ARECOMMENDATION that public access
The proposal would limit access and create nearly 50 "safety zones" that would curtail hunting near primitive campsites. Those are among the most controversial elements of the Watershed Property Management Plan crafted by the Friends of the Rappahannock organization, under contract with the city of Fredericksburg.
How to best manage, long-term, the land Fredericksburg owns along the Rappahannock and Rapidan rivers has been a pivotal question since the city protected the property with a conservation easement in 2006.
The plan was formally unveiled at a public meeting last night at the University of Mary Washington after debuting Friday on the Friends of the Rappahannock Web site (riverfriends.org). Due to deadlines, this column was written before that meeting.
The public has until March 3 to comment on the draft--a time frame the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, one of three joint holders of the easement, says is rushed. Other easement holders are The Nature Conservancy and the Virginia Outdoors Foundation.
Regional biologist Jerry Sims' assigned counties include those with easement properties. He said the VDGIF provided an agency position with recommendations, but had "almost no involvement in the development of the draft plan that was placed on the FOR Web site Thursday morning."
Sims said between 30 and 90 days to enable thorough public review would be more reasonable, adding, "It is very important that the public be heard on this important issue."
Eventually, City Council will have a public hearing and determine whether the draft plan or any revision becomes the adopted course of action.
PAY TO PLAY?
The draft plan is a comprehensive document. Balancing myriad recreational and conservation interests--some of them competing--
The conservation easement allowed for up to five new public river access points. But the draft plan states, "Implementation of this level of access is inconsistent with the easement's goal to also maintain the recreational experience and conservation values of the corridor that have been identified for protection."
The plan also states, "Such a density of access is comparable to the Shenandoah River, which is frequently cited by recreational users as having lost much of its scenic appeal due to human intrusions."
The plan proposes no new public access, stating, "[The] outfitter model represents the favored approach for future additional access," and, "New publicly maintained access is not considered necessary at this time."
That is highly debatable, observes the VDGIF, which made access a centerpiece of pre-plan recommendations. The VDGIF noted that state-managed access points at Ely's Ford, Kelly's Ford and Motts Run are too far apart to "allow for one-day float trips which are most desirable for hunters, anglers and wildlife viewers." Sims said access has actually decreased over the last decade with the loss of the access point at Germanna.
Some claim the only people who might enjoy "day-trip" access where some leisurely fishing may be possible under the proposal are those who pay to play, employing the commercial canoe and kayak liveries, which currently charge about $50 per day.
Quality of those livery operations aside, those questioning the draft plan worry whether it is appropriate public policy to shut off reasonable day-trip access on a public waterway except for that which is commercially procured.
The Friends of the Rappahannock, which drafted the plan, operates from the same 3219 Fall Hill Ave. complex as the Virginia Outdoor Center, one of the two commercial outfitters with access to the Rappahannock in proximity to Fredericksburg.
The city, explained Fredericksburg senior planner Erik Nelson, isn't keen on building more access points that it would be obliged to maintain. He also cites apparent reluctance from Stafford and Spotsylvania counties to construct access points at locations where they front the river.
But Sims said the VDGIF would happily take responsibility for designing, building and maintaining one or two more public access points.
"We know our public, our sportsmen, need better public access to this fishery and these wildlife resources," he said.
'SAFETY ZONES'
Another issue raising concern among outdoor enthusiasts is the proposed creation of nearly 50 no-hunting "safety zones" around areas where people have been known to camp along the river.
The plan addresses in detail the problems associated with undesignated primitive campsites, citing campfires, loud late-night parties, improperly buried human waste, trash, unauthorized use of motorized vehicles and more. Yet it documents these camping locations and proceeds to recommend buffering them with no-hunting zones.
"There are numerous campsites along the Rapidan and Rappahannock rivers between Hunting Run Intake to Hole in the Wall and Rappahannock River Campground to Hole in the Wall that have been abused," reads the report. It cites semipermanent camps, evidenced by tarps, grills, horseshoe pits, garbage cans, raking of the ground, movement of stone slabs to form chairs and tables, and construction of primitive canoe landings.
"Many campsites are littered with trash," the report states.
Hunters providing comments for the record prior to completion of the draft plan noted that campers typically use the river in late spring and early summer. They now loudly wonder why primitive campsites--identified as perhaps the biggest conservation problem along the easement--seem to get priority and protection while hunting is restricted.
Both Todd Cocker, president of the Virginia Waterfowlers' Association, and W. Frank Wade, of Waterfowl USA, indicate their groups have concerns with the proposed restrictions.
Centreville resident John Meehan said he reviewed the maps depicting proposed safety zone locations, and noticed four proposed zones in exactly the places where he has hunted waterfowl.
"I have spent time along this section of river for the past seven hunting seasons and have never encountered another person during hunting season while enjoying the unspoiled beauty and pristine river," Meehan said.
Besides being posted on the Friends of the Rappahannock Web site, the plan can be read at the Fredericksburg Planning Office, Room 209 of City Hall, 715 Princess Anne St. Comments can be made in person in the Planning Office, by telephone to senior planner Erik Nelson at 540/372-1179, through the FOR Web site, or by mail to Planning Department, Box 7447, Fredericksburg, Va. 22404.
Ken Perrotte can be reached at The Free Lance-Star, 616 Amelia Street, Fredericksburg, Va. 22401, by fax at 373-8455 or e-mail
Email: outdoors@freelancestar.com.