THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, August 9, 1994 TAG: 9408090412
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: ROANOKE LENGTH: Medium: 61 lines
Never mind the crowds. Never mind that it's a rite of spring, a treasured tradition. Opening day of the trout season isn't as popular as it seems in Virginia.
The Department of Game and Inland Fisheries survey indicates that 73 percent of the state's licensed trout fishermen want to do away with it and go to a year-round season.
The findings will be presented to the department's board members Aug. 25 at a public hearing in Richmond when new fishing regulations are considered.
If the board approves the idea, a year-round season could be in place by 1996 for the approximately 100,000 anglers who buy annual trout-fishing permits, agency officials said. The 1995 opening day isn't expected to be tampered with since some people have scheduled vacations around the March 18 event, and trout hatcheries likely need time to gear up for a year-round fishery.
Questionnaires were randomly mailed to 1,600 license holders, and about 73 percent of them completed and returned them.
``The survey was of people out there buying trout licenses, not just people along a stream,'' said Gary Martel, chief of the department's fish division. ``As a result, I think we will be paying significant attention to the survey.''
In a 1986 survey, 57.6 percent of those responding favored a year-round season. At that time, fisheries officials said they didn't think support was strong enough to eliminate opening day. Instead, they opened the season earlier in the spring, and stocked more fish in streams and lakes.
Martel, who spent much of his career in the department's trout program before becoming chief of the fisheries division in January, sees advantages to a year-round season.
``By having a year-round season, we can optimize our trout program,'' he said. ``We can schedule egg-taking to cover a wider period and have fish in different growth cycles. We can use the different species - brooks, browns and rainbows - more efficiently. The whole hatchery system can be run in a more efficient manner.''
But many anglers see opening day as a celebration of spring, a time when the streams are full of fish and all anglers are on equal footing. Critics of a year-round season often express concern that more people would follow trucks that are used to stock fish.
``Truck following is predominately a problem in perception,'' Martel said. ``Even 20 cars make a tremendous procession. If there are two fishermen per car, which is about the average we use, and all those people catch a limit of fish, they have a very insignificant impact on the stocking.''
In the survey, 8 percent of the fishermen said they preferred to fish on the day of the stocking, and 66 percent said they did not consider the stocking date important.
KEYWORDS: SPORT FISHING
VIRGINIA STATE DEPARTMENT OF GAME AND INLAND FISHERIES
by CNB