Bear Lake Comments

Name: Eldon Robinson
Address: Laketown, UT
Date: 3/3/2009

Bear Lake is a natural body of water. However, in the early 1900’s the top twenty one feet of water was converted into reservoir storage. This fluctuation in lake level has caused many operational challenges for both Federal and State agencies of Utah and Idaho. I have lived in the Bear Lake area all my life and spent 27 years working at the Bear Lake State Park in Utah, I am now serving on the Rich County Conservation District. It has been my experience that the lake level will fluctuate, it is now in a lower stage, and will come back up again. I applaud the Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands in their efforts to put together a comprehensive management plan for the Sovereign Lands at Bear Lake. I have four comments I would like to make and hope they will receive consideration:

  1. I feel that the areas considered for class 6 (protect existing resource preservation uses) is insufficient. In addition to the common fish spawning areas of Swan Creek and Big Spring Creek, this classification needs to also include the historic areas of Falula Spring, North Eden Creek and the Rest Area drainage ditch. When conditions are right I have witnessed Bear Lake Cutthroat and other important species of fish to the lake eco-system spawn in these areas. Also, don’t forget the rocky substrate along the shore line of the east and south/west sides.
  2. The Rich County Conservation District is very concerned about the noxious and invasive plant life that has invaded the Sovereign land around Bear Lake. The plants that we are most concerned with are: dyer’s woad (Isatis tinctoria), common reed (Phragmites australis), salt cedar (Tamarix aphylla), Russian olive (Elaeagrus angustifolia). These invasive plants are very taxing on the water reserves and need to be controlled or eliminated. It is our desire that an aggressive plan be adopted and funded to take care of this serious issue on the exposed beaches.
  3. I do not understand why we would want to create an Off Highway Vehicle (OHV) riding area on the shores of Bear Lake. I am not opposed to using OHV’s to access the lake (ingress and egress), however, I am strongly opposed to opening an area and letting them travel wherever they please. As a safety issue; swimming, sunbathing, picnicking and other beach activities don’t mix with OHV use. There are plenty of OHV riding areas in the Cache National Forest and surrounding areas for that use.
  4. Lastly, I am concerned about enforcement of the Sovereign Land rules and regulations. In both the public workshops that I have attended there has been significant discussion on enforcement. In years past the majority of this enforcement has been taken care of by State Park Rangers and the Rich Country Sheriff’s Office. Most of the people in these workshops think that these enforcement efforts were handled by Sovereign Land Officers. I hope there is funding available, contractual agreements and plans to increase this enforcement effort in the future.

Thank you,
Eldon Robinson
Laketown, Utah