Articles

Philadelphia City Council Votes Unanimously to Sue DRBC, Forbid Fracking

by Ben Kryzinski - Monday, Oct 17th, 2011

Delaware River Basin Commission

Late last week, the city council of Philadelphia's 17 member panel voted unanimously to pass a resolution to sue the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC). The purpose of the lawsuit is to insist no drilling of the Marcellus Shale take place in the Delaware River Basin, which provides Philadelphia residents with 100% of their drinking water, until a full environmental impact assessment is completed. The DRBC has stated recently that it plans to vote on November 21, ending the current moratorium on drilling and opening the Delaware River basin to fracking.

The lawsuit joins others filed by the Attorney General of the New York and the Delaware Riverkeeper Network, amongst others. The lawsuits demands both a Delaware River Basin-specific cumulative impacts study and the EPA national study of the risks high-volume hydraulic fracturing poses to drinking water, according to Protecting Our Waters.

NFS Issues Call to Action to Stop Klickitat Hatchery Programs

by Ben Kryzinski - Thursday, Oct 13th, 2011

Autumn Fishing for Steelhead on the Klickitat River

The Native Fish Society (NFS), an advocacy group which strives to promote policies and practices that protect historically abundant native fish populations, is urging individuals to take action to have their voice heard regarding the expansion of hatchery operations on Washington's Klickitat River. According to the NFS, a proposal drafted this summer by the Bonneville Power Authority and the Yakama Klickitat Fish Project, which oversee hatchery operations on the Klickitat, will put already endangered native fish populations at increased risk.

The issue, claims NFS, stems from decades of hatchery released, non-native fall Chinook, Coho and skamania Steelhead. Fall Chinook, of which 4 million are released each year, are a documented threat to the Klickitat's native spring Chinook. The Kilckitat's spring Chinook run, which once numbered in the thousands, has been reduced to around 300, leaving the spring Chinook population on the brink of eradication. Non-native, hatchery Coho and skamania Steelhead both threaten the Klickitat's native summer and winter Steelhead, which have been listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act since 1999.

Leading Environmental Group Calls Pennsylvania Drilling Plan 'Full of Loopholes'

by Ben Kryzinski - Saturday, Oct 8th, 2011

PennFuture Logo

In a recent press release, PennFuture -- named Pennsylvania's leading environmental advocacy group by the Philadelphia Inquirer -- has criticized PA Governor Tom Corbett's proposed Marcellus Shale drilling plan. PennFuture president Jan Jarret says the plan is drafted in the best interest of the drilling industry, rather than in the best interests of Pennsylvania citizens.

According to Jarret, the proposed plan is wrought with shortcomings, stating "this plan is neither fair nor comprehensive, and is full of giveaways to the drillers. It appears that the governor’s thinking in devising his plan was, ‘What’s the least I can ask of the drilling industry?' The proposed impact fee is too small, full of loopholes, unwieldy to administer, and leaves too much money on the table,” continued Jarrett. “It also fails to address the serious needs our citizens and communities face in these hard economic times, and allows the drillers to pay very little in return for the massive profits they make from Pennsylvania’s resources."

This is Fly Oct/Nov 2011 Issue Released

by Ben Kryzinski - Thursday, Oct 6th, 2011

This is Fly Oct / Nov 2011

If you haven't already stumbled on the news yourself, the latest issue of one of our favorite fly fishing publications, This is Fly has been released. As is always the case with This is Fly, this latest issue is chock full of stunning photography, unique artwork, great stories, and more.

The current issue includes two great features on Colorado, a look at the Vindel River in Sweden and a killer photographic feature on the Upper Langa River in Iceland by photographer Matt Harris. Also included is an interesting interview with the filmmakers behind the new fly fishing film, 'A Backyard in Nowhere', a low-budget, high production film about northern pike fishing in the rough, bleak country of Southwestern Alaska.

Review: Airflo Ridge Bonefish / Redfish Line

by Chad Shmukler - Thursday, Oct 6th, 2011

Airflo Ridge Bonefish / Redfish Line

I'm not an expert caster. I don't give casting instruction to anyone but beginners. I'm not one of those casters that can chuck an 80 foot cast in 30 mile-per-hour winds. It has to be a good day, with the stars in perfect alignment, for my double-haul to really be a smooth operation. That said, I'm a competent caster. I don't have trouble turning over big stuff, distance casts aren't usually a problem and I've got pretty good accuracy. In my humble opinion, I'm a somewhat above-average caster that possesses the knowledge of what I should be doing, but doesn't always do it. By my best guess, that means I'm like the majority of avid fly fisherman out there. So, if you want an expert review on a fly line, on exactly why the tapers and core construction make one line different from the next, you probably don't want my review. If you want some first-hand experience on how a line performs in the field for a typical fly fisherman, you might want to keep reading.

I was eager to put Airflo's Ridge Redfish line to the trip on my recent trip to South Carolina. I had been out for redfish in May, with a line not suited to the conditions, and it had presented a number of challenges both in turning over larger redfish flies and, more importantly, when shooting line. I had also recently fished one of Airflo's ridge trout lines, and was impressed by how effortlessly the line glided through the guides on my 5 weight, so I was eager to see what the 8 weight tropical version could do.