Co-authored by Wisconsin Environment Clean Water Associate Beth McDaniel and Wisconsin Wildlife Federation Executive Director George Meyer.
Last Saturday people all over the country observed National
Hunting and Fishing Day. No doubt that
with bow season underway, people in Wisconsin didn’t just reflect on a strong
state and national heritage of hunting and fishing; they were out living
it. But at the end of the day, it’s
worth noting that sportsmen and women do more than participate in a cultural
tradition. They help to fuel our economy
and provide leadership for the conservation of our natural resources.
This year Wisconsin’s own Congressman Ron Kind used National
Hunting and Fishing Day to launch the first-ever “Congressional Sportsmen’s
Week.” One goal for the week was to act
on conservation issues that affect sportsmen and women.
But Washington isn’t the only place in need of such a
week. In Wisconsin, too, progress is
needed on a host of policy issues that will affect what goes on in deer stands
and fishing boats. A National
Sportsmen’s Week provides a great context for discussing the things that affect
local hunting and fishing.
For instance, an important issue being decided right now is
how to regulate mercury pollution from coal-fired power plants. And it may not sound like it, but the issue
is at heart a fishing story. But unlike
the whopper about the big one that got away, this one’s about the big one that
actually makes it to the table.
People in Wisconsin love to fish, and they’re pretty darn
good at it. But Friday night fish fries
might not be so fun if our tasty battered walleye came with a warning
label: “CAUTION: Wisconsin fish contain
high levels of mercury. Eating more than
the recommended amount can have severe health consequences.” It may not have had the same effect, but this
is what DNR fish consumption advisories have been saying for years.
So, we could just start catching fewer fish. But that also means buying less tackle and
bait, taking the boat out less and not renting a cabin for a weekend fishing
trip, and before you know it, catching fewer fish has really started to
threaten the 2.3 billion dollar fishing industry in Wisconsin.
Or we could go to the source of the problem. Coal-fired power plants are the largest
statewide emitters of mercury pollution, spewing more than 2,700 pounds of
mercury into the air each year.
In 2006 Governor Doyle pledged his support for reducing
mercury pollution from power plants by 90%.
The question now is when. Should
we use the best available technology to make 90% reductions by 2012, or should
we give the utilities more time – say 2018?
Are we willing to allow six more years of mercury pollution to
jeopardize our health and our fishing tradition in Wisconsin?
These questions will be answered by the DNR Board, but the
repercussions of their decision will be felt at the end of fishing poles on the
shores of lakes and streams across the state. And because mercury pollution is
an environmental concern, but it’s also a sportsman’s concern, what better time
to send a message to state policymakers.
More unnecessary mercury pollution is unacceptable. We will catch our fish - and eat them, too.
