrol. (Love their boats with 4 -350hp Mercury's on them!) Feds introduced the Asian Carp to the Mississippi and are now blocking funding to keep them out of the Great Lakes in Illinois. State maintains hatchery facility as well as collects eggs, nurtures and stocks the Salmon for which the Fishery is famous for (Browns and Steelhead included). State catches and prosecutes polluters. State sets pollution rules. State builds and maintains public launches as well as fishing access sites. State monitors fishing success and promotes fishing activities. State tries to balance predator-prey ratios. (with Fed data) State setup Pen Rearing to increase stocking survival and returns. State establishes the regulations and catches abusers. State sets up reports on state of the fisheries to fishermen. State is responsive to stakeholders desires (more so). State has been dredging many places along the lake. State has rebuilt many shoreline areas and installed many high-water protections. State tried to prevent invasives by restricting freighter ballast water exchange, but Washington said "NO!." (What's the payback on Fleas and Quaggas?) Both gov'ts deserve credit, but as to what I've listed (and I'm sure there's more) I'd rate today's Fishery 65-35 in favor of the State. BTW: Kathleen Sgmma (President of Western Energy Alliance and poster girl for 'drill, baby drill") has just been nominated as Director of BLM. How long before they have many more oil wells on public land in Utah?

Sounds like you're making the case that her entire dept should be the first to go and that she hired a lot of people at the high end of the scale. I hope she makes it to retirement. Treasury dept says highest paying gov't jobs are medical, lawyers & auditors. Also, that total payroll (excluding military) is 300 billion. (Which is a drop in the bucket compared to federal budget). The buyout letter stated that those affected could get better paying jobs in private sector. Kind of makes you want to do some research into federal salaries. This is what PEW research says (excluding military & WH): I doubt very much that the new federal hires (who are probationary hires) are making the big bucks. It doesn't work like the private sector. One starts low and moves up with longevity. State projects, pork barrels and overruns are where the big bucks are. As to hiring "friends and relatives", we all know who does/has done that. Which news outlet are you referring to? Maybe we should all subscribe.

Back to original post, the question is whether the state or the fed should control that land. Additionally, who is more responsive and responsible for the state' needs? Others have stated that every tax expenditure/project should be scrutinized. So here's one to think about. Search "states dependent on federal support" and "state tax rates." You'll find that NYS rates #28 on the list of states most dependent on Fed support. New Yorkers contribute almost $4 in Fed income tax for every $1 in Fed support NY receives. (It would probably contribute more if we didn't have as many tax cheats.) NY state tax rate progresses from 4% to 11%, which we think is obscene. (4% for $8.5K income to 11% for 25M in income) State taxes support expenditures/projects within that state. So why or why is it that NY fed taxpayers pay for Fed expenditures/projects in other states whose state income taxes are much less or in those states that have no income taxes? They don't sufficiently support their own state needs? Utah has a 4.5% flat state income tax. Why do NY taxpayers have to support management of Utah lands? I say let Utah have control of that land AND they pay for it, not NY'rs. Let them raise their state income tax to support it and keep any profits they can make off of it. (i.e mining or drilling leases, etc) Not manu NY'rs are going to use that land for any great length of time. Texas is more dependent on Fed $ than NY and has no state income tax. What did Texas give NY other than busloads of illegal immigrants for which NY'rs have to pay to support and now round up? Don't get me wrong, I'll gladly chip in for projects that cross multiple state lines and/or can benefit everyone, however NY'rs paying for a bridge that only Alabamans will use is ridiculous! (Their state income tax is only 2%) Let the states pay for their own corruption. If you don't like the laws, then move. If you don't like state taxes, then move. If you don't like the weather, then move. Federal pork barrel spending is where the real money is, not in salaries. Think Spring!

According to fiscaldata.treasury.gov the total 2024 compensation for non-military gov't employees was three hundred billion dollars. The total gov't budget was 6.5 trillion dollars. If successful in reducing the salary by 10%, that's just a "drop in the bucket" of the total budget. i.e 0.45% (zero point four five) Of course cutting 10% of employees doesn't mean cutting 10% of salaries. Frivolous spending needs to stop. Projects/programs should be evaluated on the "most bang for the buck" and not on who "screams the loudest" which it looks, to me, like where we're heading. THINK SPRING!

Gill-T: I think we may be saying the same thing. HB2: I agree but instead of watching dimes, they should be watching dollars. We've all heard about the 900 dollar hammers and 1200 dollar toilet seats. It's companies screwing the gov't, not the salaries of new employees. It was stated in the buyout letter that those affected could earn a lot more in the private sector than they could working for the gov't. What about the 400 million dollar commitment to buy Teslas? How about the Air Force 1 flight to the super bowl? AF1 doesn't fly alone rather it is accompanied by a "decoy" plane plus 2 fighters and the entire Gulf defense system placed on alert to monitor it. (His team got clobbered and he left by half time anyways, making that a pretty expensive photo-shoot.) Why not charter 737s rather than use C-17s for immigrants? C-17 is one of the most expensive planes in the world to operate. How much is DOJ going to spend defending against all the lawsuits? Congress could do the same thing for pennies and without the lawsuits and wasted money. I hope I get my tax refund...I really want to go fishing this year. Even if successful, Fed taxes will never go down. Proposed tax cuts keep the same level we're at now. States will have to pick up the tab for shortfalls to FEMA, Medicaid, parks, school aid, etc plus unemployment., so you know where state & local taxes will go. (UP)

I can understand the fear of gov't actions, however that article says Utah wants to preserve the public lands as public. It also says BLM is leasing some of that land for mining, grazing & recreation. Researching "mining in Utah" shows USGS has record of over 6,000 mines there being leased by feds. USGS says over 2,000 are outcropping or pit mines. (uranium, copper & silver) The fee is $165 for a 20 acre mine plot. Utah (mining) says resource removal (mining & oil) is a $6.5 Billion dollar industry. My gosh, did we miss our calling! Sounds like we should have traded in our fishing rods for shovels. I'm afraid to look at the oil numbers and where they'll go with the "drill, baby, drill" philosophy.

I don't get it. Utah wants to make and keep all that land public. Fed Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is leasing it out for mining as well as some for recreation. Current admin wants to open all fed lands to development. ie mining, drilling, lumbering, etc. Why would sportsmen root for the feds? They already sliced up Fed Parks & Recreation dept as well as taken chunks out of the EPA. Lamprey control & preyfish survey aren't the only items that are federally funded. USGS websites lists over 8,000 projects/programs concerning the great lakes. Not to mention the USF&WS entities such as Tunison Lab, Alleghany & Saratoga hatcheries. Lot of sportsmen on this site are concerned with fish diseases, lake trout and are rooting for the bloater. Another dept under scrutiny is NOAA. (All the Sharpie pens in the world won't warn us of gale winds or flooding) BTW: who controls the lake's water level? .

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Merry Christmas!

This one's a little harder: