Image Credit: Dylan Schmitz

Climate Change Threatens Our Fisheries & Planet

As a guide and recreational angler evidence of climate change is all around us, especially in the Gulf Of Maine where I hang my hat. The temperature of my home waters are rising 99% faster than the rest of the world’s oceans. This season I’ve found species that typically live south of us like Atlantic bonito and black sea bass. New species are entering the Gulf of Maine and fish like striped bass continue to creep further north and stay longer into the fall. Trust me when I say, these changes are a scary thing. New fish coming into our system may be fun to target on the fly but our world is rapidly changing. Chief Scientific Officer at the Gulf of Maine Research Institute, Andrew Pershing recently said:

"In some ways, the most remarkable thing about this year’s heatwave is how ordinary it seems. Since 2010, the temperature in the Gulf Of Maine has been above average 92% of the time. It’s been at heatwave levels for 55% of the time.”

I am concerned for the future of our fisheries and the future of our planet as we know it. I love making my living on the water and I am realizing, now more than ever, that everything is at risk.

The great news is that we have a chance to make a difference and effect change. Rick Crawford is a force and he’s helping to grow awareness surrounding the climate change movement, especially within the fly fishing industry. Rick is the President of Emerger Strategies and started the Fly Fishing Climate Alliance because climate change is the single greatest threat to fish on the planet. I joined forces with Rick and I am the first guide in the world, to our knowledge, to go carbon neutral. I’m very proud to be working with Rick and extremely grateful to be a part of the Fly Fishing Climate Alliance.

Soul Fly Outfitters Carbon Footprint

Carbon Neutral is a term used to describe the state of a business, where carbon emissions have been balanced out by funding an equivalent amount of carbon savings elsewhere in the world. Soul Fly Outfitters is officially carbon neutral for the 2019 year and I will continue to keep up this status as long as my business is in existence.

My carbon footprint follows the Greenhouse Gas Protocol Corporate Standard, and in an effort to provide you with a relevant, complete, consistent, transparent and accurate greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory, I’m sharing the official methodology:

Operational Boundary: In order to set our operational boundaries, we must report our Scope 1 (direct emissions) and Scope 2 (indirect emissions) and are voluntarily reporting our Scope 3 (indirect emissions). For more information on Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions follow this link.

• 2019 Scope 1 emissions: 4.4 mtCO2e

• 2019 Scope 2 emissions: 0.5 mtCO2e

• 2019 Scope 3 emissions: 7.1 mtCO2e

• Carbon Footprint: 12 mtCO2e

Below is a summary of my carbon footprint:

• Employee Commuting: My morning commute is relatively short.  It involves trailering my skiff with my 4Runner to the chosen boat ramp for each days guide trip.

• Business Travel: I accounted for the GHG emissions associated with business travel in 2019. For air travel I have included flights to and from lodge locations where I worked (Bair’s Lodge in the Bahamas & Pira Lodge in Argentina), hosted trips, trade shows, and any “fun” fishing trips as well.

• Guide Service: My clients travel to fish with me in Maine so I accounted for the impact of their travel. I also included the gas my skiff uses to fish for stripers in Maine, as well as the gas that was used while I was guiding for Golden Dorado in Argentina.

• Electricity:  During the summer of 2019 while I was guiding for striped bass, I resided in a small camper on a coastal farm in Maine. We were technically off the grid and consumed very little electricity. My camper runs off of batteries that were charged by solar when possible and were plugged into the farm when needed. That said, I drew an estimated 2,000 kWh of electricity.

• Gear: Soul Fly Outfitters purchases gear during the season to support guiding and travel business activities. I included the emissions associated with rods, reels and fly lines that my clients used throughout the season.

That said, in following the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard, I did not include some of the recommended categories because they were deemed not applicable, which included: capital goods, waste generated in operations, upstream leased assets, and end of life of sold products.

I am very conscious of what I consume and I very carefully choose the companies that I purchase equipment from. I work with Thomas & Thomas, a local rod manufacturer. I also use US made Nautilus reels and Scientific Angler lines. I tie all of my own flies. I run a very efficient 40hp 4-stroke Yamaha engine which burns roughly 2.5 gallons of fuel per trip. Since day one, I have been committed to the #KickPlastic program; my clients won’t find any single use plastic waste created as a result of the guide trip. At this time I do not have any economically viable alternatives to eliminate or further reduce my fuel and energy usage so I have elected to purchase carbon offsets to achieve carbon neutrality. The carbon offsets I purchased are from the Tri-City Forest Project in Massachusetts, which is a 6,500-acre watershed area that consists of hardwoods, spruce-fir and other shrub species that sequester large amounts of carbon.

Takeaways & The Value of Going Carbon Neutral: It’s been an exciting process to dive into my carbon footprint and I’ve realized several hidden benefits. I now have intimate knowledge of how my business burns GHG which has spurred ideas of how to further reduce my GHG footprint. Going carbon neutral has started many interesting conversations with different brands, clients, and friends. My small step here will hopefully have a ripple effect helping other guides to feel confident about making the decision to go carbon neutral. As a climate change advocate going carbon neutral has helped me “walk the walk” and puts action behind words. The status of my business being carbon neutral will help legitimize my participation in future conversations around climate change whether it’s advocating on the hill or talking about these issues with local leaders. The status of my business being carbon neutral has a small impact but if we can get momentum and encourage a cultural shift our fisheries and planet will see great benefit.

I promise to keep trying, keep spreading the word and to do the very best I can to operate my business in a way that will help solve problems, not create them.

Join the Fly Fishing Climate Alliance today. Our mission: “The Fly Fishing Climate Alliance Members believe it is our responsibility to do our part to solve the climate crisis so that we can save the planet, the fish and our businesses.”

GO Carbon Neutral - Calling all guides, shops, brands, and nonprofits: Learn more and chat with Kyle about his experience going carbon neutral and how you can as well: Kyle@soulflyoutfitters.com or reach out to Rick Crawford at Emerger Strategies. Small steps lead to big change.