NY Muskies Inc. guys/Chautauqua Fans

[Ronix 51]

Gents,

Having spoken with Chuck Battaglia (sorry if I mispelled it) about some topics he may be concerned with regarding the conservation issues surrounding chautauqua/cassadaga lakes, his first and primary concern was the lake home owners association pushing hard to treat the lake and rid it of any weed growth for the pleasure boats and swimmers. Obviously this can mean bad news for not only the muskie fishery, but all fisheries in that lake for several reasons.

This may not be news to many of you but just in case I thought id post this article that I just found regarding webster lake:

http://goshennews.com/localsports/x6944 ... bster-Lake

[Musky Itch]

Our Conservation Director has certainly been busy, and I did enjoy our hour long phone chat. The Webster Lake link hits it right on the head. There HAS NEVER been a chemical weed treatment that did not have some hidden/long term negative result. Over my lifetime of 71 years I have seen them try many "no problem/no side effect" chemical treatments, that have devastated the fishery and/or environment. Folks, a selective, mechanical weed control program is the only sane method. End of story, and now the Chautauqua Lake Association is funding a study to allow chemical treatment of one of the jewels of NYS. The Condo owners and lake front developers only want a Bathtub for a lake, they have zero concern for the ecosystem.

John Jablonski, Director of the Chautauqua Water Conservancy has been fighting this for years and he is on our side. I had John on my boat last year Musky fishing and we witnessed an undeveloped Wetland shore line on Chautauqua where the harvesters had wiped out a giant weed bed. This bed was a noted Musky spawn area and there was no reason to cut it. This kind of indiscriminate action is what we are up against on Chautauqua Lake.

Here on Cassadaga Lake, over the last 6 years I have been able to show the Board of Directors that the selective weed management program has redeveloped a dead fishery into a NYSDEC Preferred Lake Status waterway.Also, for the past 5 years, all Musky eggs used at the Prendergast Hatchery came from Cassadaga Lake Muskies only, as the region 9 Biologists recognized the health/hardiness of the little beasties. We have left "nursery area weed beds untouched" for the bait fish and babies to hide and grow and have seen an explosion of Perch, Sunfish, Crappies and some very fat Bass and Musky.

As an organization and as individuals, we must fight the uninformed and the "for a buck only developers" for if they win, your children will miss out on what we had. Also, on another note, with water temps in the 80's*, please use water releases on your catches, save the pictures till temps drop. Thanks.................

Chuck Battaglia Lakes Manager, Cassadaga Lakes Association

Musky Itch Too Guide Service

[Stinky Finger]

This reminds me of the time when I lived in Cattaraugus county near Lime lake, 2001 - 2002. I fished the lake almost daily then. There were vibrant weedbeds and well defined weedlines everywhere. It was beautiful.

One day I noticed signs posted on telephone poles all around the lake by the landowner's association stating that the lake would be treated on such and such dates with chemicals to kill aquatic weeds.

I remember looking into it at the time and my memory is a little fuzzy being it was a decade ago but if IIRC I found that the total amount of gallons of chemicals to be used was limited by law and the areas/ distance from shore where it could be applied was also limited/defined by law.

Great, or so I thought.

About a week later I was at the lake fishing and couldn't believe my eyes. Not a weed to be seen anywhere and an unnatural funny green tint to all of the lake. This was at the public launch area on the east side. An DEC ECO pulled in and I chatted him up about it. He laughed and gave a wry smile. His attitude was one of "ya, so what. You have a nice day" and off he went.

It was blatantly obvious there was no limit observed and the entire lake was completely denuded of aquatic vegetation.

This is what we are up against with these lake associations who want nothing less than a giant swimming pool. If the end result is that anglers don't come to "their lake" any more then so much the better as far as they are concerned and apparently the state is A-O.K. with that.

This is all politics, pure and simple. As with all politics it's all about the money in the usual pay-to-play scheme of things.

The only way to have any impact on this depravity and wanton disregard for the environment and our fisheries is to band together so we have a voice.

Get out there and document these events. Get proof of how much and what type of chemicals are used and where they are applied. There -ARE- laws in place, probably the best we can hope for is to make these lake associations -and the state- abide by those laws or we won't have any more lakes, just swimming pools.

[mostlymuskies]

Well the first step is getting enough fishermen to the July 25th NY Muskies Inc. Chapter 69 meeting. We have to start somewhere to have any voice at all,we need to build numbers to be heard.

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