In planning for the closing of portions of rivers for periods of years
consideration should be given to community needs as well as to general
economic and biological conditions. On the one hand, the closure will
be more effective in result, as well as easier of enforcement, if the
regions of closure are made very large; while, on the other hand,
making the closed regions smaller might cause less economic
inconvenience. If, for example, the entire Illinois River should be
closed to mussel fishery for a period of several years, there might be
a substantial uncompensated loss to some communities, where there are
factories employing labor to cut shells derived from that river. On the
other hand, should we divide the river up into small sections of 2 or 3
miles in extent, some of which would be open while others would be
closed under the law, it is apparent that such a plan would be almost
impossible of enforcement. To prevent shelling from being carried on in
all these little, closed areas would require a force of wardens and an
expense entirely incommensurate with the object to be gained.
It is held advisable to divide a river within a single State into some
four or six sections for the purpose of establishing closed regions.
One-half--that is, two or three--of these sections, taken in
alternation, could be ordered closed for a period of five years, during
which no mussel fishing at all should be allowed in the closed
sections, although it would be regularly prosecuted in the alternate
portions of the stream. It would be convenient to break a river at
points where there was a substantial community interest in the
shelling.