Most Montanans would be surprised to hear there are more than 10,000 private ponds across our state — a state which is internationally known for its sparkling rivers and wild trout fisheries. One might also wonder why Montana’s Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks is approving 200 more private ponds every year –  one a day for each working day at the agency. 

Yet, those numbers are real as related to a legislative interim committee by Eileen Ryce, the Department’s Fisheries Division Administrator whose job is to regulate the ponds and, more importantly, what fish get put in those ponds.  

But it’s tough to regulate when there are hardly any regulations — and when it comes to importing fish for private ponds, Montana’s regulatory structure barely exists.  It’s so bad Ryce is justifiably worried that tragedies will ensue as people have fish and the water they’re in shipped in from hatcheries all across the nation — and that happens more than a hundred times a year, not counting illegal shipments.

Simply put, hatcheries are designed for exactly one purpose – to grow as many fish as possible in as quickly as possible.  And therein lies the rub.  Because hatcheries concentrate far more fish into far less space than any natural river, lake, or stream, they have significant problems with diseases.

Montanans who have been around for awhile will recall the outbreak of whirling disease on Montana’s Upper Madison River a few decades back that wiped out the rainbow trout.  But few know that Montana frequently received both fish and eggs from Colorado hatcheries, where biologists knew their hatcheries had whirling disease but believed it was a “hatchery disease” that wouldn’t survive in the wild.  

Not only did they continue to plant numerous streams and rivers in Colorado with diseased fish, Montana routinely received both fish and eggs from Colorado hatcheries and planted them in Montana’s waters — including Hebgen Lake, which is directly upstream from the Upper Madison. Just coincidence?  Hardly.  

So when it comes to private parties buying fish to stock their ponds from out-of-state hatcheries, the chance for diseases such as whirling, or any number of diseases common to hatcheries, is far from minimal.  According to the regulations, those hatcheries only have to be inspected annually – and Montana’s private ponds get a license for 10 years between inspections. 

Disease, however, is only one of the threats.  The other is illegal introduction of species that are not allowed in Montana and are wholly inappropriate to be located near or in the flood plains of our major rivers.  Yes, in the floodplain — and Fish, Wildlife and Parks is indeed approving private ponds located in the flood plain, as well as outflows and groundwater connected to streams and rivers. 

It would be great to say Montana’s Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks is so competent that none of these threats will materialize.  But one only need to look at the agency’s introduction of mycis shrimp into Flathead Lake that wiped out the once abundant salmon fishery and completely changed the aquatic ecosystem to prove that assumption false.

Agencies make mistakes — and they make a lot more when they don’t even have adequate regulations to follow.  Approving “a pond a day” basically ensures Montana’s world-famous rivers will be plagued by disease and illegal species introductions — and in this case, forewarned is not forearmed.  

So what can we do?  Fish, Wildlife and Parks should put a moratorium on new private pond approvals until a realistic and workable regulatory structure is in place.  After all, what’s the rush?  There are plenty of rivers and lakes to fish, so why risk the potential for disaster?