As somebody who fishes lake Quinault religiously I found this interesting. Not saying there isnt a pollution problem but it just looks like they are searching For any excuse to keep ot closed. a good indicator is how they mentioned illegal dock building.... They threaten to keep the lake closed or to close it every year so this may change.
FYI-
Article 1
TAHOLAH, Wash. (AP) - The Quinault Indian Nation is closing Lake Quinault on the Olympic Peninsula to non-tribal fishing until further notice.
President Fawn Sharp said Tuesday the emergency measure is aimed at protecting water quality in the tribe-owned lake.
She said tribal leaders are concerned leaky septic tanks owned by non-tribal residents in the area may have caused untreated sewage to get into the lake. The tribe has detected pollution in some areas of the lake and plans to conduct more water quality tests.
Sharp said the tribe plans to monitor any fish caught by tribal members. She said they are also worried about reports of illegal fishing by non-tribal members and docks being built illegally on the lake.
The lake is located on the southwestern edge of Olympic National Park.
Article 2-
Lake Quinault is to remain closed to all non-tribal fishing. The closure is effective until further notice, according to Quinault President Fawn Sharp.
“The Quinault Business Committee has made the decision in a unanimous action, effective immediately” said Sharp. “We cannot stand by and allow our sensitive aquatic ecosystems to continue to be diminished. This action has been taken to protect the lake and is an emergency measure to protect the health and safety of all our communities.”
“We are very concerned about water quality in the lake,” she said. “We are concerned that non-tribal septic systems from the surrounding homes and businesses may have resulted in a severe problem with untreated sewage and caused serious health concerns. We have detected hot spots of pollution in the lake and will be using this time to conduct thorough water quality studies and compliance with our regulations. Any fish taken by tribal members in the meantime will be carefully monitored,” she said. “We will not reopen the lake to non-Indian fishermen until we consider it safe and appropriate to do so.”
Another key reason is a low predicted forecast of sockeye salmon returns. “We closed our beaches for much the same reasons many years ago and have successfully brought them back to health with our management practices,” said Sharp.
“The incidents of illegal fishing by non-tribal fishermen have become the subject of numerous reports to our enforcement officers and staff. We have also received reports of unpermitted docks and other structures built illegally on the lake, and boat speeding has occasionally gotten out of hand.,” she said. At this time, we are faced with cuts to our budgets as a result of the federal sequestration and will not have the enforcement coverage at the lake to effectively patrol these illegal activities,” she said.
“The lake is on our reservation and belongs to the Tribe. It is our responsibility to manage this unique resource as part of our heritage, in a way that will benefit our people—today and in the future,” she said.
“So it is indeed a variety of reasons that lead us to this action. When we choose to lease our lands to proprietors, or to allow non-tribal members to share our resources, we do so with the expectation that they will abide by Quinault law, practice good stewardship and treat this beautiful lake with the respect it deserves.”
This last statement is a joke. Have you looked at your own little town Fawn? How about your Cook Creek fishery? If we treated your area like your people do, it would be so much worse.
How about your dump and wrecking yard right at your lake hatchery?
What a joke.
