Quote Originally Posted by Lowerider View Post
Let me rephrase...

The bigger question is why hasn't the full power of our state/federal gov't not been deployed to figure out why the carp went belly up? Seems we were given a gift. The carp problem in KY lake is a mere drop in the bucket to the overall problem and I'm not blaming our state for not coming up with a solution. Obviously there's a disease out there that affects these fish...meanwhile we're talking about carp tournaments. We put man on the moon; we can figure why a fish got a disease.
BUT, if you've lived here long enough or got involved in any political process to help protect our states resources you'd know why faith is lost with KDFWR. I have absolutely no problem going on record saying they have a greater interest in creating a new sustainable industry than protecting our native wildlife. And that should concern all of you. Politics at its best... Time will tell if the new head honcho really changes anything.
IMHO ... the state/fed govt have bigger fish to fry, than worry about the asian carp infestation. Even if the carp problem gets cleaned up in KY, you'd have to totally eradicate every single one of them in every single waterway & pond ... or they'd be back in a matter of years. We also don't know if the deaths of those carp below the dams even WAS a "disease" ... could have just been a fluke "condition".

I doubt very seriously if the KDFWR has a greater interest in a sustainable industry with these carp. If they invade & ruin some of our best waterways, and sport fishing collapses due to their presence ... do you really think commercial fishing licenses are going to put the same amount of money in the coffers as all the in & out of state fishing licenses sold to people that fish those waters ??

We may have to be content with having their numbers "controlled" ... since there may not be a chemical or biological solution that rids us of JUST THEM. Remember, we imported them to keep aquaculture & wastewater ponds clean ... then floods put them into the main arteries of our waterways. We have to be careful with whatever methods get used to rid us of them, or even deplete their numbers to a point where they're not detrimental to the sportfish population.

... pappy