Imagine there will be some large quantities of bile spilt on behalf of both announcements.
PFBC to Reduce Operating Costs and Close Two Hatcheries
The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) announced today that it plans to reduce operating costs by $9 million over the next four years in order to meet future health-care and retirement obligations for its employees and to fund infrastructure needs. A portion of this reduction will come from closing two trout hatcheries, a move that will reduce annual operating costs by approximately $2 million.
The two hatcheries include Oswayo in Coudersport, Potter County, which has nine employees, and Bellefonte in Centre County, which has nine employees. No furloughs are expected. The PFBC plans to offer affected employees jobs at other PFBC facilities. “Fishing license sales have steadily declined since 1990, while at the same time operating costs have continued to increase, including the price of fish food,” said PFBC Executive Director John Arway. “As a result, we must streamline our operations and reduce operating costs in order to maintain a sound financial condition while we attempt to secure long-term, dedicated alternative funding,” he added. “As part of this process, we evaluated our 14 production sites and determined that closing these two trout hatcheries would have the least impact on the number of trout stocked.” Arway added that because of existing vacancies within the Commission, no employees are expected to be laid off. “Over the last two years, a number of vacancies have been created from retirements and transfers,” he said. ”As a result, we plan to offer the employees at Oswayo and Bellefonte the opportunity to take these jobs at other facilities.”
Today’s decision is one part of a long-range strategy to reduce operating costs across all PFBC bureaus by a total of $9 million by the 2016-17 Fiscal Year, which begins July 1, 2016. Approximately $6.7 million is needed for employee health care and retirement benefits and $2.3 million is needed for infrastructure needs, such as maintenance and repairs, at remaining hatcheries, other facilities and boating access areas. In addition to the $2 million the PFBC expects to save by closing the two hatcheries, it estimates saving another $1 million by not enrolling a new class of waterways conservation officers. Overall, the bureaus of Hatcheries and Law Enforcement account for approximately 27.6 percent and 22.6 percent, respectively, of the PFBC’s annual expenditures. The PFBC Bureau of Hatcheries spends approximately $12.5 million annually to raise 3.2 million adult trout, 2 million fingerling trout and more than 30 million fry and fingerling warm/coolwater fish at its 14 hatcheries. Oswayo and Bellefonte annually produce approximately 245,000 and 540,000 adult trout, respectively, including brook, brown, rainbow and golden trout. The Oswayo and Bellefonte hatcheries aren’t expected to be completely closed until the end of 2014. Fish are being raised at both facilities and won’t be ready to stock until the end of this year and spring of next year. Once the fish have been stocked, the facilities will be cleaned and then closed.
Media Contact: Eric Levis, Press Secretary 717.705.7806 elevis@pa.gov
The mission of the Fish and Boat Commission is to protect, conserve, and enhance the Commonwealth’s aquatic resources and provide fishing and boating opportunities. For more information about fishing and boating in Pennsylvania, please visit our website at fishandboat.com
Commissioners Propose Slot Limit on Section 03 of Penns Creek
Anglers visiting the popular Section 03 of Penns Creek in Centre County can expect to have continued high quality angling and could see larger trout in coming years if a proposed regulation change approved today by the Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) Board of Commissioners becomes final next year. The Board took the action at its quarterly business meeting held here yesterday and today.
Commissioners approved a notice of proposed rulemaking to establish a harvest slot limit on Section 03 of Penns Creek, which stretches from the confluence with Elk Creek downstream seven miles to 650 yards downstream of Swift Run. The harvest slot limit would replace the current All-Tackle Trophy Trout regulations. The change is designed to improve the size structure of the wild trout population in this section.
Under the proposed special regulation, anglers could harvest two trout per day provided the trout are at least seven inches but less than 12 inches in length. The regulation would apply from opening day of trout season through Labor Day, with catch and release for the remainder of the year. All tackle would be permitted.
“Penns Creek provides a unique opportunity to evaluate a new special regulation on a productive limestone stream,” said Dave Miko, chief of the PFBC Division of Fisheries Management. “The new regulation would direct limited harvest to intermediate-sized fish while protecting larger fish in the population. The other components of the new regulation are the same as the current regulation.” “The productive nature of Penns Creek provides ideal conditions to allow for a favorable response of the wild brown trout population to trend toward larger sizes than may be occurring under the current regulations,” he added. “The proposed regulation strives to meet the biological objectives for the fishery as well as the preferences of anglers and landowners.” The proposed special regulation will be open for public comment for 30 days after it is officially published in the Pennsylvania Bulletin. If approved at a subsequent board meeting, the special regulation would take effect Jan. 1, 2014, for a seven-year period ending Dec. 31, 2020. During this time, the trout population would be monitored to determine the effectiveness of the regulation at meeting biological and social objectives for the Penns Creek fishery.
Media Contact: Eric Levis, Press Secretary 717.705.7806 elevis@pa.gov
The mission of the Fish and Boat Commission is to protect, conserve, and enhance the Commonwealth’s aquatic resources and provide fishing and boating opportunities. For more information about fishing and boating in Pennsylvania, please visit our website at fishandboat.com
