Hunting Washington Forum

Other Activities => Trapping => Topic started by: hardkorrhunter on November 15, 2013, 05:22:26 PM

Title: Beaver damns?
Post by: hardkorrhunter on November 15, 2013, 05:22:26 PM: Are there any laws pertaining to busting up beaver damns?
Title: Re: Beaver damns?
Post by: Humptulips on November 15, 2013, 06:10:08 PM: Technically yes but i have never heard of anyone getting a ticket.
You're supposed to have a hydraulic permit to do any work in the water.
If you do the work by hand you're safe. If you bring in a backhoe you may be courting problems with a permit.
Title: Re: Beaver damns?
Post by: Hannibal on November 15, 2013, 06:14:13 PM: What Types of Activities are Subject to the Law?

The major types of activities in freshwater requiring an HPA include, but are not limited to: stream bank protection; construction or repair of bridges, piers, and docks; pile driving; channel change or realignment; conduit (pipeline) crossing; culvert installation; dredging; gravel removal; pond construction; placement of outfall structures; log, log jam, or debris removal; installation or maintenance of water diversions; and mineral prospecting. Major saltwater activities requiring an HPA include, but are not limited to: construction of bulkheads, fills, boat launches, piers, dry docks, artificial reefs, dock floats, and marinas; placement of utility lines; pile driving; and dredging. It is important to emphasize that the above are only examples of major types of activities requiring an HPA and that any construction activity that uses, diverts, changes, or obstructs the bed or flow of state waters requires an HPA.

http://wdfw.wa.gov/licensing/hpa/faq.html (http://wdfw.wa.gov/licensing/hpa/faq.html)

Some entities have blanket permits.......

but,,,,,
Title: Re: Beaver damns?
Post by: FC on November 15, 2013, 06:16:03 PM: My experience (in your area) is that if you ask enforcement about it they will crawl right up your butthole and threaten you with all kinds of legal action. If you are quiet you can manage the problem yourself.
Title: Re: Beaver damns?
Post by: kirkdekalb on November 16, 2013, 01:59:54 AM: Quote
My experience (in your area) is that if you ask enforcement about it they will crawl right up your butthole and threaten you with all kinds of legal action. If you are quiet you can manage the problem yourself

It doesn,t matter how severe the threat or how eminent, that is their first response here.

When I spent time working in Wisconsin years ago, that was the same response my friends got when their crop land was being severely flooded.
Title: Re: Beaver damns?
Post by: rasbo on November 16, 2013, 03:09:49 AM: what dam? :tup:
Title: Re: Beaver damns?
Post by: RadSav on November 16, 2013, 05:27:28 AM: I knew a guy out of Duvall that was told he could not disturb the dam of his resident beaver, but that with a license he could trap the beaver. After the beaver was trapped he again tried to get permission to destroy the dam and again his request was rejected. Six months later he was ticketed for having an illegal pond on a salmon spawning stream.

The guy did embellish most of his stories. But, judging by the level of anger when I talked with him I would expect a reasonable level of truth to his story. And his wife was helping tell the story too. I expect enough truth that I would just privately clear debris and brush from around the stream to improve salmon recovery and reduce the chances of excess flooding ;) ;)
Title: Re: Beaver damns?
Post by: hardkorrhunter on November 16, 2013, 06:05:13 AM: I'm shocked that fish and wildlife have done nothing about considering they constructed a fish ladder all the way up the creek just to leave a beaver damn plugging it up.
Title: Re: Beaver damns?
Post by: Humptulips on November 16, 2013, 10:54:29 AM: I have never seen a beaver dam salmon cannot get over. Seen some pretty big ones too at times. When the high water comes they make it over.

On another note is the spelling in the heading intentional? Gives it a slighly different meaning. :chuckle:
Title: Re: Beaver damns?
Post by: hardkorrhunter on November 16, 2013, 05:57:08 PM: Lol. No not intentional. And high water or not I can't see a salmon getting even close to crossing this dude.
Title: Re: Beaver damns?
Post by: Humptulips on November 16, 2013, 10:15:48 PM: You might be surprised. There were several log jams on the Copalis that were big. A couple were a thousand feet long. No exaggeration. Salmon made it through and up river. Tribe got a grant to clean them out so they are gone. No more salmon then before.

Years ago I was logging on the Res. We were logging across a cr and it was plugged with debris to the max. On a high water the fish went around. I seen them swimming up the road.
Go back to that dam on a high water and I bet you will see a way.
Title: Re: Beaver damns?
Post by: Hannibal on November 17, 2013, 12:07:49 AM: best I have seen is at the wwu Bothel compass,,,,,,... at least 12 feet high....

AAAAAAAAAAAAnnnddddddddddddd,,,,,,watching Nat geo and the marty stoford videos as a kid,,,,,,I am guessing they will clean that one to........
Title: Re: Beaver damns?
Post by: Hannibal on November 17, 2013, 12:14:21 AM: Should add,,,,,,wdfw is currently being inundated with collage grad with no scene of what the outdoors mean.
You used to be able to call a "biologist" an get a approval for dam removal. Now state, federal and county PLUS the Indians decide if you are worthy of a permit.....
IF you were to file for a permit, expect a 6-12 month process .......aka what dam............
Title: Re: Beaver damns?
Post by: Cylvertip on November 20, 2013, 09:09:43 AM: I recommend a small hand saw, a pair of loppers, and one of these: V&B Handy Series Tiller/ Mattock with the 36" handle.

Just sayin. :rolleyes:
Title: Re: Beaver damns?
Post by: BsB on November 20, 2013, 09:29:55 AM: Quote from: RadSav on November 16, 2013, 05:27:28 AM
I knew a guy out of Duvall that was told he could not disturb the dam of his resident beaver, but that with a license he could trap the beaver. After the beaver was trapped he again tried to get permission to destroy the dam and again his request was rejected. Six months later he was ticketed for having an illegal pond on a salmon spawning stream.

The guy did embellish most of his stories. But, judging by the level of anger when I talked with him I would expect a reasonable level of truth to his story. And his wife was helping tell the story too. I expect enough truth that I would just privately clear debris and brush from around the stream to improve salmon recovery and reduce the chances of excess flooding ;) ;)
Was that the damn that blew out a year ago or so by the round-a-bout on 203?

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk
Title: Re: Beaver damns?
Post by: quadrafire on November 20, 2013, 09:39:26 AM: Unless you get rid of the critters, removing the dam is pretty pointless.
A couple years ago 4 of us spent about 2 hrs dismantling a small dam. Amazing how much work it took to tear it apart.

Rebuilt by the next weekend.
Title: Re: Beaver damns?
Post by: dmv9 on November 20, 2013, 10:15:45 AM: It was rebuilt due to beaver union laws ;-)