Fishing rules get public hearing Bass elimination in ponds proposed

Fishing regulations on 20 lakes and ponds in Hancock and Washington counties are up for review Tuesday before Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife officials, because of a petition circulated by a Mount Desert Island man.

Dennis Smith of Otter Creek collected at least 150 signatures on a petition, enough to warrant DIF&W to schedule a public hearing on his proposed rules – some of which are unprecedented – for 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Ellsworth City Hall.

DIF&W Deputy Commissioner Fred Hurley said department fisheries biologists would not participate.

Hurley said that in the past the department’s proposals and those submitted by citizens were heard together. The new format is intended to give the public a chance to speak about its proposals without biologists reacting and the hearing turning into a debate, he said.

“I think it will work better,” Hurley said. “It will give us a chance to know what is behind the petition, rather than second-guessing. It will give us time to develop recommendations in a more thoughtful way.”

Anyone can submit a fishing rule change idea to DIF&W. If a person submits a petition of at least 150 names, the DIF&W commissioner must consider holding a public hearing.

The DIF&W commissioner has the power to adopt rules once proposed regulations have had a hearing and been approved by the DIF&W Advisory Council, a 10-member group appointed by the governor.

Every two years the state allows the public to submit proposals to change fishing regulations, and Dennis Smith has been submitting proposals for 20 years, said Ron Brokaw, DIF&W fisheries biologist for Hancock and Washington counties.

The most radical measure Smith proposed this time is aimed at eliminating bass in Beech Hill, Molasses, and Round ponds by requiring that all bass caught be kept. Smith said bass were introduced in those ponds illegally and threaten native species.

“You must kill those bass. Never practice catch-and-release. It would be a first in Maine. But it occurs in Yellowstone Lake [in Wyoming],” Smith said.

A former Advisory Council member and an active member of the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine, Smith has a long history of questioning DIF&W’s fisheries policies.

Smith has promoted some of the proposals before. One would increase the length of brook trout that people can catch in lakes and ponds in both counties from 6 to 8 inches. He said this is the most important measure on his list.

“We’re killing the majority of trout between 6 and 8 inches,” he said.

There are other proposals for four of the most popular Down East ponds and lakes: Beech Hill Pond, Long Pond, Branch Lake and Phillips Lake.

Smith suggests for Branch Lake another rule that Brokaw called ”groundbreaking.” Catch-and-release would be practiced with all land-locked salmon.

And on Long Pond, Smith proposes extending the season another month.

“That’s unheard of after October 31, for an additional month on a salmon lake,” Brokaw said.

Deirdre Fleming covers outdoor sports and recreation for the NEWS. She can be reached at 990-8250 or at dfleming@bangordailynews.net.