Fisheries management isn't rocket science - it's much more complex. The rocket scientists just have the laws of physics to contend with. Fisheries scientists have to grapple with the combination of the "laws" of nature and human behaviour all at once. Alberta is recognised as being on the leading edge of fisheries management science, particularly walleye management, primarily because we have such a high level of per waterbody fishing pressure (off the charts compared to most other provinces and states). Despite this extreme pressure, many collapsed walleye populations are recovering. F&W has to know what they're doing to pull that off! Now, there's a new problem, and that's trying to keep recovered populations from collapsing again, because the potential pressure is still there, catch rates are high and folk's perceptions and expectations are also high. Pigeon Lake is a perfect example of the dilemma of managing recovering fisheries. How do you maintain the sustainability of a walleye population that is within a short drive of over 2,000,000 people, of which likely 200,000 are fishermen with a taste for walleye? To make things more complex, Alberta has an open-access policy for angling, meaning that you can't restrict the numbers of fishermen on the water. The only thing to do is control intentional harvest at a level matched with fish production, knowing that catch and release will unintentionally kill fish also.

The fact that many of us refuse to grasp this simple supply and demand concept is evident by testimony of my friend the banker, who tells me that despite record high income levels, many Alberta families are financed to the hilt and just barely keeping up with the payments - one or two lost paycheques from bankruptcy.

Imagine managing your bank account when everyone in the family has access to the account, wants all their wishes fulfilled (and tells you that every chance they get), the demand to spend is vitrually unlimited, you only learn what they spend when you ask and even then its an estimate, your account balance and monthly pay amount is estimated plus or minus 50%, and every once in a while the Big Banker in the Sky pulls a switch and you lose a year's pay? Fun, huh? Sustainable? You'd better manage carefully!

I think F&W should have a Biologist-for-a-Day program. That would be a learning experience! Give those folks a break, guys. The only thing they're not doing well is taking each of us aside and explaining in detail what they're doing and why, allowing the armchair biologists to thrive. That said, they're only a phone call away...