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Klamath fish are worth more than gold!
Take action: Click and send a quick email letter telling the California Department Fish & Game to immediately restrict the damage caused by suction dredge mining.
Every summer, recreational suction dredge miners descend upon the Klamath and its tributaries in search of gold. Their gas-powered dredges disturb the river bottom, damage critical spawning habitat for salmon and other fish, release large plumes of sediment into the water, and are the source of fuel and oil spills directly into the river. Suction dredge mining harms aquatic life and fisheries and impacts anglers and other river users.
The State of California spends over $2.5 million each year--or about $1000 per dredge miner--on suction dredge mining related work. Meanwhile, the state government is suffering from budget cuts and struggling to fund fisheries restoration work. Commercial fishermen, sport fishermen, Native American tribes, and others are being asked to make sacrifices to aid in fisheries recovery while recreational suction dredge miners are receiving government aid to damage these same fisheries during a fiscal crisis!
The California Department of Fish and Game is in charge of regulating mining activity in California's rivers, however, suction dredge mining has not been well-regulated. Although CDFG is taking a look at the environmental impact of suction dredge mining in the state and will be preparing an Environmental Impact Report, the damage caused by suction dredging continues.
The Karuk Tribe, California Trout, Sierra Fund, and Friends of the North Fork have requested that CDFG Director Donald Koch use his authority to enact emergency rules to limit suction dredge mining on California rivers that provide critical habitat to several ESA-listed species and/or species of special concern such as Coho, spring Chinook, lamprey, and sturgeon. You can read their full petition to CDFG here.
Please take a moment to click and send a quick email letter to the California Department Fish & Game asking them to support the petition and to immediately restrict the damage caused by suction dredge mining. This petition needs your support!
>> more info
Dr. Peter Moyle's expert opinion on suction mining and the Klamath
Sacramento Bee editorial: Time for new rules on suction mining