State of Our Trout Part I

This struck me as highly unlikely; and when I asked Erman for documentation she got edgy and evasive, and then provided a reference revealing that the allegedly compromised “Lahontan lake” was an entirely different waterbody that the evacuated hybrids can’t get near.

So disgusted by Erman’s latest sabotage are Somer’s superiors that they say they’ve washed their hands of Paiute recovery. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has taken over the project and hired consultants for the environmental review. But now the service is paralyzed by the Lahontan Regional Water Quality Board, which is too frightened to issue a permit.

When Regan, with fellow Paiute crusader Leo Cronin, made his first trip to Silver King Creek in 1990, the valley was overrun with cattle. Through their efforts, and the efforts of other genuine environmentalists, the watershed was designated a wilderness and the grazing allotment retired. Now CATs, Wilderness Watch, Friends of Hope Valley, Erman, McCampbell and Ames are accusing resource managers and volunteers of trying to “poison wilderness.” Declares Regan: “We’re trying to restore a vital piece of the wilderness.”

Regan and his colleagues in TU and California Trout—even more dedicated than the chemophobes—are working to reengage fish and game. Somer is in a three-point stance. They tell me the environmental impact statement won’t be finished in 2008, but expect the project to get underway in 2009.