Sunday, June 7, 2020

Urgent-Need Comments on Madison River Plan

Urgent-Need Comments on Madison River Plan
I’m not sure if you have heard, but FWP has a proposal out in draft form to regulate commercial use on the Madison River. The plan does the following:
A cap on commercial trips on the upper Madison River, similar to what is already in place on the Big Hole and Beaverhead Rivers.
Two days of rest-rotation on the upper Madison River. Similar to the Big Hole and Beaverhead Rivers, areas where commercial use is not allowed on a particular day. On the Madison River FWP is proposing Saturday Varney Bridge to Ennis and on Sundays Lyons Bridge to Palisades boat launch.
Seasonal walk/wade sections, similar to the current regulations. Quake Lake to Lyons Bridge and Ennis to Ennis Lake, June 15-September 30. This element is intended to give wading anglers some relief for the relentless floating traffic the Madison River experiences. Thankfully, FWP crafted this element in a way that addresses our stream access concerns. Outside of this time period, it appears these sections would be open to fishing from boats.
You can download the full EA at this link: http://fwp.mt.gov/…/inside…/commission/meetings/agenda.html… preferred alternative begins on page 24.

Not surprisingly, The Montana Outfitter and Guides Association (MOGA) and the Fishing Outfitters Association of Montana (FOAM) are trying to deny you the opportunity to comment on this very important public access issue. They know that if this document ever sees the light of day, the public will once again show overwhelming support and insist on implementation.
To counteract MOGA and FOAM we need people to write email to the commission members urging them to put the EA out for public comment. Their meeting is Thursday, June 12, so time is of the essence. Would you be willing to send an email in support to the following email addresses? These are the commissioners and senior staff at FWP. fwcomm@mt.gov; Eileen Ryce <eryce@mt.gov>; Martha Williams <martha.williams@mt.gov>; scolton@yellowstonelaw.com; Fwpdistrict2 <fwpdistrict2@gmail.com>; lwbrower@yahoo.com; rstuker@itsTriangle.com; cartim8@gmail.com
If you are willing to do this, please share this email anyone else that you think would help. We are on the cusp of landmark achievement on the Madison River, this is literally a once in a lifetime opportunity. If we fail in 2020, we may never get this chance again.

Please help!

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