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Diamond Lake seeks fast boats Water skiing could replace fishing By PETER WONG SALEM -- Water skiing would join the list of things to do at Diamond Lake under a bill headed for the Oregon Senate. House Bill 2536 tells the state Marine Board to open the way for recreational boating by lifting the lake's speed limit from 10 mph to 45 mph between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. The limit would remain at 10 mph the rest of the time, and within 200 yards of boat ramps and docks, campgrounds and summer homes. The House cleared it this week by a vote of 59-0. Diamond Lake is in the Cascades, about 90 miles northeast of Medford. It has been popular for its rainbow trout, which the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife has stocked for many years. But millions of illegally introduced tui chubs have overrun the lake and are out-competing trout for food and space, and essentially driving away anglers. Rep. Terry Thompson, D-Newport, said Diamond Lake is not the only one threatened by such invasions. "You will see a lot more of these bills until we stop some of the invasive species that are introduced in this area," said Thompson, the only legislator who is a commercial fisherman. The state planned to draw down the lake, add the chemical rotenone to kill the chub, then restock trout. But the action is on hold until the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service conducts an environmental impact study. The lake's speed limit would revert to 10 mph once the Marine Board decides the higher limit is not needed. "What this bill attempts to do is give the people at Diamond Lake some economic relief until this problem can be solved," said Rep. Jeff Kruse, a Republican from Roseburg and the bill's floor manager. He said Diamond Lake Resort has cut its work force from 140 to 100, and daily boat rentals have dropped from 80 to 11 "because there simply are no fish to catch." "The people at Diamond Lake do not want this to become a place for water skiing," Kruse said. "They want to stay a fishery. So it is not a matter of whether you think water skiing is an appropriate activity at Diamond Lake. It's whether you would like to see Oregon's premier rainbow trout fishery return to its natural state." Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA