PFBC to Reduce Operating Costs and Close Oswayo and Bellefonte Hatcheries stocking 22%Less

PFBC to Reduce Operating Costs
and Close Oswayo and Bellefonte Hatcheries
HARRISBURG, Pa. (Jan. 23) – The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) announced today that it plans to reduce operating costs by $9 million over the next four years in order to meet future health-care and retirement obligations for its employees and to fund infrastructure needs. A portion of this reduction will come from closing two trout hatcheries, a move that will reduce annual operating costs by approximately $2 million.
The two hatcheries include Oswayo in Coudersport, Potter County, which has nine employees, and Bellefonte in Centre County, which has nine employees. No furloughs are expected. The PFBC plans to offer affected employees jobs at other PFBC facilities.
“Fishing license sales have steadily declined since 1990, while at the same time operating costs have continued to increase, including the price of fish food,” said PFBC Executive Director John Arway.
“As a result, we must streamline our operations and reduce operating costs in order to maintain a sound financial condition while we attempt to secure long-term, dedicated alternative funding,” he added. “As part of this process, we evaluated our 14 production sites and determined that closing these two trout hatcheries would have the least impact on the number of trout stocked.”
Arway added that because of existing vacancies within the Commission, no employees are expected to be laid off.
“Over the last two years, a number of vacancies have been created from retirements and transfers,” he said. ”As a result, we plan to offer the employees at Oswayo and Bellefonte the opportunity to take these jobs at other facilities.”
Today’s decision is one part of a long-range strategy to reduce operating costs across all PFBC bureaus by a total of $9 million by the 2016-17 Fiscal Year, which begins July 1, 2016. Approximately $6.7 million is needed for employee health care and retirement benefits and $2.3 million is needed for infrastructure needs, such as maintenance and repairs, at remaining hatcheries, other facilities and boating access areas.
In addition to the $2 million the PFBC expects to save by closing the two hatcheries, it estimates saving another $1 million by not enrolling a new class of waterways conservation officers. Overall, the bureaus of Hatcheries and Law Enforcement account for approximately 27.6 percent and 22.6 percent, respectively, of the PFBC’s annual expenditures.
The PFBC Bureau of Hatcheries spends approximately $12.5 million annually to raise 3.2 million adult trout, 2 million fingerling trout and more than 30 million fry and fingerling warm/coolwater fish at its 14 hatcheries. Oswayo and Bellefonte annually produce approximately 245,000 and 540,000 adult trout, respectively, including brook, brown, rainbow and golden trout.
The Oswayo and Bellefonte hatcheries aren’t expected to be completely closed until the end of 2014. Fish are being raised at both facilities and won’t be ready to stock until the end of this year and spring of next year. Once the fish have been stocked, the facilities will be cleaned and then closed.
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Media Contact:
Eric Levis, Press Secretary
717.705.7806 or elevis@pa.gov

^^^^^^^ +1
 
Now THAT is a great idea if they're not doing it now.Here in the ABE area the trout nursery in Allentown does that and when the weather is nice they get many people there with the kids PAYING to feed the trout.

I smell a license hike coming.

I see a steeper decline in fishing licenses sold.

Oswayo hatchery stocks 100% low population areas.  Tell me how another hatchery will be able to reach these watersheds with their trucks.  I actually don't know their truck survivability radius or the next closest hatchery.  I would be interested in seeing which creeks will no longer be stocked by the state.
 
This doesn't seem like a distributed state-wide 22% reduction, rather 100% in some areas which equates to 22% in total.

Troutguy---if you quit stocking many, if not most would quit buying licenses. Who do you then think will help you fight off these guys.
 
Filed In:

1. Anti-fishing Groups

What Animal Rights Groups Say About Your Right To Fish

Information from the animal rights groups on your right to fish.

Trout Trama Puts Scientists On the Hook

Great article by Alexander Schwab on fish feeling pain. Schwab is the author of "Hook, Line and Thinker" a great book on fishing and animal rights.

Fishing Hurts

From PETA - their reasons why fishing should be outlawed. Silly little picture of a dog with a hook in its mouth - did they hurt that dog to get the picture?

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National Angling Alliance's  Tips

Advice to anglers on how to deal with anti-fishing groups, animal rights nuts and media confrontation 

B.C. Wildlife Federation Tips

Alerts on animal rights activists as well as more info from the British Columbia group.

Vegetarian Massacre

Paul Willis discusses the true costs of a vegan diet!

The Cruelty of Fishing

The article starts off "Fishing means intense pain and stress for millions of fish every year." and gets worse from there.

No Fishing.net

This one starts out "From the bass desperately trying to escape the pain of the hook as he is reeled in" - you get the idea.

Yep, just as with hunting, we hard core folks need the casual hunters and fishermen to help pay the bills and keep the anti's at bay. Sounds like in both cases it is a losing fight.

S-10

Yep, just as with hunting, we hard core folks need the casual hunters and fishermen to help pay the bills and keep the anti's at bay. Sounds like in both cases it is a losing fight.

Agree.  I always thought of the anti's as more of a pest, but still a problem.  After looking through some of those sites it is more of a problem than I thought.  Bottom line, more and increasing license sales=win for the PFBC and PA fishing. 

They haven't stocked the same amount in the last 10 years. The program has been changed about 4 times in that time frame. It has been changed this year as opposed to last. They have tryed to institut new ideas however. First, fewer fish, then larger but less, now smaller but more, opening 2 weeks early in the east and soon, I guess, a youth weekend, which I think is a joke. It also seems that the stockings in lakes have increased in the last 10 years or so, maybe because it is easier to police or a P.R. thing?....WF

How much did they just spend on upgrades to bellifonte?

Solid move announcing the reduced stocking after people bought the multi year lic... They know exactly what they are doing

The majority of PFBC staff are union members. More of your license dollars are going to pay for retirement and healthcare benefits and less for improving fishing. Nice deal.

doubletaper 

one other thing i've been told by our club pres. trout stocking numbers are decided on how many licenses are sold in a county. the more licenses the more trout that would be allocated in that county. if you like trout fishing in forest county or anywhere up around the ANF, please buy your fishing license up that way.

That is really interesting, DT.  Since plenty of licenses alrwady sold in Erie, I'll try to buy mine in Potter from now on.

^ I was wondering the same thing.  Maybe the county you live in?  Then what about out of state licenses bought online?

Maybe they should some how push the fishing idea out to more people by a means of cheap advertisement, more SPREAD out fish free days maybe 3-5 a year and not just 2 that are in the dead sh*t of summer...  This year it's Memorial day and 4th of July... One day is a viable option the 4th is kinda ****ty especially if it's hot... Maybe add a day or 2 in the fall...   I mean I'm sure if some how the state could publicize fishing as a family fun and safe activity there could possibly be a better # of licensing sales...  Possibly find a way to entice younger people more than just till the age of 16... 

fishpa1, thanks for your input. the pres of our club has been saying about buying lisc. in our counties for years to increase the amount of trout. he has helped to stock trout with the PFBC as well as know quite a few of the PFBC people for many many years, so i have belief in what he says. i'm not sure how the PFBC comes up with how many fish are stocked in each county but this is the best explanation i have heard of and DO believe lisc. sales have a part of it. as far as the on line sales, i'm not sure about.
 i guess i went overboard saying the PFBC is trying to get out of raising trout all together. they do provide ample trout to clubs that have the people power and raceways to accommodate all they give.  ~DT