Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Wild, Bob Eddy is just up the road from you, he's up in Mina, right on the 95 just before the town on the left, 'Desert Lobster' he had a permit and for 8 years had a farm, then he got into a pissing match with Reno and lost. They poisoned his tanks, but last I heard he was still there. But I was told the state of NV would not license another redclaw farm as they consider it an 'invasive species'. Let me know how it goes for you! I thought tilapia was ok?

yes the redclaw may not go, but thats why i filed for seperate permits, one may go one may not. even if both are a no go, i think ill be good with catfish and bluegill.

somehow tilapia are surviving in lake mead, dunno why its such a big deal, a striper could prolly eat a tilapia whole. but lake mead water gets cold in the winter. i think they must have found a underwater hot spring. lake mead has over 600 miles of shoreline and tilapia are only in one small area, and after 4 years they dont seem to be spreading. i can not think of anywhere in nevada where water temps stay over 55f all winter. besides a hot spring, but they are too hot. a tilapia is now considered a invasive fish.

I wonder if you could get a permit for redclaw if you kept production records and pointed out that you were using a closed system with no means of water discharge? That seems to be the biggest hassle most folks have with license issues re "invasive species." Some states have taken the heavy handed approach in all areas, and forgotten that a little common sense will go a lot further.

The states in the Mid West have had a major problem with the zebra mussel for years, and the speculation is that they came in with bilge water from a European freighter into the great lakes. Now there are signs everywhere advising boaters and fishermen to make sure that they wash off the hulls and lower units after pulling out, and to flush all tanks and motors before putting back in.

Personally I would like to point out to these pin headed bureaucrats that they started all of this way back when. They introduced multiflora rose, grass carp and formosan termites! (Lax inspection of wooden shipping containers from Asia on the last one.)

It really depends on the state and how 'reasonable' they are. In some cases the state agencies and people in charge are very easy to work with, in other cases there's no point even trying. California is a tough state, but when it comes to Redclaw, Nevada is even worse. Good luck to you on the Tilapia, I'm very interested in your progress dealing with the state.

sounds like eddy may have done some lasting PR damage with the powers............

Definitely, and as far as I know, there are federal law suits in the works on behalf of some silver fish that the sheriffs and the Dept of fish and game made extinct down stream from him when they poisoned his tanks and didn't stop the flow from his tanks!

Here in California, there have only been one licensed redclaw farm and one licensed marron farm. All the others that have come and gone have not been licensed. I also have been told there are at least three redclaw farms in Nevada that are operating without licenses, not including Bob Eddy who was still in business the last time I was there about two years ago.

Personally I'm making sure that I'm doing everything above board, mostly because I know how bad it gets if you get caught skirting the system.

Yeah Robert, it beats the heck out of making a sizeable investment in time, labor and money to have the state come after you later. Sometimes they and whatever Judge you might have to appear before have no sense of humor! Personally though, I think it goes to show how short sighted the state officials can be when they poison a system in order to destroy an unlicensed species and have no concept of the consequences to other species which are either protected or not a part of the unlicensed activity. (I'll love it when they have to cough up some bucks to pay for the species they killed down stream. Unfortunately they'll make Bob Eddy pay for thier folly, because they will contend that his redclaw op was what started all of it.)

Kevin