So what’s in it for me?
“Do I really want my child to ask me, “Who sold my tomorrow?” Nathaniel Reed, Fish and Fly Magazine interview with Tom Pero
I just finished reading an interview with Nathaniel Reed written by Tom Pero, Fish and Fly magazine. Nathaniel Reed for president! He talks about the government and how things really get accomplished within the beltway. He also discusses the differences he made while in office as Assistant Secretary for the Fish, Wildlife, and Parks, Department of Interior. The man got things done. He eliminated the use 1080 (Coyote poison), DDT, and illegal Eagle killing. But what is really interesting are his ideas about the current state and future of our natural environment.
It concerns me that many of us realize the magnitude of our environmental problems, including the lack of stewardship from the top, but do little about it. Reed talks about this:
“We are in a sort of national Enron era right now. I think it’s going to take a President of the United States who says: “American people, wake up- we have energy confrontation coming. We have a global weather confrontation coming that we have to prepare ourselves for. We are going to have to change a lot of ways we think and do.”
Nathaniel Reed, Fish and Fly Magazine interview with Tom Pero
We all need to change and it’s going to take more than just separating our trash.
We can’t solve any of the other problems if we don’t have a healthy environment to live in. Imagine sitting in your house writing out your monthly bills with the roof caving in on top of you. If we’re lucky we won’t loose too much before these perceptions are commonly accepted and we unify in resolution. To spend time outdoors is precious. To live harmoniously is transcending.
So what’s in it for you the angler? Fly fishing is a luxury that I don’t want to loose. Would you give up fly fishing a certain body of water to save a rare species? What if it were to save your children? I believe everything is interconnected. There is a critical relationship we have with everything and visa-versa. Sadly we are cutting our own throats every time we loose a species or habitat.
Once in a while I find myself in a conversation about scaling back the stocking program here in Pennsylvania and letting the wild fisheries flourish. I don’t have enough knowledge to make sound judgments about this idea. But my gut tells me that it is good. I’m told, it has worked in other states. And in fact it’s proven a better model for all interested parties. I find it attractive because it’s simply the natural way. But it also seems to have great potential for economic gain. If Pennsylvania had more, larger, stronger, wild trout, well it seems that folks like you and me would want to visit.
Wild trout act as the proverbial canary in the coal mine. We know that something has changed when we loose cold water fisheries. So does it make sense to improve our cold water resources and have healthy trout populations as a by-product? Even if you aren’t an angler that cold water has a serious positive effect on your well being.
I hope we all can work together and make positive improvements to these and other issues. Please take a moment to read the article. There are many interesting details, but Mr. Reed’s statements will remain as a constant reminder that something must be done.
“Do I really want my child to ask me, “Who sold my tomorrow?” Nathaniel Reed, Fish and Fly Magazine interview with Tom Pero
Here are some ideas on how to start to helping:
ACA
Alan Gregory’s Conservation News
American Rivers
An Inconvenient Truth
Conservation Alliance
Eastern Brook Trout Joint Venture
I Love the Mountains .org
Nature Conservancy
One Percent for the Planet
Protect Your Waters
Recycled Fish
Sierra Club
U.S. Fish and Wildife Service
Wild Trout Trust
Wilderness Society
World Wildlife Organization
Federation of Flyfishers
Trout Unlimited
Living Green