Pardon us for being a tad too distracted by actually going fishing, working and enjoying the arrival of summer to report on the initial machinations of the FWP in selecting and calling the Madison Citizen Advisory Committee (CAC) to order over the past few weeks.
(Simply reading terms like Madison River Management Plan, the mind-numbing bureaucratic blather for defining River Recreation Management and committee meeting minutes makes me then and there begin to daydream of catching fat native cutthroat and grayling while watching bikini clad coeds sunbathe on the beach….)
Like many others we were nothing short of astounded to hear that the committee was to be originally comprised of just seven individuals and of those seven, NONE selected hailed from West Yellowstone (a fly fishing community joined at the hip with the Madison if there ever was one).
We knew of the three individuals in West that had applied for the committee, and quite frankly, given their histories and gargantuan Madison bona fides, assumed that at least two of them would be named to the committee.
Yet none were.
As the story’s being told currently, FWP nominated 13 members for the Madison CAC yet the Guv’s staffers suggested that only seven be chosen given budgetary constraints. Facing a very difficult choice, FWP (with stupefying insight) formed the initial committee without representation from West Yellowstone.
This colossal oversight raised more than a few hackles, and recognizing that commentary delivered in person is almost always much more entertaining than that delivered in print (it sure was in this case), there were a fair number of harsh words delivered via both mediums in response.
Don’t get me wrong here, there are some very fine folks that were named to the initial Madison gang of 7. It’s just that a lot more were left off.
Enough ‘constructive input’ was delivered to our esteemed Governor and Montana FWP that they hitched up their britches, snugged down their hats and appointed a West Yellowstonian to the Madison CAC – John Juracek.
John was one of the three CAC applicants from West and, as the others certainly would have, will discharge his CAC tasks with integrity, honor and an impeccable knowledge of and love for the Madison.
For an issue that is as damned sensitive in river users’ collective psyches, particularly given the flow management impacts on the fishery over the past few years with the Hebgen outflow issues, this was one hell of way to get things started.
Those folks around who found the officially presented rationale behind the recreation management review suspect to begin with (count our team among them) have found little comforting or encouraging in FWP’s management of the process thus far.
That said, kudos to the Guv and FWP for responding to this faux pas as they did, even if it did take a more than just a little effort from good folks in West Yellowstone and intervention from the Guv to get a reaction. Only time will answer if FWP’s management of the Madison River process can regain credibility and trust among the majority of river users.
Gonna need lots of strong coffee at those meetings gentlemen, and more transparent communication than a watered-down list of 3 or 4 ‘bullet points’ regarding your process.
