Earlier this month, Jean Charest, the Premier of Quebec; Claude Bechard, the Minister of Natural Resources and Wildlife; and a host of other dignitaries officially launched construction of the huge Romaine Dam hydroelectric complex. The complex will be situated on Riviere Romaine north of Havre-Saint-Pierre, in the Cote Nord region. Construction of the four reservoir-powered plants and a permanent 150-kilometer-long road will cost an estimated $6.5 billion. When completed in 2020, the project will put out enough power to run more than 450,000 households or the cities of Quebec, Saguenay, and Longueuil combined.

The project has undergone extensive environmental impact studies, and will be monitored through 2040. One planned measure is a $20 million Atlantic salmon development program over the next 20 years. Another is scheduled to protect downriver in-stream flows to preserve fish habitat.

To read about the scope of this massive project, please check out the Atlantic Salmon Federation’s website, asf.ca Hit Romaine Dam Project in the site search for background information. For a full report on what the Salmon Federation has recommended for the Romaine project, hit the issues tab, then go to ‘Dams and Free Passage.”

Massive construction projects like this make you wonder what the landscape will be like in 25 years from now. They also make you wonder if the salmon will still migrate up the rivers or even survive in the years to come. Thanks to groups such as the Atlantic Salmon Federation, at least they’ve got a fighting chance. – Jay Cassell

The Clean Water Restoration Act is a critical piece of legislation for wetlands and waterfowl. Tens of millions of acres of wetlands have lost their protection from drainage and destruction—wetlands that waterfowl depend on throughout the flyways, from the breeding grounds in the prairies to the wintering grounds in the South. The Clean Water Restoration Act would restore these protections, without burdening America's farmers and ranchers.

Recently, the Secretaries of Agriculture and Interior, the Administrator of the EPA, and the Chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality sent a letter to the Chairs of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee and House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee supporting restoration of Clean Water Act protection to more than 20 million acres of wetlands across the United States.

Following is a statement that Ducks Unlimited Director of Conservation Operations Dr. Scott Yaich issued in response to the letter.

“Ducks Unlimited is pleased to see this support for cleaner water from the President’s Administration. We applaud their strong clear stance on this issue, which is a top policy priority for American sportsmen. The proposed legislative restoration of Clean Water Act protections for wetlands and other waters also contains guarantees that America’s farmers and ranchers can continue to work their land as they have for decades. The restoration of protection lost since 2001 is critical to ensure that our waters will be protected from pollutants and that our wetlands will continue to provide fish and wildlife habitat for generations to come.

“Ducks Unlimited looks forward to continuing work with Congress and the Administration to advance the Clean Water Restoration Act and restore protection to the wetlands and streams that provide our drinking water, restore our aquifers, and provide habitat for America’s wildlife and places for millions of people to enjoy our fish and wildlife resources.”

A vote on the Restoration Act could come as soon as June 4, so now is the time to make your voices heard! For more information on the Clean Water Restoration Act please visit Ducks Unlimited’s Clean Water Action Center at www.ducks.org/cleanwater

-- Jay Cassell

Earlier this year, I was invited to an informal press conference hosted by Yvonne Chouinard, founder of Patagonia, Inc., and Craig Mathews, owner of Blue Ribbon Flies in West Yellowstone, Montana. The agenda? To discuss the 1% for the Planet initiative, which the two men founded back in 2001. 1% for the Planet is an alliance of businesses that donate 1% of their annual sales to a non-profit conservation organization of their choice (that organization, large or small, has to be vetted and approved by 1% ahead of time).

Mathews calls it similar to an earth tax; Chouinard said it’s something all conscientious businesses should consider. And it’s basically pretty simple: If you own a business and understand that your profit and loss are linked to the health of the environment, then it’s your responsibility to get involved.

Twenty-one companies signed up when 1% was launched in 2002, and it’s been growing ever since. At the press conference, I learned that there are now more than 900 businesses in 29 countries now involved in 1% for the Planet, and that the alliance is adding one new member every day. This thing is for real!

To learn more about 1% for the Planet, and how it can actually benefit businesses, go to www.onepercentfortheplanet.org. You can also learn about it on the Patagonia website, Patagonia.com. You’ll also be able to check out all the state-of-the-art clothing that Patagonia now offers; plus, there’s information on other environment programs such as the Freedom to Roam plan—but, more on that at a later date. – Jay Cassell

Earlier this month, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and federal agency partners - the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and U.S. Forest Service - designated 26 projects to receive $1.5 million in funding through the "Sustain Our Great Lakes" program.

The 26 projects will “help restore and enhance the environmental integrity of the lakes and surrounding region by controlling invasive species, restoring wetlands and other habitats, improving passage for fish and other aquatic organisms, developing coordinated action plans and educating citizens on how to protect the ecosystem.”

From my view, this is great news all around (though, even more funding would have been nice). My friends tell me that the steelhead fishing in New York’s Salmon River is the best it’s been in the past 6 or 8 years. Other rivers seem to be picking up as well, so more cleanups and projects such as marsh restorations can only help.

What’s your view? If you live near the Great Lakes, has the fishing been getting better? How about duck hunting?

Are there areas that should be getting funding that are not designated right now? Got a project that you feel needs some attention, some funding? Let us know about it! Better yet, go to www.nfwf.org/greatlakes to get information on how to nominate an area for cleanup funding.

-- Jay Cassell

Since 2006, when we last checked in with Paul Morrow, the habitat chairman of the Ingham County Chapter of Pheasants Forever and a 2006 Heroes of Conservation finalist, a lot has happened.

By finding organizations and private companies and individuals to partner with for habitat improvement and restoration, Morrow says his chapter has been able to turn a $5,000 investment into $50,000 purely through matching funds. "We go to other places and say we'll put up $5,000 and you match us or beat us, and that's no exaggeration at all," he says.

His chapter has also helped purchase and turn 80 acres into a wildlife production area adjacent to an existing WPA. "We're involved in a multi-species approach to improving that habitat--it's an an elaborate bio-engineered area for deer, turkeys, waterfowl, all of that." He says the multiple species involved makes the job more complex. "You have to implement a more detailed plan in order to see all of the species benefit--we've got non-game animals involved as well."

And what words of wisdom does he have for the potential next generation of outdoorsmen and conservationists?

"In my lifetime, I've seen species decline right where I live, and seeing them impacted I thought somebody's got to do something about it--so I took it upon myself. But for someone who's never even seen those species it's hard to care. For someone who's never even been out in nature. So I tell everybody to go out, and to read My Side of the Mountain. Learning to appreciate nature is more important than anything."

I was just reading the latest release from the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership (TRCP), about provisions for sportsmen in President Obama’s 2010 budget. There are some really positive things in there for sportsmen. For example, project Opens Fields, a new hunter access program, has been funded at $50 million. And there is also $38 million directed at programs to help get more young people involved in hunting, fishing, and conservation. The majority of those funds will go directly to states, to fund programs to educate young hunters, fishermen, and wildlife managers.

On the downside, there have been cuts in programs for conserving habitat, such as the Wetlands Reserve Program (cut from $418 million to $391 million) and the Wildlife Habitat Incentive Program (cut 50 percent).

The TRCP is also very concerned about the Clean Water Restoration Act, which is currently under consideration by the Senate.

To see all the provisions in the budget, please go to trcp.org. And weigh in! Cutting the Wetlands Reserve Program is ridiculous. I don’t have to say it, but once wetlands are gone, they’re gone, and we’ve already lost enough as is. – Jay Cassell

It hasn’t even been two years since we all were made aware of Didymo, or rock snot, an invasive species that has been raging across New Zealand and which has now found its way into famous trout stream in the Northeast U.S. — including the Battenkill in Vermont, the East and West Branches of the Delaware River, and now Esopus Creek in the eastern Catskills of New York.

I’m no scientist, but from what I understand, Didymo is this mucous-like algae that grows rapidly along stream bottoms, essentially choking out all life forms that live on the bottom. To fly fishermen, this is especially worrisome: No aquatic insects eventually will mean no trout, dead waters, the end of fishing as we know it.

Biologists says that Didymo can be carried from one stream to another in the felt on the bottoms of your waders. To fight this, they recommend getting rid of your felt-soled waders and replacing them with rubber-soled boots. They also recommend cleaning and thoroughly drying your boots after every fishing trip.

No one has recommended this, but if practical, you could actually keep your felt-bottomed waders so long as you only used them in one stream, and didn’t take them to another. This would mean owning multiple pairs of wading shoes. But Didymo can travel on the outsides of your breathables, in your streamers and dry flies, and just about anywhere else.

Go to TU.org and click on the latest Didymo article. Seems like pretty serious stuff to me. Am I right, or are some people saying that the sky is going to fall in.

Anyone have other ideas on how to prevent this stuff from spreading? - Jay Cassell