Column: Fishing in the Pincher Creek Area - sort of

Joe Cunningham, Columnist, Pincher Creek Voice

I started fishing in the Pincher Creek area 19 years ago, shortly after moving to Calgary from Nova Scotia. In Nova Scotia I kept most of the fish I caught. That was the cultural tradition; but my brother Jeff pointed out to me one day that the big brook trout I was showing off were the best spawners. I was already worried about the stocks as I was very aware of the stories regarding how much better the fishing had been in the past. Indeed, the salmon fishing exploits of my grandfather, an Anglican minister who worked mostly on the weekend and seemed to fish an enviable amount, were almost legendary. Many maritime streams and lakes were virtually dead by the 1970s and the regulations still permitted individual quotas of 15 trout per day. So, I was ready for the catch and release philosophy of the fly fishing fraternity of Calgary when I arrived there in 1990. Actually, I was impressed with the "can do" attitude I found here with respect to to a lot of things.

    Now, I'm acutely aware of the ethical issues related to catch and release and find ethical arguments against the practice unassailable on a philosophical level. What could possibly be acceptable about a day's outing in the wilderness spent traumatizing lower vertebrates. However, the hunting animal in me seems compelled, at this point, to continue. And in my own and others' defence I have to claim, with all sincerity, that I believe I have at least gained a much deeper insight into the intricate workings of the natural world than would be possible if I did not pursue this compulsion. Furthermore, although I have no way of knowing what is actually happening in the fish's mind at the time, I have often caught the same fish twice in a day and have occasionally hooked the same fish twice in the space of 10 minutes.
    However, this preamble is leading to some much bigger issues related to the use we all share of the beautiful wilderness at our doorstep. For regardless of the good intentions and "can-do" attitude of various problem-solvers with various philosophies and ideologies there are some huge problems we're facing and our responses to these problems will affect future generations profoundly.
    Use of the forestry reserve near Pincher Creek has been constantly increasing over the 19 years I have fished here. Angling pressure actually doubled during the 90s and I am sure that data will show that it has at least doubled again since 2000. At the same time I have noticed dramatic increases in the use of ATVs back there. ATV density is a huge problem on its own, so I'll not deal with it here other than to point out that its root is  also directly tied to the planet's actual human carrying capacity. So let's deal with that concept.
    James Lovelock, the guy who figured out the hole in the ozone layer, predicted in 1965 that the biggest problem by 2000 would be serious environmental issues. He says that such things as re-cycling and alternative fuels are just a feel-good waste of time because it's now too late to stop climate change. He also claims that the human carrying capacity of the planet is about 1 billion. If he's correct (and he's correct a lot) we're in for big trouble as we're now approaching 7 billion. Of course, here in Pincher Creek we're fortunate that we're not among the most densely populated areas on the planet (even though Calgary has a reasonable share of it). Nevertheless, for the observant it's noteworthy that we're now experiencing, right here, a small phenomenon of overpopulation - continual windmill development. The key point being "continual". It seems the powers that be would like to put them everywhere and anywhere. I love the idea of windmills, but even if we cover the entire planet with them they won't be enough for 7 billion people. In fact, that seems to be the problem with everything now - from fishing and ATV recreation to transportation, energy and food systems. Whatever we do culturally and collectively creates new problems when we've passed the carrying capacity of our territory, and our territory is now the entire planet.
Now, of course, the reason there are 3 times more people in the mountains than a decade ago is obviously not just a result of population growth; but it is related and it is worrying.
   Returning to fishing, it's sobering to consider the history of the activity in Europe. With a higher population density there than here, as well as previous historic degradation of the watershed environment, fishing in Europe is now a rich man's sport with membership fees that would make championship level golf courses in Canada look like a Walmart bargain. In Alberta, that "can-do" attitude kicked in again and in 1998 fishing regulations were changed, creating a large collection of catch and release watersheds to help sustain the wild trout stocks. Many of them are in our neighbourhood - the Castle, the Oldman, the Crowsnest etc.
    But there's a problem. The fish in those streams now behave differently. It's nothing new to well travelled fly fishers who have been around a long time. Fish have acted nervous and wary in some famous trout streams for years. But take note, fishermen from those locales now fly here for their quality fishing! And as the years have passed, sadly, I now regularly observe the battle scars of world weary trout I catch who no longer seem quite as wild, strong, spirited and healthy. But I guess I could be imagining that part, right?
    Back to the big picture.... So what are we going to do? In the past, collectively, we have demonstrated human hubris. Sometimes it's glowing rhetoric regarding human accomplishments and sometimes it's beliefs our species is related to something eternal and divine. But in the grand scheme of things we haven't been here all that long. Biological study has shown that the vast majority of species that have ever existed on our planet are now extinct. It has also shown that successful species we have studied during our recent history follow 2 basic long term population patterns - either a smooth fluctuation between ecosystem maximum carrying capacity and times of diminished population or the second pattern - a dramatic rise up to and above ecosystem carrying capacity followed by dramatic crash (usually of their whole micro-ecosystem) and then slow recovery. We don't really know where we fit yet, but it doesn't look good from my perspective. It would be foolish to think we have no say in it - after all, aren't we a democracy?
    So why do we only allow ourselves leadership that rules out something like stopping economic growth? Are we afraid? And if we are, and continue to be will our descendants (at least those that survive) hang us in effigy? That's sort of what happened many years ago on Easter Island. When white explorers first found the sad remnants of that culture it generated numerous strange hypotheses for many years until the simple truth finally dawned. They had continued to exploit their environment until it was too late. They had been wealthy and advanced. What was left in 1722 when Jacob Rogeveen landed there and renamed it Easter Island makes Mel Gibson in Road Warriors look like fun and games. The unfortunate survivors had tried to topple the symbols of their leaders and gods in revenge for not saving them, but had not the strength to accomplish more than pathetic efforts. It all seemed so bizarre that one theory that gained considerable interest for many years was that aliens had been responsible for the inexplicable ruins.    
    On a larger scale the Roman Empire used up all their local energy supplies, which was, for them, grain to feed working animals, forcing them to go further and further afield and employ greater and greater forceful manipulation of less fortunate peoples to support their own wealth until the whole thing collapsed. The city of Rome went from a population of 1 million in 100 A.D. to a low of about 30,000 by the middle ages.
    This time the whole planet is at stake. We can point fingers at each other or learn from the sufficient history and knowledge at our fingertips and commit an act of true courage.