WHEREAS, participation in recreational fishing and recruitment of young people into the sport is declining in Louisiana and across the nation, and
WHEREAS, lack of opportunity due to limited access discourages participation and recruitment of new participants to the recreational fishery, and
WHEREAS, in years past many people started out fishing when they were kids, at places that they could access on their own, and
WHEREAS, the creation of new “borrow pits” that will be necessary for building new and expanded hurricane protection levees presents the opportunity to provide for public access for fishing and other appropriate recreational uses of such borrow pits, and
WHEREAS, lands and wetlands created by coastal restoration projects as well as lands that the state must acquire for coastal restoration projects may provide further opportunities to secure access for public fishing and recreation.
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Louisiana Wildlife Federation (LWF), for the purpose of creating recreational fishing opportunities for the public, urges the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR), the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority and the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) to secure public access to and use of suitable borrow pits that are created in the construction of hurricane protection levees, and to provide for public access to and use of public and suitable private lands/wetlands in cooperation with participating landowners that are created by coastal restoration projects as well as lands that the state must acquire to implement coastal restoration projects.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the LWF urges the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries to coordinate appropriate federal and state agencies to select borrow pits that are best located and suitable for public fishing and to provide fish stocking and habitat management services to establish and maintain healthy native fish populations.
Adopted by the Louisiana Wildlife Federation in Convention Assembled, March 16, 2008 in New Iberia, Louisiana.