Significance of Blue Ribbon fishery designation

[greenlander]

With my recent post about PA stream status vs. other states, and another recent post about F&S's Top 12 trout states, I've been doing more digging and ended up stumbling on some info about the Blue Ribbon fishery designation ... which is evidently a government provided designation indicating a fishery of extremely high quality.

PA has none, and only 5 other states do: MI, MO, WI, UT and MT (although I've read elsewhere than WA has some blue ribbon water).

I was very surprised to see states like WY, OR, CO, etc not on the list.

Anyone know if this designation is meaningful? Or is it just an antiquated, largely meaningless designation?

 

[shortrod]

There is no one 'Blue Ribbon fishery designation'. Some states each have there own designation and criteria for 'Blue Ribbon' fisheries. PA has the wild trout classification system. Many of our class A wild trout streams could be considered our 'Blue Ribbon' fisheries ie Upper Delaware, Letort, Big Spring, Falling Spring, Penns, Breeches, Spring, BFC, LJR, ...

 

[gulfgreyhound]

In the back of my mind the term came from some streams being marked in red on a map as not being the best quality for fishing? Hence the others were called "blue ribbon" streams?
The deliniation may well just be done by each state.

 

[greenlander]

Hasty reading on my part again. I had read this page

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Ribbon_fishery

And read "in the United States by goverment .." as "by the United States Government".

I was taking it as a US Fish and Wildlife Service designation. Which, clearly, it is not.

 

[pete41]

The insinuation behind "Blue ribbon" was that it equated to a world class fishing destination.
At one point a river such as the Madison in Montana may have deserved that but times and conditions change,tourist bureaus don't.
Best taken with a Grain of salt in many cases.

 

[Acristickid]

Sounds like a marketing ploy.