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VA Eradicates Zebra Mussel

The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (VDGIF) confirmed in early May that the state�s only infestation of zebra mussels has been exterminated. Eradication of this noxious species from a 12-acre, 93-ft-deep abandoned quarry is believed to be the first successful eradication of zebra mussels from a large, open body of water in North America, and perhaps the world.

Virginia�s Secretary of Natural Resources L. Preston Bryant, Jr. said, �The existence of zebra mussels in Virginia posed a very real threat to our natural resources and to our economy. The price of eradication was small compared to the potential millions of dollars that would have been needed to control zebra mussels had they escaped into adjacent waters, not to mention the permanent impact on the environment of the Commonwealth. The VDGIF, which spearheaded this effort, along with the numerous partner agencies and organizations involved, are to be applauded for doing what no other state in the nation has been able to do: successfully eradicate an established zebra mussel population from a large open body of water.

The presence of zebra mussels in Millbrook Quarry, an abandoned rock quarry now extensively used for recreational and instructional scuba diving, was first confirmed in late August 2002. Since the discovery, VDGIF has worked with numerous federal, state, and

local agencies; industry and conservation organizations; and individuals to pursue eradication of the zebra mussel population. The 3� year effort involved a panel of biologists, chemists, geologists, engineers, and human health experts representing seven Virginia  agencies. The project contract was awarded in August 2005 to Aquatic Sciences L.P. of Orchard Park, NY, an industrial leader in zebra mussel control.

VDGIF had to prepare a comprehensive Environmental Assessment for approval by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). Because the selected chemical and treatment, injection of potash (potassium chloride) into the water, is not a federally registered pesticide use, VDGIF also had to secure approval to use the chemical from Virginia�s Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Final approval was received in January 2006.

To kill the zebra mussels through exposure to potassium, the entire quarry was injected with 174,000 gallons of potassium chloride solution over a 3-week period. Potassium concentrations throughout the quarry and in adjacent surface waters were measured each weekend during the treatment. The target concentration was 100 ppm potassium; far below the level that would invoke environmental or human health concerns, but more than twice the minimum concentration needed to kill all the zebra mussels. Sampling at various

depths and locations in the quarry after treatment revealed potassium concentrations ranging from 98 to 115 ppm, and no potassium leakage from the quarry into adjacent waters has been detected to date. Because there are no surface water connections to the quarry, and groundwater exchange is limited, potassium levels in the quarry are expected to remain lethal to zebra mussels for decades, thus preventing re-infestation.

Water chemistry within Millbrook Quarry, and potassium concentrations in Broad Run and in nearby landowners� wells will be monitored by the Occoquan Watershed Monitoring Laboratory, a unit of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, for 2 years to document water quality in the quarry, and leakage of potassium from the quarry into the adjacent stream or groundwater.

Changes in the microbiology of the quarry sediments will also be monitored through a contract with George Mason University.

The contract awarded for the eradication and bioassays totaled approximately $365,000, with another $54,000 awarded in human health concerns, but more than twice the minimum concentration needed to kill all the zebra mussels. Sampling at various depths and locations in the quarry after treatment revealed potassium concentrations ranging from 98 to 115 ppm, and no potassium leakage from the quarry into adjacent waters has been detected to date. Because there are no surface water connections to the quarry, and groundwater exchange is limited, potassium levels in the quarry are expected to remain lethal to zebra mussels for decades, thus preventing re-infestation.

Four separate methods of confirming eradication of the infestation were implemented.

The contract awarded for the eradication and bioassays totaled approximately $365,000, with another $54,000 awarded in contracts for the post-project monitoring. Primary funding for the eradication was provided through a Wildlife Habitat Incentive Program (WHIP) grant from the Virginia Office of the Natural Resources Conservation Service of the USDA, and through a State Wildlife Grant from the FWS. The local water authority (Fairfax Water), Prince William County, the City of Manassas, and Dominion Virginia Power contributed the matching funds required to facilitate receipt of the federal grants.

For more information about zebra mussels and the Millbrook Quarry eradication effort visit the VDGIF Web site at www.dgif.virginia.gov .

Source: VDGIF Press Release, 5/10/06; Contact: Ray Fernald, (804) 367-8364 or Brian Watson, (434) 525-7522

http://wwwaux.cerc.cr.usgs.gov/MICRA/

2005 Excises Taxes close out on Top 

 Excise tax collections on firearms and ammunition were up 2.6 % in calendar year 2005, signaling growth in sales among manufacturers. According to the U.S. Treasury Department, firearm and ammunition manufacturers paid $224.3 million in excise taxes last year, up from $218.6 million in 2004. Excise taxes are considered one of the best

indicators of industry performance. Last year's excise tax totals point to an estimated $2.1 billion in sales for manufacturers, up from about $2 billion in 2004. Total excise tax collections for the calendar year were: long guns, $105.6 million (up 1.8 % from $103.8 million in 2004); ammunition, $71.3 million (up 3.5 % from $68.9 million in 2004); and handguns, $47.3 million (up 3% from $45.9 million in 2004).

Commission/Club Launch Lamprey Hunters

Sea lampreys invaded the upper Great Lakes in the early 20th century and wreaked havoc on the fishery. The average lamprey can eat up to 40 lbs of Great Lakes fish. If the lamprey does not kill the fish directly, the fish is often left with gruesome, life-threatening wounds.

But anglers can help control this critter.

The Milwaukee Great Lakes Sport Fishing Club suggested this program to the Great Lakes Fishery Commission and its pilot program is being tested in the Milwaukee area.  There are still bugs in this and, as they say, it�s not quite ready for prime time!  We�ll be looking for feedback from the participants about how well it works and then we�ll go basinwide.  The club is to be commended for getting the ball rolling.

www.glfc.org/lampreyhunters

$12 Million in Grants Keeps Waters Healthy, Boaters Happy

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director H. Dale Hall announced $12.26 million in grants to 32 states for their efforts to provide recreational boaters with additional sewage pump-out facilities.  The grants assist state programs for both inland and coastal waters and are awarded through the Service�s Clean Vessel Act grant program.  The Sport Fish Restoration and Boating Trust Fund � supported by excise taxes paid on certain fishing equipment and boat fuels taxes � funds the program.

The Clean Vessel Act grant program helps states ensure proper disposal of millions of gallons of boater waste.  For example, the program provided for the proper disposal of three million gallons of sewage from Massachusetts last summer alone.  Since the early 1990s, the program has awarded more than $120 million to states for their Clean Vessel Act programs.

Recipient Great Lakes states include:

Illinois- $50,000- For five sewage pump-out facilities at private marinas in its inland waters.

Indiana- $104,458- For four sewage pump-out stations throughout the state, and to continue its education program for recreational boaters.  Two of the new stations are proposed for either the Ohio River or Lake Michigan waters.

Michigan- $200,000- To install ten sewage pump-out stations at private marinas throughout the Great Lakes.

Additionally the state plans to continue its educational program for recreational boaters.

Minnesota- $29,206- To install a new sewage pump-out station on the St. Croix River in Washington County.

Ohio- $173,224- To install two new sewage pump-out facilities.  One is planned for the Chagrin River near the town of Eastlake and one is planned for a marina on Lake Erie near Cleveland.  The state will also continue its efforts to educate boaters about the importance of proper sewage disposal.

Wisconsin- $45,000- To install three sewage pump-out facilities on inland waters and the Great Lakes with the program awards.

Weekly Great Lakes Water Levels for July 7, 2006

Lake Level Conditions: 

Water levels on Lakes Superior, Michigan-Huron, St. Clair and Ontario are 1 to 5 inches below the levels of a year ago, while Lake Erie is 2 inches above last year�s level.  Lake Superior�s water level continues to rise and is expected to be 1 inch higher next month.  Lake Michigan-Huron is near its seasonal peak and will remain steady, while Lakes St. Clair, Erie and Ontario are forecasted to fall 1 to 4 inches over the next month.  Over the next few months, all of the Great Lakes are predicted to remain at or approach water levels similar to 2005. 

Current Outflows/Channel Conditions:

The Lake Superior outflow through the St. Marys River into Lake Huron is expected to be near average in July.  Flows in the St. Clair and Detroit Rivers are expected to be below average during July.  Flows in the Niagara and St. Lawrence Rivers are expected to be near and below average, respectively, in July.

Alerts:

Users of the Great Lakes, connecting channels and St. Lawrence River should keep informed of current conditions before undertaking any activities that could be affected by changing water levels.  Mariners should utilize navigation charts and refer to current water level readings.

Removal of Cape Fear River Locks and Dams Could Improve Fish Populations

RALEIGH, N.C. (June 26) - The removal of three obsolete dams in North Carolina could improve recreational and commercial fisheries for striped bass, American shad, hickory shad, and help tremendously in restoration efforts for river herring, Atlantic sturgeon and shortnose sturgeon.

The demolition of locks and dams No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3 along the Cape Fear River would restore very important spawning and nursery habitat for these migratory fish in the river, and increases in their populations would likely result, according to the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission, N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service.

If recovery of the striped bass, American shad and hickory shad populations happened as predicted, recreational and commercial fisheries for these fish would improve. Coastal marine fisheries would benefit also because juvenile shad and herring spawned in fresh waters migrate downstream to the ocean and provide an important prey base for other popular fish species, such as red drum, flounder, bluefish and seatrout.

"The combined effects of increased shad and striped bass populations along with the benefits of an increase forage base for other game fish could potentially generate millions of dollars annually to North Carolina's economy," said Mike Wicker of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. "River herring and sturgeon, species that are at all time record low numbers, would greatly benefit by once again having access to their historic spawning and nursery area habitats."

Nationwide, removal of old and non-functioning dams from rivers and waterways is a growing trend. Many small dams that once provided water power to turn grist mills or saw blades now serve no useful function but block migratory fish

from their historic spawning and nursery areas.

In North Carolina, the removal in 1998 of Quaker Neck Dam on the Neuse River near Raleigh resulted in migratory striped bass and American shad being able to reach their former spawning grounds. Since removal of Quaker Neck Dam, other smaller dams on Little River, a tributary of Neuse River, have reopened many more miles of spawning habitat as well.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers owns and operates Lock and Dams No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3 on the Cape Fear River, and these structures are no longer used for navigation, which was their intended purpose. The Corps is interested in "decommissioning" the dams and is currently studying their options as part of a General Reevaluation Report for the Wilmington Harbor Deepening Project.

Although the Cape Fear River locks and dams were not designed for water supply, Wilmington, Fayetteville and other local users depend on impounded waters behind these dams for their water supply source. The fishery agencies are committed to working in partnership with these water users and other agencies to find water supply solutions that will satisfy municipal water needs before any of the three Cape Fear River lock and dams are removed.

State and federal fishery agencies promoting removal of these dams are anxious to work collaboratively with municipalities and citizen groups to restore fisheries habitat in North Carolina's coastal rivers. 

"The benefits of restoring healthy fish populations in the state's rivers and streams go far beyond the enjoyment of just catching a fish," said Bob Curry, chief of the Wildlife Resources Commission's Division of Inland Fisheries. "They extend to our economy, to our culture and to our dedication to conserving our rich heritage of natural resources."

State opens World Shooting Complex

State-of-the-art shooting facility will generate big bucks, hundreds of new jobs

SPARTA - Governor Rod R. Blagojevich on July 5, joined business leaders and sportsmen from across the nation, opened the long-anticipated World Shooting and Recreational Complex (WSRC) in Sparta.  The newly constructed, state-of-the-art facility will become an economic boon for Southwestern Illinois, bringing more than 250 new jobs to the region, and hundreds of thousands of visitors to the state.  

The Complex is hosting the first ever U.S. Open Trapshooting Championships which started last week.  The event, organized by the Amateur Trapshooting Association (ATA), is expected to draw nearly 1,000 participants who will compete for four days in July for $10,000 in prize money and trophies. The U.S. Open Trapshooting Championship is the first of three major shooting events taking place at the complex this year. 

"Our investment in this world class complex will pay off in a big way not only in Southwestern Illinois, but across the state," said Blagojevich.  "After years of planning and hard work, this complex is the premiere shooting facility in the nation.  But, it's much more than a shooting complex.  It has first class meeting and banquet facilities, a full-service restaurant, and a campground for families to enjoy. And, when families come to the World Shooting Complex, they'll also be able to enjoy all that Southwestern Illinois has to offer -including its history, golf courses, wineries and state parks."

The 1,600-acre WSRC will feature: 250 acres of water; 120 trap fields extending 3.5 miles; two sporting clay courses; a Cowboy Action Shooting corral; permanent exhibition building; 746 RV campsites with electric, water, and sanitary services, and an additional 264 sites with electrical service, providing potential for camping jamborees; a multi-purpose recreational facility; gift shop; and full service restaurant and lounge. It's also expected to quickly become a premiere meeting, exhibit, banquet and reception space in Southwestern Illinois.

The 34,000-square-foot events center includes a 4,700-sq ft concession area, which will house a 1,250-sq ft full service

restaurant, a 950-sq ft lounge and a 2,250-sq ft dining room, which will be used during larger events.  In May, Ned Kelly's of Bloomington, Inc. was awarded the contract to supply food and beverages to the WSRC. The Bloomington, Illinois-based restaurant will operate its WSRC facility under the name "Heartland Range." 

In January 2004, Blagojevich announced an agreement with the Amateur Trapshooting Association (ATA) to make Illinois the new home of the Grand American competition.  The state welcomed the nation's largest outdoor shooting tournament to the WSRC after the ATA, the governing board for clay target shooting in the United States, decided to relocate its headquarters from its former home in Vandalia, Ohio, after more than 80 years.  This decision was made after plans were announced to expand the Dayton International Airport in Ohio, which would have altered the grounds where the Grand American was held. 

Construction of the WSRC was approved by Blagojevich in 2003. Ground on the complex was broken in fall 2004, and took approximately 16 months to be completed.  Costs for the project will total approximately $50 million. The state's Capital Development Board (CDB) provided $31.5 million in capital funding to secure the project, and also managed the construction of the WSRC.  The Illinois Department of Transportation reallocated $10 million for road improvements in the area. And $8 million in local bonds for water and sewer improvements will be repaid to the City of Sparta over the next 20 years.

WSRC Fact Sheet

1,600+ acres including 250 acres of water

120 trap fields extending 3.5 miles

Two sporting clay courses

Cowboy Action Shooting corral

Permanent exhibitor building

746 RV campsites with electric, water, and sanitary services, and an

additional 264 sites with electrical service, providing potential for camping jamborees

Multi-purpose, multi-use recreational facility

Gift shop and full service restaurant

DEC Announces Finalized Bay Scallop and Oyster Regs

Conservation Measures Adopted to Protect and Restore Commercially Important Shellfish

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Denise M. Sheehan announced the adoption of new regulations for bay scallops and oysters. The regulations establish conservation and management measures necessary for the protection, management and restoration of sustainable bay scallop and oyster populations in the Marine District.

The new regulations took effect upon publication in the State Register on July 5, 2006, and established the following conservation and management measures:

Bay Scallops:

�         Open Season - Bay scallops may be taken from the first Monday in November through March 31;

�         Harvest Restrictions, Size Limit, Annual Growth Line - Only those bay scallops having an annual growth line and measuring at least two and one-quarter inches from the middle of the hinge to the middle of the bill may be taken;

�         Scallops that are less than the legal size and do not possess an annual growth line may comprise no more than two percent of the catch when unavoidably taken;

�         Gear Restrictions - Bay scallops may be taken by dredge or scrape, having an opening at the mouth of no more than 36 inches in width, when towed by a boat operated by mechanical power, provided that the dredge or scrape is brought aboard by hand without the use of a mechanical device. In addition, on Sundays, boats operated by power may not be used to tow dredges or scrapes in the harvest of bay scallops;

�         Catch Limits - The bay scallop catch limit is no more than 10 bushels of scallops per person per day or no more than 20 bushels per boat per day when two or more persons occupy the same boat;

�         Possession and Sale - Scallops may not be possessed for sale for food purposes from April 1 to the first Monday in November. This does not apply to bay scallops harvested

during the open season (first Monday in November through March 31) that have been shucked and packed in approved packages and frozen and kept in a frozen state;

�         Scallop Salvage and Relay - DEC may issue permits to transplant or salvage scallops of any age to protect them from destruction by predators, wind, tidal action or other factors;

Oysters:

�         Size Limit - Establish a minimum size limit of 3 inches in longest diameter. This size limit shall not apply to oysters transplanted or cultured under permit from DEC. Oysters measuring less than three inches in their longest diameter may comprise no more than five percent of any bushel, package or container.

New York's bay scallop resource has experienced a 99 percent decline since 1985 due to repeated blooms of the Brown Tide which devastated bay scallop populations in Peconic and Gardiners Bays on Eastern Long Island. The bay scallop resource has not recovered even in the absence of Brown Tide for more than a decade. Delaying the scallop season by one month and requiring scallops to possess both an annual growth line and be a minimum size of two and one-quarter inches will ensure that scallops have an opportunity to spawn prior to harvest and will help promote the long-term survival of the bay scallop resource. The new rule is consistent with existing statutory requirements for management of bay scallops and is necessary for the continued protection of this commercially important resource. The bay scallop fishery in New York showed a slight increase in harvest to just over 6,000 pounds in 2005 with a dockside value of more than $153,000. Historically, the bay scallop fishery harvested an average of 300,000 pounds annually.

More info is available at: NYSDEC, Bureau of Marine Resources, Shellfish Management Unit, 205 N Belle Mead Road, Suite #1, East Setauket, NY 11733, or by calling (631) 444-0483.

For text of the new rule: www.dec.state.ny.us/website/dfwmr/propregs/part49text.html

Access closed on Rivers & Streams in 46 Counties

The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) has ordered closed all its public boat access areas on rivers and streams in the 46-county area of Pennsylvania currently under a state of emergency.

This action impacts PFBC launch sites in Adams, Armstrong, Bedford, Berks, Blair, Bradford, Bucks, Carbon, Centre, Chester, Clinton, Columbia, Cumberland, Dauphin, Delaware, Franklin, Fulton, Huntingdon, Indiana, Jefferson, Juniata, Lackawanna, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lehigh, Luzerne, Lycoming, Mifflin, Monroe, Montgomery, Montour, Northampton, Northumberland, Perry, Philadelphia, Pike, Potter, Schuylkill, Snyder, Sullivan, Susquehanna, Tioga, Union, Wayne, Wyoming and York counties.

PFBC sites on rivers and streams in these counties will

remain closed until further notice. The Commission estimates it will take as long as three weeks to fully inspect and clean flooded sites. Launch sites sustaining heavy damage will be off limits for longer. The Commission will utilize its web site at www.fish.state.pa.us  and its regional offices to provide updates as sites begin to re-open.

�Our crews will be working diligently over the next several weeks to restore recreational opportunities at the closed sites. We ask for patience and understanding. The inconvenience that some recreational boaters may experience as a result of the flooding and associated access closures is minor compared to the disruptions being experienced by those who have lost homes, possessions and loved ones,� said PFBC Executive Director Doug Austen.

Lake trout populations recovering on Lake Superior

BAYFIELD � Wild lake trout populations continue to stage a strong recovery on Lake Superior even as their cousins in the other Great Lakes struggle.

Catch rates for lake trout during the Wisconsin DNR spring 2006 surveys were not quite the gangbusters rate recorded during the earliest years of the 21st century, but they are among the highest since the annual surveys began in 1968, and most importantly, continue to show the population is heading in the right direction.

�The lake trout population is steadily on the rise,� says Mike Seider, fisheries biologist stationed in Bayfield. �It�s not completely recovered, but we�ve made great strides.� Predation from sea lamprey�nonnative, eel-like fish that attack trout with their sucking mouths�and over-fishing nearly obliterated Lake Superior�s trout population during the 1950s. Since trout are a native �keystone� species and top-of-the-food-chain predator, their absence can and did knock the whole lake�s ecosystem off-kilter, Seider says.

Since then, DNR�s lake trout rehabilitation strategy has been three-fold, focusing on controlling sea lamprey, creating two trout refuges in the Apostle Islands region where no fishing is

allowed, and establishing conservative sport and commercial fishing regulations.

The annual assessments, which date to 1968, help biologists like Seider determine the progress of lake trout rehabilitation by monitoring population dynamics such as abundance, age distribution, diet trends and sea lamprey wounding rates over the long-term. During the three- to four-week-long annual trout assessment, the crew sets nets in 46 different locations between Saxon Harbor and Superior. Following protocol established by the Lake Superior Technical Committee�an international group of fishery biologists from around Lake Superior�the nets are left at each location for one day.

DNR biologists use the information collected from the assessments to work with fisheries biologists from the Bad River and Red Cliff Tribes and the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission every three years to develop a harvest quota of how many fish the recovering population can sustain. That quota is then split between commercial fishers on Lake Superior, and sport anglers, according to Stephen Schram, DNR fisheries supervisor at Bayfield.

The steadily rising wild trout population indicates that DNR�s rehabilitation efforts are working, Schram says. The combination of sea lamprey control and fishing regulations has allowed lake trout abundance to increase. That increasing abundance has meant that DNR hasn�t needed to stock trout in the Apostle Islands region since 1995 and will likely lead anglers to enjoy better catch rates, Schram says.

Optimism about the continuing restoration of native lake trout in Lake Superior is reflected in the fact that tribal and DNR biologists recently recommended a quota increase; the Natural Resources Board approved an increased harvest quota from 126,600 fish to 150,000 fish.