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ROSEBURG — New alternatives are being developed for the Diamond Lake Fish Restoration Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The Draft EIS is scheduled to be released for public review and comment in spring 2000.
Developing a plan to manage the Diamond Lake fishery while protecting the downstream environment is a challenging process for biologists from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the U.S. Forest Service.
According to Jerry Novotny, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Federal Aid Grants Manager, part of the reason for the delay is the success of the public scoping process, as required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). "We got a lot of good ideas from the public both on restoring the fishery and addressing potential effects to the environment. You might call it a process of discovery. As a result of that input, several new options and issues needed to be evaluated."
Novotny also said NEPA is designed to ensure minimal effects to the resource, and that it takes time to thoroughly investigate all options to meet federal NEPA requirements. "Biologists are finding that restoring a fishery while not affecting other resources, including the North Umpqua River system, is a complex task. The team of biologists working on these issues remains committed to ‘doing it right the first time’ so that whatever alternative is selected, the decision can be implemented."
After the Draft EIS is issued, the public will have 45 days to comment. A Final EIS will be released and a decision made on restoring the Diamond Lake fishery by mid-summer 2000. To add your name to the Draft EIS mailing list, contact any of the agency partners: ODFW, Roseburg, 541/440-03353; USFWS, Portland, 503/231-6128; or USFS, Umpqua National Forest, Roseburg, 541/672-6601. Information is also posted on the ODFW website at http://www.dfw.state.or.us. The scoping report can be found on the USFWS website at http://www.r1.fws.gov.
In other Diamond Lake news, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife biologists recently completed another sample population count of fish in Diamond Lake. "The numbers are still telling us the same thing," said Dave Loomis, District Fish Biologist. "Tui chub still outnumber trout 10 to 1. We’ll do another population count in October but expect to net less fish since they tend to move to deeper water as the temperature drops."
ODFW stocked Diamond Lake just prior to Labor Day with 5,000 two-pound rainbow trout from Desert Springs Trout Farm. The trout were available as a result of a recently passed bill by the 1999 Oregon legislature that allows ODFW and private Oregon hatcheries to provide trout for anglers.
Loomis said a couple of those fish were caught last week while his crew was setting trap nets. "Typically, on clear, beautiful September days like we’ve had, we’d see 30 to 100 boats on the lake. We counted five boats, and talked to anglers in three of them, two of which caught nice sized Desert Springs trout."
Uploaded: 10/7/1999
Uploaded: 10/7/1999