Caddis
wanna be fly fisher.
I received this E-Mail from Jim Serio of the Delaware River Foundation today. It's rather long, so print it out or read it here if you have time.
Hi!
Just a quick update to everyone concerned with the Delaware River.
All good stuff. Things are happening!! We can really make a difference and
the time is now!!
Leon (check out Leons letter I have added at the bottom of this.) and I floated Congressman Walsh last Monday and it was a great day for the Delaware. The congressman caught a nice brown and also enjoyed the day.
We talked in depth about the river and its problems (NYC) and how we all
planned to work to fix them. Restoring Federal Funding to the DRBC was also
mentioned.
I took Fred Lebrun from the Albany paper on a float yesterday and he will
have an article in the Albany paper this Friday. This paper is huge since
it is read by all the Albany politicians.
TU and TNC are both powerful and we are all working together (and that is
the key) to work towards the same goal of better flows and a better fishery.
The Delaware River Foundation is on its way to meeting its goal of $10,000
which was pedged as matching funds for the Federal money that is available
for OASIS and stream restoration. Lets face it, money will get things
done!! Donations for this fund and general membership are always welcome.
Phil, thanks again for your generous doantion of the Leonard Fly Rod. The
rod raised $1700.00 from the auction!!!! Thanks again Phil!!!!
Our conservation projects are moving along.
We continue to meet every Saturday at the Village Access Site (Bard Parker)
to work on knotweed.
We have a willow planting session this Sunday at Butler Brook at 9:00 am.
The site is located next to the ball fields at the Deposit School.
Volunteers are all welcome.
Will keep you all posted!!
Jim Serio
Delaware River Foundation
Gentlemen:
Lee Hartman, Bill Schick, and I had a very productive meeting last Sunday
to discuss a better coordinated TU effort on the issue of Upper Delaware
flows. I wanted to follow up on some of the things that we discussed at
that meeting. I apologize for the length of this e-mail, but I wanted to
put all of the issues on the table for folks to think about.
Over the last couple of years TU staff have been focused on trying to
convince the parties to the Supreme Court decree to re-evaluate the decree
and make more water available for conservation flows. It has been our view
that the problem cannot be fixed without a fundamental overhaul of the
system. For example, every year folks are disappointed with DEC's
proposed experimental flow program. The problem with their proposals, however,
is that DEC has no authority to make any additional water available for
conservation or temperature releases. No additional water is made
available unless New York City and all the parties to the Supreme Court
decree unanimously agree to it.
Over the last couple of years we have made a great deal of progress in
changing people's thinking about the issue. The DRBC never even used to
consider the fishery; now the fishery is consistently the primary topic of
conversation at the Flow Management Technical Advisory Committee (FMTAC)
meetings. This is in large part due to excellent on the ground organizing
by folks in the watershed, including Nat Gillespie before he left for
graduate school. We have also been very successful at getting the
attention of Congress. Last year, through our work with Congressmen Walsh,
Boehlert, and Hinchey, we were able to get $500 thousand in federal funds
appropriated for the river, half for tributary restoration and half to
improve the OASIS flow model. This year, the same group of Congressmen
have put in for $750,000 to further the process of improving Delaware flows
Working with the Nature Conservancy and the Delaware Foundation, here is
the basic approach we have advocated:
-convince all the parties to the Supreme Court decree to agree to
a two-three year process to reevaluate the current flow regime and the
terms of the Supreme Court decree itself;
-collect some additional data on the ecological and recreational
flow needs of all the rivers (West Branch, East Branch, Mainstem, and
Neversink);
-do work to improve certain aspects of the OASIS flow model that
is now being used to evaluate different flow options, particularly the
ability of the model to predict downstream temperatures and to predict the
location of the salt front in the lower Delaware;
-use the improved OASIS model to evaluate flows that would
enhance ecological health and recreation, and in particular to convince NYC and
the states that better flows for fish will not compromise their water
supplies;
-conduct facilitate negotiations to achieve a new flow agreement.
All the states, and even New York City, have expressed support for this
approach informally. Colin Apse at TNC with help from us is now working
to get more formal approval as part of the DRBC process. This is the process
for which the Congressional delegation is seeking funds ($750,000 for each
of the next two fiscal years).
I know that many people are impatient, and would like to get better flows
sooner. I also know that many people think that we do not need to do any
additional science. Finally, I know there has been some disagreement over
the severity of the threat posed by the Lake Wallenpaupak relicensing. It
has been our judgement (at least that of TNC, TU staff, and the Foundation)
that the fundamental problems cannot be fixed unless the flow regime is
reevaluated. New York City and the DRBC states will not change the
underpinnings of the Supreme Court decree unless we can documented the
benefits of doing so with the best science we can and convince them that
changing the flow regime will not compromise their fundamental water supply
needs. Although this process will take longer, it is a unique opportunity
to come up with a long-term fix to the problem, and really free up
meaningful amounts of water for fisheries enhancement.
In order to accomplish this TU and its partners will have to put pressure
on NYC and the all of the basin states, now and through the rest of the
process. We will have to work together in order to make this happen.
The key step in the short term is to convince the states and NYC to
formally agree to this process. Colin at TNC has been working on a draft
resolution that we hope will be voted on by the DRBC, maybe as early as
its June 26 meeting. TU members in New York and PA need to write to their
representatives at the DRBC to urge them to support this resolution. We
will also need to get our New Jersey Council fully engaged.
I will write a sample letter that people can send to NYC and their state
by the end of next week, and send it to you all for further distribution. It
is particularly critical that we distribute this to folks in NYC so they
can write to Mayor Bloomberg and DEP Commissioner Chris Ward. I also
think it might be useful to have a large group of people show up at the DRBC
meeting (assuming the proposal is on the agenda), similar to the bus trip
the Delaware Coalition took a couple of years ago. A meeting with TU
folks and Chris Ward would also be appropriate.
I think a broader meeting of interested TU leaders from PA, New York, and
New Jersey would be a good idea so we can work some of these things out in
person. Early June would, I think, be a good time to do that.
Please send me your thoughts on the approach outlined in this
e-mail. Also, feel free to forward this e-mail to other interested TU
people to get their input.
There is one additional issue I would like to address. There has been
disagreement within TU and among others interested in the river about the
correct approach to a number of issues, including most notably the Lake
Wallenpaupack issue. We need to work as hard as we can to develop a
common approach to these issues. Most importantly, even if there are
disagreements about some specifics, we need to maintain a common focus on
the big picture, long-term issues. This is a critical juncture for the
Delaware, and if we do not all keep on a common plan we will miss an
important opportunity, and will be stuck with the current system.
As I indicated above, please let me know your thoughts on these issues. I
will be away from my office the first part of this week, and all of the
week of May 19. When I get back, I will touch base you everyone about
putting together a meeting.
Many thanks for your work on this difficult issue.
Leon
Leon F. Szeptycki
Eastern Conservation Director and General Counsel
Trout Unlimited
(434) 984-4919
