I attended the meeting and there was a good showing. The board has not voted on this issue yet and will hold another meeting that all can attend on Wed Feb 13th 2008 @ 4:30 pm. They are currently trying to determine the location due to an expected large turn out and I will let you know where when I finnd out. The meeting went fairly well and there is hope, but we can help. Boats need to be clean and dry including livewells and bait tanks. Just take the time to wipe down and dry out. What I feel would be the best solution is for there to be a computerized database on line. This would track boats by CF #'s and allow lake staff to tell where we have been and if there has been enough down time between an infected lake and one that has not been infected. It would take all California lakes participation and a nation wide data base would be even better. We need to take the honesty factor out of the equation or eventually other lakes will get infected. It only takes one person to fish an infected lake and then lie about where they have been to get on an uninfected lake. The necessary time has to elapse for the mussle to die or else we risk infecting a new body of water. Wiping and drying of boats is great but it will not purge the water out of lower units, bait tanks, livewells, bilge or any of its plumbing. The male and female mussle do not have to make contact to mate they only release the eggs and sperm. This can be transported via boats in the larval stage which is not visible to other lakes and then spread the mussle. Bleach and hot water over 104 degrees can kill the mussle and a washing station is a great idea if we run that hot water through our plumbing too. We need to do more than it takes to temporarily keep our boats on the water before the quagga mussle is spread to another lake and it causes a closure. We need to lobby to have the DFG finish a program that it has started like the one I mentioned to track boats. They are already looking in to this but this is a big agency and these things can take quite a while. Trust me I work for the state myself and the logistics will be very challenging. We need to let the DFG know that we feel this is important to protect our lakes and that if necessary we are willing to pay a little more to off set the funds for putting the data base together. Please be honest about where you have fished, and when, it only takes one lie to spread the mussle and infect a new lake. Lets be good ambassadors of our lakes and help educate the public as well. Write the DFG and let them know how important you feel this computerized tracking system is and how much we appreciate what they do. Those Casitas bass would not be the size they are without the DFG feeding them rainbow trout. That is a major reason why the HBC Big Stick tournament will be held there on the 25th. Casitas is a trophy lake and you can thank the DFG for it. let the DFG know how important our lakes are to us. Water is one of the most precious elements on the planet other than air and if we want to be able to play on it and drink that same water we need to recognize that and act accordingly, that means no urinating in there either. Please keep it clean and dry and write the DFG and let them know how you feel about this issue and that you support and thank them and all their hard work. I know all fishermen are not enviromentalists but you can care for the enviroment and catch fish too. We need to be forward thinking, not the IGM attitude. It is all about delayed gratification. Do you want to fish there in the near future or for the rest of your life and know your son, daughter and grandkids will be able to enjoy your passion for fishing just like you do? and if you want to fish it and dont have a boat just call (805) 407-3331 and I will show you some Oak View hospitality.
Peace Richard Lund
Oak View, Ca