Restoration Efforts For Rare Trout

The U.S. Forest Service approved a plan Tuesday to restore what wildlife officials call “the rarest trout in America,” but that means first removing non-native fish from the waterway that flows into the Carson River south of Lake Tahoe.

The plan is controversial because the removal this fall involves the use of a fish poison. That prompted an environmental group´s lawsuit that delayed the process for a year while a federal environmental impact statement was prepared.

Wildlife officials say restoring the Paiute cutthroat trout to its native habitat in the Carson-Iceberg Wilderness is worth the damage to other species of fish — most of which, they expect will repopulate the creek within a couple years.