New Bass Limits for Santee Cooper

Freshwater Bassfishing
1

Not an April Fools Joke.

Governor signs new largemouth bass regulations into law for Lake Marion, Moultrie and the Upper Santee River

The recent session of the South Carolina General Assembly produced changes to largemouth bass statutes in the Santee Cooper lakes area. The change to possession limits and length limits for largemouth bass harvested on Lake Marion, Moultrie and upper Santee River went effective on March 31, 2010 upon signature of the Governor. The newly adopted statute changes the largemouth bass length limit to 14 inches. All largemouth must be landed with head and tail intact. The possession limit has been decreased to five (5) largemouth bass per angler.
The statute defines Lake Marion as all waters impounded by the Lake Marion dam, including flooded backwater areas of Calhoun and Sumter counties. Lake Moultrie has been defined as all waters between the Pinopolis Dam and St. Stephen Dam. This includes the diversion canal and rediversion canal upstream of the St. Stephen Dam. Waters of the Santee River from the upstream confluence of the Congaree and Wateree Rivers to the backwaters of Lake Marion at the railroad trestle bridge near Rimini are also covered under this statute .
The changes to the possession and size limits will promote the long term health of the largemouth bass population and allow for equitable allocation of the fishery resource to recreational anglers in the region.
Check the SCDNR site at www.dnr.sc.gov for more information on freshwater fishing regulations and where to purchase your South Carolina Fishing License.
South Carolina’s natural resources are essential for economic development and contribute nearly $30 billion and 230,000 jobs to the state’s economy. Find out why Life’s Better Outdoors.

2

twenty years LATE. Tried to get them to do that when I was on the board od directors for SCBassFed and nothing doing. Now u r lucky to catch 5 bass. It will work but it is going to take a while now.

fred

3

You’re exactly right.

They refuse to admit that killing the hydrilla hurt the entire fishery at Santee…bass, bream, crappie, stripers…it was all affected. It shouldn’t have even been a surprise, because every single lake that’s had a strict hydrilla eradication program has had a collapse of the fishery.

Now, they’re finally tacking on a size limit, which will take years to show tangible benefit from.

For a while during the “hydrilla days”, Santee was one of the very best fisheries in the country. If they’d left the deeper hydrilla, along with enacting this size limit 20 years ago, there’s not a doubt in my mind that Santee would be the premiere fishing destination in the country.

Just think of the benefits to the economies of the surrounding towns if they’d used a little common sense, and if our State DNR actually had some pull. You can guarantee one thing, if a representative from Alabama Power & Light had made the same statement about Lake Guntersville…that “their intent was to eliminate every single sprig of hydrilla” in Guntersville…that the Santee Cooper representative here made…then that guy would be out of a job.

4

its about time

17’5 basstracker
18 hammerhead 90rude cc
f*** work lets fish

5

Pitcher,

If an Alabama Power and Light representative had made that statement he would have been laughed at because Guntersville is a TVA reservoir, another one of those federal agencies that don’t much but spend money. TVA took a position of giving up on aquatic plant management and letting the exotics take over. From a distance it looks like, at least on the short term, that this is a good thing for the Bass fishery, but the jury is out on every other reservoir user, including power generation.

6

I’d forgotten that Guntersville was a TVA reservoir. That said, the principle is still the same.

Fishing for all species (not just bass) is a tremendous boost to the surrounding economies at Guntersville and other lakes with hydrilla. Somehow or another, those lakes are still used for generation of power.

It’s a simple fact…as reservoirs age and woody cover rots away, you need something to fill the void. If not, the total fishery declines.

Every lake that’s had a major hydrilla eradication program has suffered big drops in the total fishery. Lake Conroe, Texas is a perfect example…the grass carp cleaned out the vegetation, then wound up eating leaves off of overhanging bushes because they were starving. The end result was that Conroe wound up being a Dead Sea for several years, until they restocked fish and allowed hydrilla to grow back.

So what did they do here? The largest stocking of grass carp ever undertaken. The end result? A total decline in the entire fishery at Santee. They did the same thing at Murray, screwing up yet another lake that was one of the best in the nation just a few years ago.

It’s about time they put in a size limit, but in actuality it won’t have a large effect simply because many bass fishermen tend to practice catch and release anyway.

Our state DNR is pretty powerless compared to other states. This size limit isn’t being enacted because SCDNR thinks it’s a good thing, it’s being enacted because of political pressure from counties surrounding Santee that are seeing their economies suffer. This law, while well intentioned, isn’t going to have a big effect.

If they want to improve the overall fishery at Santee for all species, they need to let the deeper hydrilla grow, and control the shallower hydrilla with periodic drawdowns. Extended drawdowns will also result in the growth of new willows and cypress trees, along with brush and grasses that will help fertilize and rejuvenate the ecosystem.

Those two lakes can be a huge economic engine for the

7

Last Friday I got a 10 fish limit. I threw back a 9, two 5’s and a 4. I took 6 fish home to eat. Three were 13 inchers. On the way home I called my wife and asked her to check the new regs a guy at the landing mentioned. Yes I was a law breaker and didn’t know it.
Saturday my wife started the day off with an 8 and finished with a 10. I got a 3 and a 5 and several stripers. All released. At the landing some guys from NC were showing off another 10-1/4. I applaud the new regs but I wished they would have used a little more finesse like allowing you to buy a trophy tag for a fish over ten and then a slot size limit. OBTW there is hydrilla in the lake now…shhh.

Scout 177 Yam 115

8

Congrats on the hogs, and kudos for letting them go. We need all of the big fish DNA out there reproducing we can get.

Seems like I remember you posting this time last year about catching 'em on speed worms and spinnerbaits…same deal now?

Santee Cooper Power knows about hydrilla in a few parts of the lake, and they’re actively planning to have everything green and bushy in the water either poisoned or taken care of by grass carp. Enjoy it while you can.

9

Been throwing the speed worm but all the big fish came on white s/b with double silver willow leaf. It’s the Strike King skirt with red in it. Friday I was throwing the perch GSR-5 to the shady side of the stump and they were killing it. Had 3 fish peel it off the stump after it was hung up on the wood. I have had them do that with the balsa SR-5 but they rip the wire out of the back.

Scout 177 Yam 115

10

Santee told us a Bass Fishing club they were not into fishing they were in the Power making Buisness and the Grass was Hurting them This was in the 1980’s Glad they have changed there view. Founding Member of Tri County Bass Club

11

Why is the hydrilla so good for fish? Why did they get rid of it? Does it have something to do with the power plant ??

New and don’t know what to do

12

The hydrilla, as well as eel grass, primrose ect. are paramount in the spawning of EVERY species of fish in the lakes. It provides cover for the newly hatched fry as well as cover for the adult species. Santee Cooper Utilities says that the grass clogs up the dam. It’s funny that every other electricity generating lake still allows a certain amount of grass on their waters…Santee Cooper does not!

Excuses? I’ve heard them all!