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County
decides to postpone ramp repair
By Nicholas Grube
Triplicate staff
writer
Many eager salmon
fishermen are expected to migrate to the
On Tuesday, the
supervisors voted to delay fixing the Roy Rook Boat Launch until 2009 in
an effort to allow boaters to access the lower part of the river and to
help cure Klamath's ailing economy.
"Klamath needs a
break and this is the economic break that community needs,"
District 2 Supervisor Martha McClure said.
A large number of
recreational fishermen are expected to troll the
Both state and federal
restrictions closed ocean salmon fisheries up and down the West Coast
this year and severely restricted fishing in
The
However, recreational
anglers on the Klamath River system, which includes the Trinity, will be
allowed to bag up to 22,500 chinook—the second-largest catch in the
past 30 years—and tribal members will be allocated 27,000 chinook.
With these numbers, the
Klamath system and its businesses can expect to see a larger than normal
influx of out-of-area fishermen.
Klamath Chamber of
Commerce President Paul Crandall said this is important for Klamath
businesses that have struggled due to unpredictable chinook salmon
fishing for the past six years.
"They are actually
looking forward to this season to get out of debt," Crandall said
of some Klamath area business owners. "They've been handed a
tremendous opportunity that nobody else in
For this reason, Crandall
supported the Board of Supervisors' decision to delay fixing the Roy
Rook Boat Launch for one year.
"I think it's a
viable option from my perspective," Crandall said. "I haven't
heard a whole lot from people saying let's go forward now."
By delaying repairs to
Roy Rook for a year, the county will avoid any conflicts that might
arise between the construction on the ramp and fishermen trying put
their boats in the water.
Construction can only
take place on the boat ramp from July 1 to Oct. 15 due to restrictions
that protect endangered coho salmon on the
Permits and funding for
the Roy Rook repairs can be postponed for one year, according to
Assistant County Administrative Officer Jay Sarina, but it is unlikely
state and federal agencies would allow any delays past 2009.
"Next year they will
definitely want us to construct this ramp," Sarina said.
Roy Rook Boat Launch and
the Klamath Townsite Boat Ramp—which are the only two public access
points to the
Sarina said the only
problem comes when people try to put their boats in during low water, as
trailers tend to drop off the end of the ramp. Signs will warn anglers
this year of the hazards, he said.
The supervisors also
decided to buy the materials to fix the Roy Rook ramp for next year.
This would help avoid any delays in construction next year when the ramp
is being fixed.
After making these
decisions Tuesday, Supervisor David Finigan, whose district includes
Klamath, gave a proverbial "cheers" to his constituents who
will benefit from the fishermen who will be able to use Roy Rook during
this year's chinook season and spend their money at the local
businesses.
"Here's to the
economy of Klamath in this coming year," Finigan said.
Reach Nicholas Grube
at ngrube@triplicate.com.
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Source:
http://www.triplicate.com/news/story.cfm?story_no=8907