The Suffolk County News - December 18, 2008
The Friends of Connetquot believe this is a terrible decision that is being made without considering the impact on handicap fishing, historical preservation, educational opportunities for tens of thousands of school children and the loss of potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars of Park revenues.
The decision to close the hatchery is based on the presence of IPN (infectious pancreatic necrosis), which is a virus that does not affect humans and is not even considered to be a reportable disease by the U.S. government, England or most states.
The Friends are also very concerned that the state will be dumping as many as 60,000 trout into the Connetquot River in conjunction with the closing of the hatchery.
The DEC has advised Parks that trout in the Connetquot may no longer be fed. The potential impact of introducing this many infected fish and then not feeding them could be catastrophic.
With as many as 100,000 fish in the river below the hatchery, trout will be much more likely to die due to stress, starvation and predation, all of which will further spread the IPN disease among trout and other species including invertebrates.
This could have catastrophic consequences and long-term impact on the Connetquot River. In addition, the massive dumping of trout all at one time in conjunction with a “no feed” policy may push fish out into the estuary, making it more likely that diseased fish will end up infecting fish in other nearby rivers including the Carmen’s.
At the very least, we are asking that DEC and Parks suspend this ill-advised double policy of dumping and not feeding and keep this historic 144-year-old hatchery open until such time as a qualified expert has been consulted. The Friends of Connetquot ask readers who are concerned to contact Governor Paterson’s office.
Richard Remmer
Director of The Friends of Connetquot