Trout Unlimited gathers for annual meeting in Boise: Volunteer leaders and national staff convene at Grove Hotel Sept. 12-15

Sept. 12, 2007

Contact:
James Piotrowski: (208) 331-9200
Steve Moyer: (703) 447-8401

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Trout Unlimited gathers for annual meeting in Boise
Volunteer leaders and national staff convene at Grove Hotel Sept. 12-15

BOISE – Trout Unlimited will hold its 48th annual meeting in Boise from Sept. 12-15.
Dozens of volunteer leaders from around the country and Trout Unlimited national staff will convene at the Grove Hotel, 245 S. Capitol Boulevard.

“Boise is a logical place for this year’s annual meeting to celebrate progress and success for protecting and restoring trout habitat,” said Steve Moyer, TU’s vice president for government affairs. “The state of Idaho under then-Gov. Jim Risch and continuing with Gov. Butch Otter has advanced a commendable proposal to protect national forest roadless areas in Idaho. Boise’s Mayor David Bieter has provided strong leadership for habitat restoration projects, acquiring more riverfront protected park areas in the city, and is an advocate for protecting the river’s water quality from the proposed Atlanta Gold Mine in the Middle Fork Boise River.”

Events open to press include:
• Conservation Tour of Boise River Projects:  Thursday Sept. 13, 8 a.m.
Volunteers will showcase their restoration work on three sites along the Boise River:
1. Eagle Island: This project will highlight restored habitat for trout spawning and rearing to the Boise River. The restored channel is about 3,300 feet (slightly over 1/2 mile) in length.
2. Julia Davis Park: Located at the south end of Julia Davis Park, the 300-foot-long channel is connected to the Boise River and provides off channel spawning, rearing and overwintering habitat for trout and other fishes.
3. Harris Ranch in East Boise: A new side channel of the Boise River will be created for the purposes of restoring spawning, rearing, and over-wintering fish habitat, all of which have been lost over time due to a changed river ecosystem. When complete the channel will be about one mile in length.   
The tour will also include a trip to Idaho City to view the Mores Creek floodplain restoration project.
• Volunteer Awards Luncheon Sept. 14, at noon in the hotel. Awards will be presented to state councils, local chapters and individuals for excellence and leadership in coldwater conservation.  Landowners in the Boise valley will also be recognized for their conservation efforts.
• Restoring Idaho’s Salmon Legacy, panel discussion Sept. 15, noon in the hotel. Panelists including Lt. Gov. Jim Risch, Pat Ford of Save Our Wild Salmon and Jim Riley of the Intermountain Forest Products Association, will discuss the future of salmon and steelhead recovery in Idaho.

Trout Unlimited is North America’s leading coldwater fisheries conservation organization, with more than 160,000 members dedicated to the protection and restoration of trout and salmon fisheries and their watersheds. Additional information about the annual meeting and TU’s conservation work is available at www.tu.org [1].
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Date: 9/12/2007