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Environmentalists filed suit today against the California Department of Fish and Game, alleging its review of a statewide trout-stocking program is inadequate.
The Center for Biological Diversity filed the suit in Sacramento Superior Court. A previous lawsuit by the same group required Fish and Game to perform the environmental impact review. That earlier case also prompted a judge's order last year that banned trout stocking in dozens of lakes statewide until the review was completed.
The department raises millions of trout every year in hatcheries, and stocks those fish in lakes for recreational fishing programs. But a growing body of science indicates the trout are partly to blame for a steep decline in frogs and other amphibians, and a weakening of native trout populations.
The Center for Biological Diversity claims the state study, released in January after years of delay, is inadequate because it does not analyze the option of a reduced or absent stocking program. Instead, it assumes existing stocking practices are the "baseline" condition. It also proposes no immediate measures to reduce harm to native species, but defers those actions.
"Their purpose was to continue the existing program, rather than define it as providing angling opportunities while protecting native fisheries," said Noah Greenwald, program director for the environmental group.
A Fish and Game spokesman could not immediately be reached for comment.
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The Center for Biological Diversity filed the suit in Sacramento Superior Court. A previous lawsuit by the same group required Fish and Game to perform the environmental impact review. That earlier case also prompted a judge's order last year that banned trout stocking in dozens of lakes statewide until the review was completed.
The department raises millions of trout every year in hatcheries, and stocks those fish in lakes for recreational fishing programs. But a growing body of science indicates the trout are partly to blame for a steep decline in frogs and other amphibians, and a weakening of native trout populations.
The Center for Biological Diversity claims the state study, released in January after years of delay, is inadequate because it does not analyze the option of a reduced or absent stocking program. Instead, it assumes existing stocking practices are the "baseline" condition. It also proposes no immediate measures to reduce harm to native species, but defers those actions.
"Their purpose was to continue the existing program, rather than define it as providing angling opportunities while protecting native fisheries," said Noah Greenwald, program director for the environmental group.
A Fish and Game spokesman could not immediately be reached for comment.
More...
