June 18, 2010

The Board of Directors of California Inland Fisheries Foundation, Inc., (CIFFI), recently approved a $7,500 grant to the Almanor Fishing Association (AFA).  This $7,500 is in addition to the $7,500 granted to AFA earlier this year, making a total of $15,000 for needed improvements to AFA’s Fish Cage Program at Lake Almanor. 

AFA’s representatives, Paul Garrido and Doug Neal, attended the February 2010 CIFFI meeting and made a presentation to the Board, requesting assistance in the refurbishment of cages and platforms and modification of gates. Their very successful fish cage program, one of the largest, if not the largest in the State, has been in operation for over twenty years, and has held and released more than one million Eagle lake trout, supplied by the California Department of Fish and Game, into Lake Almanor. The program is maintained by volunteers of the AFA, which was formed in 1980. Over the years, weather conditions have taken their toll on the pens and after a after a particularly harsh winter in 2099-2010, AFA required funding assistance to bring the pens back into useable status. CIFFI was asked to help.

The Board of Directors of CIFFI made the commitment to ensure the program did not fail because of lack of funding and a check was sent to AFA to assist in the initial stages of the repair/rebuild project.  A commitment was also made to AFA for an additional $7,500 to be granted at such time as was warranted. AFA solicited a contractor who was very cooperative, taking on expenses and waiting for reimbursement, and in their eagerness to complete the work, committed to overhauling all eight pens, rather than doing one-qurter or one-half this year. With a total grant of $15,000 from CIFFI, and a $7,500 frant from Kokanee Power, plus personal donations from the AFA officers, the project is back on track and in good shape going forward.

CIFFI takes great pride in being instrumental in the success of the Lake Almanor Fish Cage repair project.