New Fishing/Boating Check-Off to Help Invasive Fight 3-10-2010
gengberg March 10th, 2010
New Fishing/Boating Check-Off
To Help Invasive Species FightFor Immediate Release: Wednesday, March 10, 2010
When Wisconsin anglers buy their 2010 fishing license this spring or summer they’ll be asked a new question at the start of the process: “Will you donate $2 to help eliminate the invasive species that threaten Wisconsin waters?”
Zebra mussells from Lake Winnebago. Photo by Gary Engberg Outdoors
Those who answer “yes” will have $2 added to the cost of the license and the donation will go directly into Wisconsin’s Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) Control Grant Program, according to State Senator Jim Holperin (D-Eagle River).
Boaters will have the same opportunity to donate when they register their craft.
Holperin, who added the new AIS donation question to the 2010 state budget, said he hoped the strictly voluntary donation would raise at least a half million dollars in new revenue to combat the spread of aquatic invasives in the state’s inland lakes and rivers.
“Wisconsin has had a voluntary fishing license/boating registration ‘check-off’ for over 20 years,” said the northwoods legislator, “but the current $1 donation goes to support ‘lake research’ and I’m not so sure anybody knows what that means.” The current check-off generates about $60,000 annually for lake research.
By increasing the donation to $2, earmarking the proceeds for the AIS grant program, and allowing license vendors to keep 50¢ of every donation as an incentive to ask the donation question, Holperin said he hopes more anglers and boaters will consider parting with an extra $2 when they buy their fishing license or boat registration.
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“I think most fishermen and boaters, especially those who spend quite a bit of time on the water, are fully aware of the aquatic invasive threat and how AIS can impact water quality on specific lakes,” Holperin said. Continue Reading »
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