DMR: Iowa's poor water quality clouds fishing, tourism

[Pirate Smile]

Iowa's poor water quality clouds fishing, tourism
A state commission is trying to bring Iowa into compliance with the federal Clean Water Act.

PERRY BEEMAN
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
March 5, 2006

Iowa's poor water quality hampers the state's multi-million-dollar fishing industry.

The silt, farm chemicals, manure and treated sewage in Iowa's rivers and streams hold back fish populations by making it difficult for some game fish to reproduce.

So the state spends $2.5 million stocking more than 140 million game fish in Iowa streams every year to improve fishing.

But it may be losing even more money than that in tourism revenue. More than half a million anglers spent $336 million in Iowa in 2001 — a figure that is significantly lower than some of its neighboring states. Fishing-license sales are down in Iowa. On the other hand, the popularity of the state's clear-running northeastern trout streams show the potential for a bigger draw. So does the 10-fold increase in attendance at Lake Ahquabi near Indianola, after that lake was restored.

http://www.dmregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060305/NEWS03/603050341/1001

[IA_Seth]

1. IowaOutdoors.Org

For those of you interested..there is an Iowa Outdoors site that is debating the subject right now. Beware, many of the moderators and/or long-time members don't take to kindly to city-folk and democrats...lol.

http://www.iowaoutdoors.org/forum/viewtopic.php?forum=1&showtopic=200159&mode=&onlytopic=&show=20&page=1

But its a good site for the most part, and there are quite a few good people on board.