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VHS ISSUE

2K views 13 replies 8 participants last post by  ABA 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
Well I finally heard back from one of the emails I sent out asking two questions 1) can our contestants fish in canadian and ohio waters and 2) bring fish back to Michigan waters for wiegh-in.
Here is the response I got:

Hi John-

Director Humphries asked me to respond to your note. As you know, the
US Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
(APHIS) issued an emergency federal order last October prohibiting the
movement of live fish of certain species between the 8 Great Lake States
and Canada, or out of the Great Lakes region to any other State, in an
attempt to prevent the spread of VHS. That order was subsequently
amended in November 2006, and I have attached a copy of the amended
order along with the list of species affected.

Based on that order, the specific responses to your questions are:
1) "will we be able to allow our contestants to fish in Ohio and
Canadian waters" - answer: yes, the current
order does not prohibit fishing in any way, and
2) "will we be able to ... bring fish back to our weigh in" - answer:
no, except under either of two conditions:
a) the fish are dead, or
the particular species being transported is not on the
prohibited list of species identified in the
amended emergency federal order from APHIS.

We understand that the use of political boundaries to prohibit fish
movement in the Great Lakes makes little sense, particularly in the area
where you are holding your tournaments. APHIS is now working on an
interim rule to replace the emergency order, and the Department of
Natural Resources has sent comments regarding the issues to be resolved
in the interim rule, including the use of a watershed approach to
identifying prohibitions on fish movement, and to exempt tournaments
being conducted on a waterbody regardless of poiltical jurisdiction. We
are hopeful that APHIS will carefully consider our comments and include
them in the interim rule.

Until the interim rule is released, the emergency order stands as
written and precludes the movement of live fish (as depicted in the
attached list) between the States and Canada, unles the fish have been
certified disease (VHS) free. Obviously that can not happen during a
tournament.

We will keep everyone posted as the interim rule moves towards public
comment. If you have further questions, please contact me at your
convenience.

Sincerely,

Kelley D. Smith, Ph.D.
Chief - Fisheries Division
MI Department of Natural Resources
PO Box 30446
Lansing, Michigan 48909

Office 517-373-3375
Fax: 517-373-0381
e-mail: smithk@michigan.gov

Like it or not thats the rule for now!!!
 
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#4 ·
How about a reply back with: "How will the public be informed of this? Unless they receive your e-mail and/or do not have access to internet information?". Our state does have a few small club events in which the anglers may not know anything about this issue. Thanks.
 
#5 ·
Tom here is all the emails you need to be sending questions to

SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE - MIKE JOHANNS
Mike.Johanns@usda.gov

Head of (aphis) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
Ron.DeHaven@usda.gov

NDNR Director, Rebecca A. Humphries
humphrir@michigan.gov

Federation Nation State Conservation Director Mike Nolan
MNOLAN@MICHIGANBASS.NET

The Michigan Bass Federation Conservation Director "Big" Dan Kimmel
DanKimmel@michigantbf.com

B.A.S.S. Conservation Director Chris Horton
Christopher.M.Horton@bassmaster.com

Only National TBF contact I could find David Simmons
dsimmons@flwoutdoors.com
 
#7 · (Edited by Moderator)
From the mouth of the Michgian DNR.... Check this article out: http://www.thenewsherald.com/stories/03280...070328010.shtml

"Gary Towns, the Michigan DNR Fisheries supervisor for the Lake Erie Management Unit said that because this is a federal rule people should contact congressional leaders with questions.

"(The federal government) needs to act on this issue in order to allow transport of live fish on common waters across borders," Towns said.

This is a ridiculous rule, as the fish don't know if they are in Canada or the US."
 
#12 ·
Boy I must be living a charmed life; two responses from goverment agencies on the same day...maybe I should play the lottery!


Well it says about the samething, well here it is:

Dear Mr. Pearce-

Thank you for your recent e-mail regarding viral hemorrhagic septicemia
(VHS) to Secretary Johanns and Ron DeHaven, Administrator of the Animal and
Plant Health Inspection Services (APHIS). Since Veterinary Services (VS)
is the unit in APHIS with direct responsibility for this issue, I have been
asked to respond on their behalf.

In your e-mail, you expressed concerns and asked for clarification on how
current measures to address VHS will affect upcoming fishing tournaments in
Michigan. Our Agency is taking every possible step to address the needs of
the sport fishing industry. Since issuing the amended Federal Order in
November 2006, Agency officials have held public meetings to hear views on
the current VHS measures and to receive suggestions on components of the
Federal regulatory program for the disease. A number of groups
representing Michigan's recreational anglers and the State's sport fishing
industry expressed concerns, and VS staff have spoken at length with
representatives of some groups regarding competitions in the Great Lakes
region. We appreciate your additional input on this critical issue.

Our Agency is now working to develop an interim rule that would replace the
current Federal Order. In this rule, we intend to address, among other
things, issues of particular concern to the tournament fishing industry.
We are giving the comments and suggestions we have received-including the
request made by the Michigan Department of National Resources-all due
consideration in our decisionmaking. We assure you that our Agency
recognizes the importance of this effort and continues proceeding as
quickly as possible to publish the rule. We are also exploring other
available options for alleviating the Federal Order's impact on the sport
fishing industry. We remain mindful of the urgency of this situation to
recreational anglers, and our officials are working diligently to identify
a workable solution in time for the 2007 tournament fishing season.

Sincerely,

John R. Clifford
Deputy Administrator, Veterinary Services
USDA APHIS
 
#14 ·
QUOTEWe are also exploring other available options for alleviating the Federal Order's impact on the sport fishing industry. We remain mindful of the urgency of this situation to recreational anglers, and our officials are working diligently to identify a workable solution in time for the 2007 tournament fishing season.

These are similar comments to what I have gotten as well...

Here is my take - if they planned to lift the sanctions so tournaments would not be affected then they would have done so by now. However the threat and concerns remain and they are trying to find a way for them to regulate the transport of fish without effecting tournaments... That just cant be done with out lifting the no transport rule entirely... which I think they will not do.
 
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