5 Ways to reduce your waste on the river
Most fishermen are aware of the amount of trash the sport produces; the acts of tying on flies and replacing leaders results in heaps of line waste, and don’t even get me started on getting snagged up. Our local rivers are crucial to the environment as well as to the lifestyle we love to live as fishermen. This means it is on our shoulders to be the protectors of this sacred water. Microplastics and monofilament in our water systems is an increasing threat and we all need to contribute to a solution. Today, I will explore five ways to ensure the waste produced fly fishing doesn’t end up in our river systems.
Adding a portable waste bucket to your gear
Many companies and organizations related to sport fishing are quite dedicated to the conservation of the sport in many ways, and Fishpond USA’s Piopod Microtrash Container is the perfect, small addition to any fisherman’s gear.
The easy-to-access lid gives you a place to store your monofilament waste while you fish, and keeps your trash secure, portable and out of our river systems. Any portable waste bucket that allows you to keep your trash secure will work, but Fishpond USA makes a great version to add to your gear.
Rocket Slugs cut down on line waste
In our day and age, marketing is targeted and advertisers are on all forms of social media. This aggregation has led me to many startup companies and organizations finding new and unique ways to contribute to the conservation of our watersheds.
The Rocket Slug is one of these incredible innovations. Any fisherman with any skill level has gotten hooked up in trees at some point while casting. It is one of the few, common issues encountered in all disciplines of the sport.
The Rocket Slug is a small missile-shaped object that clips to your line when you are snagged. Through some interesting use of physics, the slug is launched down the line and breaks the hook loose from it’s point of contact.
The use of simple tools like the slug can lead to the reduction of thousands of feet of line, per user, in our rivers every year! Snagged line contributes to river pollution more than most everything else; the microfilament is one issue in itself but a snagged line leads to far more waste — usually around six or more feet of line, and a lure is sacrificed every time a snag is out of easy access.
This massive length of line then creates a higher chance of snagging for the next person to fish that spot. This creates a line monster, destined to grow until someone comes along and commits to cleaning it up. I usually find one or two of these heaps of line every time I’m on the Cache La Poudre River, and can totally understand how it feels like an overwhelming problem that needs to be addressed.
Participate in organized clean up days to help our rivers
Although fishermen may contribute quite a lot of waste to the rivers, they aren’t the worst issue.
People seem to approach the water with a “Out of sight, out of mind” mentality, which creates a lack of respect for the waters and its inhabitants, and the river becomes a trash can.
Plastic and glass waste are a massive issue in these systems and it tends to come from those that don’t spend the time on the river like a fisherman does. We may make a mess, but there’s still the utmost respect for the watersheds.
American Rivers has a sub-organization dedicated to cleaning up rivers in every state across the U.S. They have already covered millions of miles of river and have removed 32.5 million pounds of litter and debris!
Work on your knot tying skills!
When fly fishing, the act of simulation is incredibly important. This leads to fishermen working quite diligently on their presentation, which means everything has to be precise and perfect down to the knots used to secure the fly.
This desire for perfection leads to the small microfilaments that end up in the waters, and line wasted re-tying a bum knot. Practicing improving one’s knot skills when not on the river can lead to a significant reduction of line used and wasted on the rivers. Combined with a portable waste receptacle, there’s no reason to contribute toward the waste issue at all.
Support Local Businesses or businesses dedicated to conservation
Bajio is a small, family-owned company that makes sunglasses and is dedicated to the conservation of our fisheries. The family spent a lot of time in Fort Collins, and are now located in Florida hoping to help out with preventing ocean pollution as well.
Bajio produces high-quality, polarized fishing glasses that are bio-based from recycled plastics. They are an awesome way to show some support for local businesses, the movement to reduce river pollution and look good on the water.
Overall, participating in the movement to reduce fishing-related pollution from our river systems does not have to be a full-time job, but making small changes in your gear or mindset can open you up to new conservationist opportunities to help make our community a cleaner, fishier place to live.
