Lake Whatcom + Lake Samish

[BassDood]

A lake I used to fish in CA went to something similar from what I heard. Boat will be in quarantine for 2 weeks and inspected before you are allowed to launch and fish. Not sure the costs. The worry is Zebra and Quaaga mussels as these have been introduced to other bodies...i.e. Great Lakes and who knows where. Can't say this relevant to our waters. Maybe it is...or maybe it's just a way to regulate and gouge the lakes users. Sounds like b.s. to me. What about the residents that have boats? Or the residents that fertilize their nice lawns...where does some of the fertilizer end up? Not that fertilizer invites an invasive specie. But still...

[pips4bucks]

Okay here's the short version:

Bellingham City Council wants to keep Aquatic Invasive Species out of Lake Whatcom. (Understandable, but totally unenforceable without drastic measures)

They come up with the idea to have mandatory boat inspections. (Great! But only on larger boats, not human powered canoes, kayaks, and rowboats at a cost of $50/year/per boat.)

County Council gets involved now and said inspections are required on another nearby popular lake (Lake Samish). (Oh, and to get the inspection you have to go to the other lake first where the inspections are being conducted.)

County Council drafts a plan to require this mandatory inspection requirement to all freshwater lakes in Whatcom County by 2015. (At a current cost of $50/year.) THIS INCLUDES BAKER LAKE!


Are you sensing a pattern here? How easy would it be for the State to start this program in the name of AIS prevention? Easy money. Imagine a handful of inspection locations throughout the state, every boat wanting to use a lake requiring a $50 annual inspection, a hefty fine for non-compliance (up to $1000), virtually no way to actually prevent AIS from spreading. Watch out people.

Here's some info to chew on....
http://www.bellinghamherald.com/2013/04 ... dopts.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://www.co.whatcom.wa.us/council/0ag ... 13-145.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Contact the Whatcom County Council here:
http://www.co.whatcom.wa.us/council/wha ... .jsp#phone" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[rseas]

Sure this Lake Samish thing has my feathers a bit ruffled. Being only minutes up I-5 from my house Lake Samish is my short trip go to lake. My concern is not the 50 bucks; I would gladly pay the 50 dollars for whatever reason to assure access to the lake. My concern is the inconvenience. Now I will have to drive all the way to Bellingham with boat in tow, get the boat inspected and then head back to Lake Samish. Assuming the inspection station is open I will lose a minimum of two hours, oddly the same length of most of my “hey, I have a few minutes…” short fishing trips. Also to be considered is the cost of fuel, wear and tear on your tow vehicle and trailer and the increased exposure to a possible traffic incident just to support the AIS inspection process. The inconvenience of this ruling will effectively eliminate Lake Samish from my list of lakes to fish and sadly end most of my last minute fishing trips.

That said the bigger picture suggests that by April 25, 2015 all watercraft launched into a Whatcom County Public Water Body will require certificate and an AIS inspection. There are many other lakes defined as “a Whatcom County Public Water Body” but this ruling also includes Baker Lake. There are 4 public access launches for to Baker Lake and additionally a person could launch a hand carry watercraft almost anywhere. Is Whatcom County going to staff up with enough certified AIS inspectors to be able to assure uninterrupted access at all 4 Baker Lake access points 24/7? Are all boaters (sockeye fisherman) going to wait in an inspection line at one launch or maybe an inspection point before the lake and go from there? Remember, the ruling suggested that they going to gate the access points that do not have AIS inspectors? I’ll let your imaginations run wild but I foresee a pending disaster afoot.

This ruling is a major struggle for me and I wonder how 4 council members could have passed this ruling without input from the WDFW and a multi-county sportsman forum? I understand the need to control invasive species but wouldn’t an enhanced public education and a self inspect program be a better approach? In one report they surveyed 900+ boats using Lake Whatcom without the discovery of any AIS. I wonder what the economic impact would be in the surrounding communities if those 900 boaters took their boating/fishing dollars elsewhere? Myself and not by choice my dollars will be spent in Lake Stevens, Granite Falls or other communities supporting our limited Westside kokanee lakes.

[Bodofish]

Sounds to me like elected officials need to understand their jobs are on the line for any upcoming elections. All letters written should be very clear and concise. If you move forward with this plan, I will not vote for you and I will make sure everyone I come in contact with understands your folly. After that it's the letters to the editor.

[Mike Carey]

I can't help but wonder (and cringe as I type this) just how much "science" vrs. "over-bearing green agenda" is mixed up in the recommendations (since it's not yet county law).

Put another way, here in the blue side of the state, there are a lot of people that would be perfectly happy to see less and less people use our public resources. They see people as a problem and don't care about the impact it would cause on the public. Their myopic views only let them focus on what they perceive the problem is, and then come up with radical solutions that cause huge impacts on the rest of us.

Sorry to throw the political card out there...

*Just read the county ordinance link from above - ouch ouch ouch.

Baker Lake will be a nightmare...

BTW, I moved this topic to Freshwater Fishing as it will impact more than just the bass guys.

[Bodofish]

I'm right with ya Mike! No better place to pull that off than in the greenest spot in WA, B'ham. The only way it could get worse is if Seattle got on the band wagon. You would have boat inspection stations with bicycle express lanes........

[Mike Carey]

Here is the group e-mailing address for the Whatcom County Council:

council@co.whatcom.wa.us

So you can at the least let them know your thoughts on this issue. Here is my e-mail to the Whatcom Council:

Dear Whatcom County Council,

It recently came to my attention that the County of Whatcom has reviewed the amendment of Chapter 2.27A as it pertains to invasive species.

I am writing to express my concerns as to the details of this revision, and the impact it appears to have on sports anglers fishing lakes in Whatcom County.

Per the details set forth in the ordinance revision, the inspection protocol set forth would require anglers who want to fish lake Samish to drive to lake Whatcom and have their trailers inspected prior to launch.

This is a 22 mile diversion for anglers, meaning a 1-2 hour delay in being able to fish, and burning the gasoline in order to make this round trip, costing extra money and increased green house gas emissions, which will impact on the air quality of Whatcom county. In addition, residents who live along the drive from Bloedel park at lake Whatcom to the launch at Samish will be subject to increased local traffic in the early hours of the day.

No where in the proposal does it indicate the time that the inspection station will be open. Most anglers want to be able to launch their boats at daybreak, meaning anglers will want to have their boats inspected by 4AM in order to drive back to lake Samish and launch at daybreak. Has the council considered this in their planning? If inspectors are not available early in the morning, it borders on discrimination against boaters who don't have property on the water as those boaters will not be inspected. Further, many private lake front owners have their own launches on their property. I found nothing in the revision that would regulate/inspect boats going in to these private launches.

In addition, the exclusion of canoes and kayaks is discriminatory and without merit as it pertains to the goal of reducing invasive species exposure. This should be addressed.

Because of the draconian nature of the revision, many anglers will decide to fish elsewhere, having a significant impact on the economy of Whatcom county. Has the Council addressed this impact in it's decision process?

I understand the amendment has passed, and that Council will review how it works in the coming year, with consideration of revision as needed. I would request that the above concerns be addressed in future versions to the code.

Thank you for your attention,

Mike Carey
Redmond, WA

[Steelheadin360]

Baker lake too!!! This really is putting a snarl in my fishing plans for the year.

[natetreat]

No! Not baker! Noooooooooo!

[Steelheadin360]

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[pips4bucks]

I live in Whatcom county. This all started from the Bellingham City Council and their propensity for the "green" agenda. It's supposed to be about protecting the city's drinking water, which comes mostly from Lake Whatcom and Samish. I can understand that, who doesn't want clean water? The problem is, there's no way to 100% guarantee these inspections will prevent AIS from spreading. That how you know it's just a big money grab targeting fishermen, boaters, and personal watercraft.

The County Council jumped on it due to pressure from the City Council, because Lake Samish is outiside Bellingham city limits, as is the southern half of Lake Whatcom. http://www.cob.org/documents/gis/maps/C ... p11x17.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; Their trail of thinking just led them down the road to include ALL Whatcom County lakes.

The Kool-aid drinkers in that city would LOVE to eliminate all boat traffic on the lakes. Especially the homeowners who own lake front property.

Oh, here's an angle for ya. If you're a water skier, boater, jet skier, etc. who doesn't fish, meaning you don't get the WDFW parking permit with your license, you have to purchase a Discover Pass to park at Lake Samish. So for those people it now costs them $85/year ($35 Discover Pass, $50 Inspection) just to access the lake.

My initial thought on the best way to kill this is to get it into court and hopefully a judge will see the lack of common sense in being able to enforce it without costing the taxpayers millions. Instead, replace the program with a better education program on the subject.

[pips4bucks]

Nice letter Mike!

Here's an idea for a replacement program:
Post signs at all the access points on the lakes addressing the hazards of AIS. Create locations for boaters to take their boats to have inspections done if they've taken their boat out of state or if a boater is from another state/country. Inspection costs should be reasonable, I think $10 is fair, but that's just my opinion. WDFW or another trained Law Enforcement agency would have the authority for surprise inspections of your boat while on the water, and if AIS is found, you would receive a hefty fine and possibly some of the clean up costs on the lake.

You want the general public to WANT to do the right thing and some education and a little bit of potential consequences is a pretty good motivator.

From some of the rumblings I've heard/read, it sounds like the WDFW wants nothing to do with the sort of program that's been started by the City of Bellingham, but that's just speculation.

[jd39]

Thanks for the email info Mike, I'll write them tonight. Was really looking forward to trying Samish and Baker lake out this year but won't bother now. I'm not subjecting myself to state inspection b/c I simply want to go fishing in my home state, I feel it's a violation of the 4th amendment (but I'm not a constitutional scholar or lawyer). Where's the probable cause to warrant these searches? Crossing a state border is wholly different scenario than this. Whatcom's lost my angler dollars until this is addressed and will make them aware of that. I support the fight against AIS, like most anglers, but screwing us over and treating us like we have criminal intent to spread AISs is not the way to go about it.

[Mike Carey]

well, according to the revision it's just Samish and Whatcom this year, and then all lakes in Whatcom county starting 2015. That gives us two years to fish Baker until this insanity spreads.

Can you image the lines at Whatcom to get your boat inspected for fishing Baker lake when it hits the busy weekends?

[Steelheadin360]

They better put an inspector at Baker, and they better be there at 3am...... I wonder if enough people boycotted this is they would drop it.

[AaronW]

Thanks for the email Mike, I sent them a message.

I went out to Lake Samish today to fish a few hours and there were more boats on the lake than I've seen this year (probably the sun). No one seems to know that you'll need to get your boat inspected starting Saturday and there are no signs indicating any changes.

[Mike Carey]

Thanks for the email Mike, I sent them a message.

I went out to Lake Samish today to fish a few hours and there were more boats on the lake than I've seen this year (probably the sun). No one seems to know that you'll need to get your boat inspected starting Saturday and there are no signs indicating any changes.

well, that's going to be an unpleasant surprise come Saturday morning.

[tnj8222]

Its gotten so crazy just to fish, i sold my boat and just bank fish the few private lakes i have access to. All i pay is a liscense and fishinf line. was thinking about moving back to north carolina. Its nice to stepoutside to nothing but fresh air and lots of fishing and hunting.

[racfish]

If they did this 40 years ago when the millfoil problem was just getting going strong I wouldn't have so many negative concerns about this. Lake Wa shorelines are very disgusting. same with Lake Sawyer. There was a few year period that you couldn't even navigate a boat in Sawyer. In Andrews Bay on Lk wa where I live the millfoil is very much out of control. In away I don't blame Whatcom county for doing this.I'm thinking this is where this is all going. Anyone who fishes bass in Lk Wa I'm sure deals with the milfoil. During Seafair there are spoecial paddle wheelers that collect the millfoil near Stan Sayers pits. It is spread mainly by boaters unfortunately. I personally hose my boat down after every use.

[Amx]

I've never seen it where you couldn't navigate a boat in Sawyer, and I've been fishing it since '73 or '74. Mil-foil isn't the problem, it's the slimy green balls of slime that everyone hates. The mil foil and other grasses haven't been growing that well the past couple/few years do to some pollution, which is also why the green slime has gotten worse. Years ago there was no green slime. There are also a couple places on the lake where you can smell people's septic drainfield.