Oppose the “No Stocking” Proposal for the Upper Deerfield River

On October 17, 2024 the Massachusetts Fisheries and Wildlife Board had a listening session in response to a request from a group of individuals who want the state to stop stocking rainbow trout in the upper Deerfield River. These individuals believe that stocking is detrimental to the small population of wild trout that live in the upper Deerfield and that cessation of stocking will lead to a robust wild trout fishery. The Massachusetts Fish and Wildlife Board has taken this proposal seriously and will implement no stocking for the upper Deerfield if there is no public input to the contrary.

Background:

In 2011, a group of local anglers re-formed the Deerfield Watershed Chapter of Trout Unlimited, primarily to participate in the upcoming FERC (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission) relicensing of the Fife Brook Dam/Bear Swamp hydroelectric complex, which controls the flow regime for the upper Deerfield River. The FERC license has a 24-year duration, so addressing some of the environmental impact concerns like up-and-down flows (hydropeaking), inconsistent publishing of release times, and low minimum flow rates was at the top of our list as anglers.

With funds raised from individual donations, other TU chapters, and a generous donation from Thomas & Thomas Fly Rods, we hired Dr. Mike Cole to study spawning brown trout. With volunteers from our local chapter and other state TU chapters, Dr. Cole surveyed and sampled 101 redds in the fall of 2017. (Redds are gravel “nests” where trout deposit their eggs) Of the 101 redds that were documented in the upper Deerfield, only 37 had viable eggs. Of the 37 with viable eggs, 8 were in the spawning area that was de-watered, so roughly 22% of the viable spawning redds were destroyed by dam operations. For the entire upper Deerfield during the 2017 study, only 29 redds were viable with the potential to produce wild trout – a paltry sum for a river the size of the Deerfield.

The group Re-Wild the Deerfield is pushing for a cessation of stocking in the upper Deerfield. The individual leading the group claims that immediate cessation of stocking will allow the upper Deerfield to become a self-sustaining wild trout fishery. Pointing to the success of Montana rivers flourishing after cessation of stocking, this individual believes that the upper Deerfield will have a similar result to rivers like the Madison in Montana that saw marked increases in trout populations after stocking was stopped. Ironically this individual does not fish the Deerfield River, he just believes in his heart that the steps Montana took to stop stocking will have similar results here.

Will the Deerfield River magically transform into a river with trout densities like those found in Montana simply by stopping trout stocking? I believe the answer is no, particularly with the small numbers of documented spawning from the 2017 brown trout spawning study. Further, Massachusetts is a densely populated state with limited cold-water resources, unlike the vast and wild cold-water resources of Montana. Is it possible to work toward creating a more robust fishery in the upper Deerfield with the future goal of letting the river go wild should the data support it? Absolutely! The mediation agreement that I helped forge with Brookfield Energy to increase winter minimum flows to protect this small population of wild trout has the potential to transform the Deerfield River by keeping spawning areas from being de-watered from dam operations. Only time and good science will tell if the numbers of wild fish are such that cessation of stocking makes sense. Otherwise, the intense fishing pressure that the Deerfield receives will be directed at a small and vulnerable population of wild trout.

Staying the Course

There is no emergency or threat to the wild trout of the Deerfield that would justify cessation of stocking at this juncture. The individuals pushing the effort are well-to-do anglers who fly to far away destinations to fish and are willing to experiment with one of the few year-round cold-water fisheries in Massachusetts simply because they have zero skin in the game. Should the fishery decline from intense fishing pressure, they’ll simply jump on a plane and fish somewhere else. The Fife Brook section of the Deerfield River is one of two cold water fisheries in the state that provides summer trout fishing opportunities for Massachusetts residents and out-of-state visitors. Without good fishing anglers will likely go elsewhere, and local businesses and guides will be negatively impacted as will state tax revenues. For those of us who call the Deerfield home, the stocked trout offer great angling opportunities for all anglers that use the river, not just fly fishermen. Further, the stocked trout MA Fish and Game provides are the best in New England, averaging 14 to 17 inches, providing great angling opportunities that anglers from all over to come here to experience.

There’s no harm in staying the course until data collected by MA Fish & Game justifies a transition to a wild trout conservation area for the upper Deerfield. Please write a short email to the Fisheries and Wildlife Board telling them to keep the Deerfield River as it is until science supports a change. Don’t let a small group of individuals ruin one of the few year-round trout fisheries we have!

Please address your email to susan.sacco@mass.gov.

-Chris Jackson operates Chris Jackson Fly Fishing and guides in Massachusetts, southern Vermont, and New York State.

Source: https://onthewater.com/oppose-the-no-stocking-proposal-for-the-upper-deerfield-river

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