Apparently, it’s not enough for some folks to simply own a mile or two of riverfront along the Provo River in Provo Canyon when the public resource – the river and the fish – can be exploited for personal gain. And thanks to the Utah Legislature giving away the rights of the public to “freely” fish the privately-owned beds of the Provo River through the perversely named “Public Waters Access Act” of 2010 — there’s now gold (in the form of brown trout) and silver (in the form of rainbow trout and whitefish) that can be mined in them-thar waters by those who own the beds over which those fishies swim.
How so? By forcing members of the public to pay cold hard cash to enjoy the resources that they — the public — actually own!
And so it is that a certain landowner who has recently blocked public access to much of river in the upper canyon is apparently seeking to collect a small “rod fee” (maybe just a mere $60/day) from anyone seeking to fish for publicly-owned trout in the Lower Provo River — the waters of which are actually owned by the public while those waters are flowing in it — an arguably navigable river at that. Indeed, there’s now apparently lots of dough to be made off of this Utah gem — a state-recognized Blue Ribbon fishery that Utahns have “freely” fished for generations. Indeed, since before they were even Utahns (i.e., before statehood).
So welcome to the “New Utah Way” — it’s pay to play. And thanks, Utah Legislature, for making it OK!
(Meanwhile, I’ll bet your grandpap-ay would rue the day his favorite spot was given away to only those who would pay. But I digress, now let’s make some hay.)
Herbert Ley, Salt Lake City