PA Stream Access and PFBC Budget Woes

Letort

Letort

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Interesting You Tuber based in PA discusses the loss of 25 miles of approved stocked trout water this year. Also discusses that 48% of PFBC budget is geared towards stocking.

Imagine if some of those dollars are diverted to creating permanent access to waters, that would be amazing. Other states have gone down this route (Wisconsin).

PA is so enmeshed in its put and take fishery that it will be very difficult to pivot.
 
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Sounds like if they didn't stock those waters, it would eliminate the need for access. That would save money. Taking stocking money and spending it on access doesn't save any money. It's just spending the same money you dont have on something else.
 
I'd like to see PFBC acquire more PFR's, no arguments there.

We've talked stocking reform to death on this forum, but generally speaking the most trash and poor angler behavior I've seen happens in April near opening day on stocked streams. I'd venture to say that posting of land has a lot to do with that. My frame of reference is what I see in SEPA, where stocked trout are the norm and a lot of people fishing for said trout will only do so in the spring. To be honest, I am not going to go out of my way to fish a stocked trout stream past June, there's not really a reason to do so when I can go fish for warmwater species in better habitat.

It's a little bit difficult for PFBC to just stop raising trout all of the sudden when a stream gets posted, it takes a year at minimum to get a legal sized trout from a hatchery. Those fish that may have been stocked in a now posted stretch will just get reallocated to another section or stream all together.

It would be nice to see some of the financial resources be reallocated to other projects, but any change will not be instant.
 
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tomgamber said:
Saw no removals
Click to expand...
I noticed that,Tom. I remember there were removals and find it interesting that removals are not listed. I remember hearing on a local radio station that one in Elk and three or four in Jefferson County were removed due to posting. My memory is not perfect so maybe I'm wrong but Byrnes Run and Rattlesnake Run were two of them I do remember and can can see them on arcgis map marked as stocked but if you click on stocking info for 2026 no info appears. So I don't think I'm spreading a falsehood in saying that there were removals mostly due to posting.
 
I didn't watch the video, but I know who runs the Finsylvania YouTube channel. I've read enough about that argument that will be made in that video on this website throughout the years.

Yes, PA should stock less, or maybe even not at all, and purchase land, access, easements, etc.

The real question is this: should I feel guilty for partaking in the pheasant stocking program? It's essentially the same thing. 🤷🏾‍♂️
 
Dear Board,

They removed most of Manada Creek from STW in 2026. It's local to me and we lost the majority of the stream to posting. Only the DHALO is stocked anymore. It's definitely listed in the release posted by Mike, but it was done in advance of the Opening Day 2026. Next March there will likely be additions to the subtractions.

Regards,

Tim Murphy 🙂
 
TimMurphy said:
Dear Board,

They removed most of Manada Creek from STW in 2026. It's local to me and we lost the majority of the stream to posting. Only the DHALO is stocked anymore. It's definitely listed in the release posted by Mike, but it was done in advance of the Opening Day 2026. Next March there will likely be additions to the subtractions.

Regards,

Tim Murphy 🙂
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That’s right. Nothing sneaky here based on past experience. The removals that occur after the annual news release of this type appear in the following year’s news release. Such actions sometimes take place during the preseason or inseason stocking periods or perhaps during or following the AFM’s field season. Changes to the stocking program for the following year are usually submitted in August. Some “social factor” examples would be removals that occur as a result of landowners’ changes of heart regarding permitting stocking or public fishing, a change in land ownership, lost parking, such as removal of parking opportunities by PennDot when new guard rails block former parking areas, bridge closings along former access roads, newly gated access roads, traffic increases over time that make stocking streams along such roads no longer safe, etc.
 
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First off, the PFBC does have programs in place to acquire land for access. I've been promoting and donating to one them longer than I've been on PAFF:

Here's one:

www.pa.gov

Conservation Acquisition Partnership (CAP) Program

CAP was created by the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission to solicit and accept donations to be used solely to obtain additional access to Pennsylvania's water.
www.pa.gov www.pa.gov

In regards to landowner postings, about two months ago I came across a gated parking area/pull-off by a Stocked Trout Waters section in Bucks County.

While I wasn't particularly interested in the trout fishing at this creek or at this location, it is a great place to flick poppers for panfish or bass or to drown worms. Carp also are present.

The problem was there was NO way to fish the creek or park safely at this spot. The only option is parking way down the road on the shoulder and fishing from a bridge while a LOT of traffic flew by...

The parking area solved that issue and I took advantage of it several times in the last two months to drown worms...

Until SOMEBODY pissed off the landowner and they chained the gate closed and posted NO TRESPASSING signs...

I contacted PFBC Southeast Region Law enforcement and the Township for more info, but the bottom line is, even IF it wasn't a Stocked Trout Water, bad behavior F'd up the fishing, at least for me...
 
Bamboozle said:
First off, the PFBC does have programs in place to acquire land for access. I've been promoting and donating to one them longer than I've been on PAFF:

Here's one:

www.pa.gov

Conservation Acquisition Partnership (CAP) Program

CAP was created by the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission to solicit and accept donations to be used solely to obtain additional access to Pennsylvania's water.
www.pa.gov www.pa.gov
Click to expand...
I also have been donating yearly to this fund.
 
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