CBFN Conservation Director
The Colorado B.A.S.S. Federation
Colorado’s Bass Fishing Authority
2007 Conservation Projects
The Colorado BASS Federation was busy with conservation projects in 2007. This year more than any other we were able to fund projects that effect fishing, fishing habitat, and access to fishable waters. In the ten years that I’ve been involved with the CBF, we have never spent so much money on conservation. Hi, I’m Jay McMillan, president and acting conservation director for the CBF. I wanted to give everyone an idea of what tremendous integrity and drive our clubs have, and what can be done when that is channeled into conserving and developing our natural resources.
As you know, Colorado is not a state synonymous with bass fishing. We do have bass in our lakes, mostly smallmouth, and not on the scale of other western fisheries, but we do have bass in our lakes. That’s what makes it all the more important to protect and develop what we have. We’ll never be the Florida of the Rockies when it comes to Bass, but we can make it the best we can for all our members and the general public of Colorado.
We were fortunate enough to have some money to work with in 2007, and we also tapped into grant money available through B.A.S.S.. We asked our clubs to submit projects that were important to them, local lakes in need of conservation help. No one is better able to see the needs of the local lakes than those that fish them regularly. With Colorado’s unique geography, local to a club in Ft. Collins isn’t local to a club in Durango, separated by over 300 miles and the tallest mountain range in the continental United States. So understandably, these projects reflect the needs and desires of the local communities.
Beginning in Southwest Colorado in and around the town of Durango, the Southwest Colorado Bassmasters submitted a project to revitalize Morgan Lake. Morgan Lake is actually located in New Mexico, and that in it self created some issues. We needed to decide if we wanted to extend outside our borders to effect conservation change. It was generally decided that water is water regardless of its geographic location, and if Colorado clubs were fishing it regularly, then we should get involved. We were not the only partners in this massive project. The Four Corners Bassmasters, who belong to the New Mexico BASS Federation Nation, The Four Corners Junior Bassmasters, The New Mexico Department of Wildlife, The Navajo Nation, The Navajo Nation Department of Game and Fish, Public Services of New Mexico and the Four Corners Power Plant, whose grounds the lake actually lies on, were all involved in this project. The plan was to remove the non native noxious vegetation, install a water filtration system, rehabilitate the launch ramp, improve the facility access, and add gravel to the parking areas and entrance roads to stop ground erosion into the lake. The Colorado BASS Federation was able to provide over $3000 to help purchase the 475 tons of gravel needed to complete the project. The remainder was purchased with funds generated with local fund raisers and volunteer effort.
Moving east and north across the continental divide, the town of Longmont is home to the Mile High Bass Pioneers, Colorado’s oldest active club. Their project to revitalize Coot Lake involved repair and upgrade of restrooms, trails, park bench’s, tables, trash collection, the fishing pier and construction of fish structure to be installed in the lake itself. It also involved Lake Bank restoration, development of interpretive signs to educate park users and the planting of trees and shrubs. Mile High Bass Pioneers received the BASS National Conservation Award in 1994 for the work they did then at Coot Lake. This shows the need for continued attention to protecting the resources we have, maintaining the improvements we’ve done, and looking toward the future. In that light, the Mile High Bass Pioneers teamed with the local boy scouts to help provide the labor for this project and with the help of the city of Boulder, Colorado, this should be completed in 2008. The Colorado BASS Federation was pleased to provide $2000 to help purchase the materials for the fish structures and bank restoration.
Heading North up Interstate 25 the town of Fort Collins and its surrounding areas is home to the Centennial Bass Club. Centennial submitted a project to address the needs of three local lakes. Carter Lake was to be drained to minimum pool to effect repairs on the dams. Centennial felt this would be the ideal time to place structure in the lake to help the limited but stable population of bass to grow. Artificial PVC “trees” would be placed in the lake along with moving available rocks and vegetation, to create structure in a lake that is basically a big bowl. Part of the Big Thompson Project, Carter Lake is a man made lake in the chain of water storage lakes created to store water pumped over from the western slope. The eastern slope of Colorado, where the bulk of the population is, has the least amount of water for domestic use. Projects such as the Moffat Tunnel and the Big Thompson Project were done to bring water to the thirsty east slope of Colorado. In this same chain of lakes is Lonetree reservoir. Lonetree was the second project Centennial proposed. Teaming with their new junior club, The Fighting Fish sticks, Centennial proposed to install boat docks in a lake with excellent fishing but poor access. The hope was to install the docks and show our good faith to the Colorado Division of Wildlife. Then with a little persuasion, we could install structure in this lake also to improve the fishery. The third project took place at the Poudre Ponds Recreational Fishery. Centennial and the “Fish sticks” would use their own boats to lower pre made structure into the ponds. The Colorado BASS Federation was proud to fund over 80% of the projected costs of all these projects.
That brings us home to Denver. The Mile High City, Queen City of the Plains, Home of the Superbowl Champion Denver Bronco’s, Stanley Cup Champion Colorado Avalanche, American League Champion Colorado Rockies, and The largest Bass Club in Colorado The Denver Bassmasters. Their project involved what was termed by the Federal Government as “The most polluted piece of land on the planet”. The Rocky Mountain Arsenal was built and designed for one purpose. In the late 1950’s the Arsenal was built to manufacture Plutonium triggers for nuclear bombs. Throughout the 50’s and 60’s and into the 1970’s, this facility was building triggers. No real thought was given to the impact this was having on the surrounding communities that were growing up around this maximum security facility. With the dissolution of the Soviet Union, it was decided to decommission this facility and begin the massive clean up project. Plutonium waste had been piling up in underground storage since the 50’s and it needed to be removed. Unfortunately some of this waste had ruptured its containers and gotten into the ground water. The Arsenal is huge, covering some 1500 acres, and by the time the clean up began it was surrounded on three sides by residential communities. The word had leaked out to the bass fishing community that there were fishable lakes on the property. Well by the late 90’s the facility had been cleaned up to the point that its administration was taken over by the Colorado Division of Wildlife. Large herds of deer, and one of the largest populations of Bald Eagles in the nation called the old arsenal home. Bass also called this once polluted water home. And with the help of the DOW, The Denver Bassmasters wanted to clean up and add some structure to these once forbidden lakes. The Colorado BASS federation was happy to help fund this project. A sad note to this project, In November of 2007 remaining air monitors picked up traces of one of the agents used in the production of nerve gas. All access to the facility was shut down. The prognosis is that it will re open soon.
Well, there it is. We’ve had a busy year. I don’t know if we can match this intensity in 2008 and beyond, but I know the members of the Colorado BASS Federation will do their best to try. Thanks and have a great 2008.
