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Rotenone's future up for debate
Eastern Washington's billing as a top trout and spiny-ray fishing destination could be in jeopardy.
On April 6-7, the state Fish and Wildlife Commission will discuss the future of rotenone as a fisheries management tool during a meeting in Spokane. The meeting, at the Ramada Inn at the Spokane Airport, begins at noon on April 6 and continues through the afternoon on April 7.
Rotenone, a South American plant-dervied insecticide, has been a successful tool in providing predictable, robust fisheries on Eastern Washington's many popular lakes since 1940. It is used to rid lakes of undesirable fish species that compete for limited food sources with target species such as trout, bass and other spiny-rays. Lakes treated with the chemical - which kills fish and some aquatic insects by preventing them from utilizing the oxygen they take from the water - are then restocked with desirable recreational fish species.
Although rotenone continues to be a successful fish management tool across the United States, the state has not used the chemical in lakes near densely populated areas of Western Washington since 1989 because of environmental restrictions and public scrunity. EPA regulations prohibit its use in or near drinking water supplies or in water used for crop irrigation. Those factors, coupled with the costs associated with administering the chemical, have prompted the state to review rotenone's use.
Currently, the Legislature has provided no new funding for the purchase of rotenone. The Fish and Wildlife Department plans to use surplus rotenone this spring to treat five small lakes in the Columbia Basin. After that, the use of the chemical will be determined by the commission and Fish and Wildlife Director Jeff Koenings.
In Eastern Washington, however, rotenone has been widely used to maintain top-rated fisheries. Nearly every major lake stocked with game fish has at one time or another been treated with rotenone, including huge bodies of water such as Sprague Lake. Last year, 14 lakes ranging in size from 12 acres to 190 were treated with rotenone, including Lenice and Nunnally lakes near Beverly, two trophy trout fishing spots fished heavily by anglers from both sides of the Cascades.
Before being treated, the productivity of both lakes had declined dramatically since they were last rehabilitated in the late 1980s because of an infestation of pumpkinseed sunfish. Today, the lakes are in top form thanks to rotenone and a heavy stocking of rainbow and German brown trout.
Joe Foster, the state Department of Fish and Wildlife's regional fish biologist in Ephrata, is concerned the state may take away the agency's ability to maintain top-quality fishing.
"At this time, we don't have an effective substitute for rotenone. If we were to lose this management tool, I'm afraid it could spell disaster for Eastern Washington's popular trout and spiny-ray fisheries," he said.
Foster also believes the economic effect on many small communities across Eastern Washington could be staggering.
Park and Blue lakes north of Soap Lake, for example - which have been treated with rotenone several times over the years - provide trout fishing opportunities for thousands of anglers every spring.
"If we lose the ability to provide the quality of fishing that people have come to expect in Eastern Washington, imagine what the consequences would be in terms of lost license sales and all the associated revenue generated by anglers from around the state," he said.
To complicate the issue, the commission will have before it a recent study conducted at Emory University in Atlanta that concluded rats heavily exposed to rotenone developed symptoms associated with Parkinson's disease.
However, there have been no documented cases of any Fish and Wildlife employee contracting any ailments or diseases from applying rotenone.
Fred Shiosaki, a Fish and Wildlife commissioner, said rotenone is an important fish management tool that has been used safely in Washington for more than 60 years.
"However, our biggest concern is the safety of our employees. But unless someone can show me credible scientific evidence that there are serious health risks associated with using rotenone, than I would have to take a very hard look at discontinuing its use," he said.
"If we lose the ability to use rotenone," he added, "I think we're going to have big problems with our sport fisheries down the road."
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