OPTIMA Enables and Promotes Anglers to Fish Hard and Tread Lightly
OPTIMAâ Enables and Promotes Anglers to Fish Hard and Tread Lightly
OPTIMA Batteries sponsors Tread Lightly! â encouraging
environmentally responsible outdoor recreation
DATE 2008 (MILWAUKEE, Wis.)—OPTIMAâ Batteries, manufacturer of high-performance automotive and marine batteries, recently became a financial sponsor of Tread Lightly! to help protect and maintain our environment. This nonprofit organization is dedicated to protecting recreation opportunities and promoting environmental stewardship. By supporting this organization, OPTIMA continues to encourage anglers and adventurers to fish hard and tread lightly.
“OPTIMA is a strong supporter of environmental ethics, and we recently made a donation to Tread Lightly! to support its educational programs and promotion of responsible recreation,” said Steve Kepler, Executive Director of Global Sales and Marketing for OPTIMA Batteries of Johnson Controls, Inc. “OPTIMA has always been an advocate of cleaner trails and waterways, as evidenced by the eco-friendly nature of the batteries it manufacturers. Beyond this, OPTIMA wants to actively and aggressively advance the cause by sponsoring Tread Lightly! and the beliefs it upholds.”
The perils of environmental irresponsibility, while affecting all humans, are especially evident to anglers. Water pollution taints fish, kills off marine populations and destroys the natural beauty of serene rivers, lakes and shorelines. Trash, old tires and man-made debris floating in prime fishing waters—evidence of the destructive impact of a careless civilization—quickly turns a relaxing afternoon of fishing into a disappointing experience.
Personal Choices Help Protect the Environment
Environmental stewardship is an individual responsibility and can be as simple as traveling with a bag to collect one’s trash or observing the legal fishing catch limits and size restrictions. Beyond these basics, individuals can be even more environmentally responsible with proper education. One specific example of this relates to the batteries individuals choose to power their boats.
Traditional batteries contain lead-alloy plates housed in free-flowing battery acid. These alloys can cause an increased rate of corrosion, which shorten a battery’s life and creates waste resulting from frequent replacement. Additionally, the open cell design of a traditional battery is susceptible to failure under high vibration applications, such as choppy wakes, and increases the potential for corrosion, leaking and gassing.
OPTIMA BlueTopTM Batteries’ proprietary AGM SPIRALCELLâ technology also greatly reduces leaking and gassing. This technology constrains the acid in an absorbent glass mat, which is spiral-wound with lead grids to create the lead/acid reaction and placed in one of six cylinders. Each cylinder is compressed and tightly locked in place, creating a durable, vibration-resistant battery, able to withstand even the roughest waters. The completely sealed case prevents acid spills, water contamination and damage to a boat’s electrical components. And, there is less waste associated with frequent battery replacement because OPTIMA batteries last up to two times longer than traditional batteries.
OPTIMA Batteries also offers better performance than traditional batteries, enabling anglers to fish harder, longer. The SPIRALCELL technology provides several advantages over traditional lead/acid batteries, including:
· Up to two times longer life
· More than 15 times more vibration resistant
· Maintenance free
· Completely spill-proof, allowing it to be mounted in almost any position
· Faster recharge capabilities
· Optimal starting power in any temperature
“The advantages of OPTIMA BlueTop Batteries enable anglers to handle the heavy electrical draws from accessories like trolling motors, GPS systems and fish finding navigation systems,” said Kepler. “OPTIMA Batteries provide long-lasting power to these extreme deep cycle and cranking applications. OPTIMA Batteries also offer longer reserve capacity throughout their cycle life, capable of providing consistent power to boats and their accessories for longer periods of time.”
About Tread Lightly!
Tread Lightly!, Inc. is a national nonprofit organization with a mission to proactively protect recreation access and opportunities in the outdoors through education and stewardship initiatives. Tread Lightly! is the nation’s signature ethics message for outdoor enthusiasts who use motorized vehicles. The organization also offers unique training and restoration programs strategically designed to instill an ethic of responsibility in a wide variety of outdoor enthusiasts and the industries that serve them. For more information, visit www.treadlightly.org.
About OPTIMA
OPTIMAâ BlueTopTM, YellowTopTM and RedTopTM batteries are now available through leading battery distributors throughout the globe. Consumers should look for the unique colored top and six-pack design that OPTIMA is known for throughout the world. For the nearest retailer, consumers can also call 1-888-8-OPTIMA (1-888-867-8462) or visit www.optimabatteries.com.
OPTIMA Batteries are manufactured by Johnson Controls, Inc. Johnson Controls (NYSE: JCI - News) is the global leader that brings ingenuity to the places where people live, work and travel. By integrating technologies, products and services, we create smart environments that redefine the relationships between people and their surroundings. Our team of 140,000 employees creates a more comfortable, safe and sustainable world through our products and services for more than 200 million vehicles, 12 million homes and one million commercial buildings. Our commitment to sustainability drives our environmental stewardship, good corporate citizenship in our workplaces and communities, and the products and services we provide to customers. For additional information, please visit http://www.johnsoncontrols.com.
12 Responsible Fishing Tips from OPTIMAâ and Tread Lightly! â
1. Be a sportsman. Conserve fisheries by observing catch limits and legal length/size of fish you intend to keep.
2. In the backcountry, be mindful of damaging fragile vegetation and soils along shorelines and stream banks. Choose access to fishing spots wisely.
3. Pack out what you pack in.
4. Carry a trash bag, and pick up litter left by others. Never discard fish entrails in lake shallows or any area where others might come across them. It is unacceptable to bury them near the lake or stream or burn them in camp. Suitable alternatives include, bagging and packing out entrails, disposing of them in water at least 25 feet deep, or burying them 100 yards away from any lake, trail, or camps.
5. Avoid using lead weights, which are toxic to wildlife if ingested.
6. Use only artificial lures. Live bait has the potential to accidentally introduce exotics and cause more damage to fish when being released, as they often take live bait deeper.
7. If practicing catch and release, use barbless single hooks to make release easier. Return fish quickly, handling them with a wet hand to minimize detrimental effects on the skin’s protective coating
8. Minimize fishing during spawning periods.
9. Release smaller fish, as they are forage for many residents of the ecosystem. Larger and older fish are often the best producers, collect more contaminants, and are less healthy to eat—also making them good choices for release.
10. Protect the soundscape by preventing noise created by a poorly tuned vehicle or by revving your engine unnecessarily.
11. Following a trip, wash your gear, watercraft, and support vehicle to reduce the spread of invasive species. Make sure to remove all plant material from watercraft, motor, trailer and other gear and dispose of it on dry land in a garbage container. Drain livewells, bilge water, and transom wells at the boat launch prior to leaving.
12. Use sealed, spill-proof OPTIMAâ Batteries, which prevent acid and other toxins from spilling into waterways.