Fish & Boat Board Acts On Trout Waters, Endangered Species, Dam Removal

Trout anglers who want an experience targeting bigger fish will have the opportunity to catch 14”-20” trout in eight Keystone Select Stocked Trout Waters, unveiled Tuesday at the quarterly meeting of the Fish and Boat Commission.

Under the program, approximately 3,200 large trout will be distributed among the eight waters, one in each commissioner district. The trout will be stocked at a rate of up to 250 trout per mile, which is comparable to the numbers of fish of this size in Pennsylvania’s best wild trout waters.

The Board also approved a pass-through grant of up to $130,000 to the Eastern Coalition for Abandoned Mine Reclamation or other appropriate partner organization for the removal of the Solomon Creek Dam in Luzerne County.

The PFBC received the funds from the state Department of Transportation as mitigation for a highway improvement project on State Route 3046, Section 301, known as the South Valley Parkway Project.

The Board took these other actions-

— Approved the publication of a notice of proposed rulemaking to add the Hornyhead Chub to the state’s Endangered Species list; to remove the Mountain Brook Lamprey from the Threatened Species list; and remove the Hornyhead Chub, Ohio Lamprey, Bowfin and Timber Rattlesnake from the Candidate Species list;

— Added 102 waters to the list of wild trout streams, revised the section limits of four waters, and removed one water; and

— Added 40 stream sections to the list of Class A wild trout streams.

A complete list of actions taken is available online.