Look after your piece of the bush so we can all enjoy trout season

Do the right thing, care for campsites and boat ramps and stay COVID-safe, says David Ikedife

TASSIE’S anglers welcome the opening of our wild brown trout waters every August. This year, the coronavirus lockdown has some of us feeling a little more excited than usual to throw a line in.

Maybe you’re looking forward to stalking the trout with those new flies, or you just want to drown a few worms with a mate.

But with some interstate borders reopening and the pandemic still a part of our daily lives, we must continue to take personal responsibility for stopping the spread of the coronavirus. Back in March, Hydro Tasmania was one of many land managers that took the step of temporarily closing access to our lakes and land. At that time, every Tasmanian was being asked to play their part and stay at home.

Our lakes and land reopened in early June and we have been so pleased to welcome people back.

When you visit our sites this fishing season, you might see some new signage. Some signs will ask you to comply with all state government health advice to prevent the spread of COVID-19. It’s a simple message. Wash your hands often, maintain social distancing, stay home if you feel unwell and keep up-todate with any travel restrictions. Even in these remote locations, the coronavirus can easily be transmitted as people gather around boat ramps, campgrounds or toilet facilities.

Watching our friends in Victoria should remind us all how quickly things can change. You can help by doing the right thing.

And speaking of doing the right thing, at Hydro Tasmania we’re mindful of the privilege we have of being Australia’s largest water manager. When you are lucky enough to watch the sunrise on a foggy morning over Great Lake, it reminds us that we have a responsibility to look after something that’s pretty special.

We work with our partners at the Inland Fisheries Service, Marine and Safety Tasmania, Parks and Wildlife, local councils and other groups to keep our sites in order, upgrade boat ramps and jetties, build new toilet blocks, maintain flows for spawning runs and manage lake levels for the enjoyment of all Tasmanians (although someone’s always happy to tell us we’ve got that last one wrong).

So naturally it is disappointing when we find our sites vandalised or damaged. Recently, a Hydro Tasmania Facebook post that showed damage at the Catagunya boat ramp in the Central Highlands, with signs