Good story on the ongoing Lake Davis and the northern pike issue, which may never go away.
How to Poison a California Lake: First, Reel in the Neighbors
By Michael B. Marois
Feb. 28 (Bloomberg) -- The last time California tried to poison a lake in the Sierra Nevada to exterminate the northern pike, opposition was so intense that a local mayor chained himself to a buoy and a police SWAT team restrained angry crowds.
State officials are remembering that lesson now that the pike is back and they once again want to poison Lake Davis to eliminate the fish, which threatens to wipe out native species. They say an eight-year public relations campaign has won over residents worried about toxic residue tainting their water.
``They've involved the community this time,'' said former Plumas County Supervisor Fran Roudebush, who led opposition during the 1997 fish kill. ``Whether you agree with what they are going to do or not, at least they've engaged us this time.''
The state has tried netting the northern pike, stunning them with electricity and killing them with underwater explosions. It has removed 60,000 pike from the lake since 2000, according to the state Department of Fish and Game's Web site.
Officials said it could cost California as much as $700 million a year if northern pike, a fast-breeding, toothy predator, escape into rivers below Lake Davis. Adult pike, which can weigh more than 40 pounds (18 kilograms) will eat everything from trout and salmon to frogs, crayfish and ducklings, according to the Web site.
Water shipments from the rivers to California's agricultural Central Valley would have to be curtailed to prevent the torpedo-shaped pike from spreading statewide, officials said. That would cost as much as $535 million a year in lost farm output and labor, on top of recreational fishing losses.
`Devastating Impact'
``Pike getting out into California could have a devastating impact on our economy,'' said Ed Pert, the project manager at Fish and Game in charge of treating the lake.
``The pike is a wonderful critter, but not in California.''
The department suspects that anglers brought live pike to California to build a population of the fish, which is a prized catch in the Midwest. Last year, game wardens apprehended two fishermen transporting live pike.
