Press-Republican

EDITORIAL: There may be more to a fishing tournament than economic gain

The City of Plattsburgh now has hard numbers that show impressive financial gains from the fishing tournaments it hosts. Now it needs to find out whether the harm done to the fish themselves is offsetting.

Whenever an area as unused to a broad, bright spotlight as Plattsburgh suddenly earns this kind of attention, it is flattering and promising. We bill ourselves as a tourist center, and anything that attracts tourists has a corresponding attraction for all of us.

Ten fishing tournaments a year — seven for next year — bring us that kind of attention, we believe. Some limited television coverage, on top of the uncontested claim to word of mouth among fishing aficionados, gives Plattsburgh its time in the sun, without question. A newly completed economic-impact study done for the Plattsburgh-North Country Chamber of Commerce attests to $4.7 million in direct spending and $8.4 million in overall spending in the area during the tournaments.

Last year, however, residents of Cumberland Head proclaimed that scores of dead fish had washed up on shore after one of the tournaments — a growing trend, they insist. If the fish population is being seriously compromised, no amount of revenue for the area from the tournaments offsets it.

We asked no less of an expert on fishing, fishing tournaments and the great outdoors than our own award-winning outdoors columnist, Dennis Aprill, for his thoughts on the tournaments, and he said nothing short of a full-scale local study on the effects on the fishery would suffice. He cited one of his previous columns:

"Is our bass fishery being hurt by all the tournaments? Anecdotal evidence, especially from those with homes on the lake, differs from data brought out by FLW and Bassmaster, major tournament sponsors. The only way to really get the answers, I believe, is through a scientific study that focuses on catch-and-release techniques used, survival of released bass and the effects of a large number of big bass released in close proximity in one area, say Cumberland Head. We have two large universities — the University of Vermont and Plattsburgh State — nearby. I would think this would be a prime topic for grant money to do a study."

He also raised several other questions to be considered:

  Should the permitting by Department of Environmental Conservation or the city for dock space be stricter?

  What about invasive species? Are the boats equipped with safeguards so the threats aren't imported?

  And what are the chances of such a study chasing the tournaments off to a competing venue — Burlington, say — and can we afford to lose the benefits we know we do get?

If we allow the long-term value of the fish in Lake Champlain to be squandered for short-term economic gain, we will lose in the end. In short, decisions need to be based on fact, not supposition. The value of the fishery needs to be factored in with the value of the revenue.