After confirming with his fishing partner that the fish did appear to be on only one side of the river - the one farthest away from U.S. 89 - Thomas started to investigate.
He noticed the willows and the redbud dogwoods along the river were all dead, not just on stretches where the Logan River is close to the highway, but more than 20 feet away from the road in some places. Thomas realized the vegetation had been sprayed, and from the looks of it, right over the river in some places.
Thomas eventually discovered people had seen a vehicle equipped with a boom sprayer in the area. He believes about a five-mile stretch of road and river in the middle of Logan Canyon was affected.
He wrote a letter to the environmental section of the Utah Department of Transportation voicing his concern over the excessive spraying.
Thomas received a response from Ira Bickford, roadside vegetation manager for UDOT. Bickford said he was looking into the incident and would visit the site to see the impact.
Paul Cowley, a U.S. Forest Service fish biologist for the Wasatch-Cache Ranger District, confirmed the spraying is under investigation, but said he has not met with UDOT.
A UDOT official said Tuesday that a trip will be made to the Logan River next week to view the discussed area. UDOT officials are also still trying to determine whether it was one of the agency's machines that did the spraying.
While there were never any dead fish spotted, the vegetation along the river's edge was important for providing cover and cooling the water, and it was a home vital in insect life on which the fish depend for food. The dead vegetation will take years to replace.
One in a chain of over-spraying e-mails started by Thomas pointed out that in some cases the spraying of riparian vegetation eventually leads to river bank instability and requires costly restoration efforts and roadside stability projects.
Mark Vinson with the Bureau of Land Management BugLab at Utah State University said roadside herbicide spraying could have been a contributing factor in the disappearance of the salmonfly on the Logan River.
The once-numerous insect was a vital part of the river's ecosystem, but vanished sometime in the late 1960s. Vinson and Trout Unlimited have since spearheaded a salmonfly relocation effort on the Logan River.
Few wildlife enthusiasts pay more attention to their resource than anglers. If you notice something out of order, share it with other anglers and proper officials. A simple realization for Thomas could turn into a change in policy that benefits wildlife and those who enjoy it for an eternity.
brettp@sltrib.com
