Md is now banning boots!
 

Footwear blamed for 'rock snot' invasion of Md. streams
By Associated Press

Felt-soled fishing boots, of all things, are apparently the latest threat to local fish populations, prompting Maryland to ban the shoes in hopes of stopping an invasive form of algae -- appropriately dubbed "rock snot" for its resemblance to yellow-brown mucous -- from hurting pristine trout streams, the Associated Press reports.
Maryland's Department of Natural Resources plans to prohibit wading with felt soles starting March 21 after discovering that "rock snot," or didymo -- a type of algae that coats riverbeds in thick mats -- thrives in the shoes' damp fibers and hitches a ride from one body of water to another.
Rock snot has found its way across the U.S. and as of March 21, Maryland will become the first state to enforce a felt boot ban. It was found in 2008 in the Gunpowder Falls north of Baltimore. A western Maryland stream, the Savage River, also has tested positive for the organism but hasn't had a rock snot bloom. Similar bans will take effect in Vermont on April 1 and in Alaska in 2012.
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Saw a TV show about the rock snot - it literally clogs up some streams.

Nasty stuff - no way to get rid of it in a stream without killing everything else.

I thought that went into effect March 1... Oh well, my waders are rubber anyway. Lotta people bitching and moaning about having to buy new waders..

Come on, really ?? Its a 100 bucks and could really save our streams in the long run.

Well my neoprene chest waders had to be custom made in shoe size 16 at a substantial cost, so for me to invest in another pair is WAY out of the question.

Besides, only people like us are going to be affected by this ban anyway. The same algae can also hitch a ride in most other fabrics. So everytime someone walks or wades through streams. creeks and rivers they are potentially doing the same exact thing. Are we going to ban shoes next? Ban walking in or around the water?

The algae also grows on the shores at the tidal lines. So all of those guys you see standing on the bank at low tide aren't breaking the law, but they're at risk for causing the same damage.

Easier solution for law abiding fishermen? (Who are the ONLY ONES this ban will affect) A decent educational program through retailers where waders and boots are sold, through online fishing communities like this and to keep a spray bottle of cleaner handy for cleaning waders/boots when leaving a waterway.

Another poorly thought out law that will have zero effect on curbing the problem.

So it's my fault you have big feet ????;););)

16 huh ?? I thought my 13's were a pain in the ass....:rolleyes:

You mean there have been others:D.
5th (Marty)

Yeah, my parents went through hell in the 70's trying to find shoes for my brother and me....we were always 2 sizes ahead of what manufacturers were making and there was no internet to search for such things. How we ever made it without just wrapping our paws in newspaper I'll never know. :rolleyes:



Our government at its finest, always trying to "do something" regardless of the real consequences.