Break out the fishing gear and the bait. Officials at the Casitas Municipal Water District have come up with a plan to allow boats back onto popular Lake Casitas — but under very stringent rules.

The lake has been closed to outside boaters since early in March. The action had been taken because water district officials feared an infestation of the quagga mussel, a tiny aquatic menace. If it found its way into the reservoir, it could create millions of dollars worth of problems and, even, make the lake barren of fish, including the plump bass preferred by anglers.

The ban did not sit well with fisherman or with those whose livelihoods depend on the estimated 30,000 boat launches a month into the lake. But the first priority of Lake Casitas is as a reservoir to supply 60,000-plus Ventura and Ojai residents their water needs. Fishermen must always come second to the protection of this important water source.

The water district could have just put the ban in place and left it at that. Instead, it created an ad hoc committee to seek ways to protect the lake and to open it to fishermen. Wednesday, only five weeks after the ban took effect, the water district passed a proposal that will allow outside boats back on the lake.

However, fishermen, always known for their patience, must exhibit more. The process of allowing them back will be rigorous and take some time:

— Every boat will be inspected to make sure fish wells, bait wells and plumbing are completely dry.

— Once boats are deemed clean and dry, a tamper-proof ID tag will be affixed to the boat and trailer.

— Boats will then be quarantined for 10 days, either at the lake or elsewhere.

— At the end of the quarantine period, the ID tag will be removed and a fisherman can launch his boat.

— When the fishing day is done, a new ID tag will be affixed.

Some procedures remain up in the air. The method for determining if a boat's plumbing is dry hasn't yet been decided and officials are still considering what to do about kayaks, which generally do not have trailers for an ID tag.

The inspection process will take a few weeks to begin, but once under way, fishermen will soon be able to get their boats back on the lake. As long as a fisherman keeps his boat at the lake, he will be able to launch his boat as often as he likes.

However, taking the boat to another lake or removing the ID tags for any reason will require another inspection and quarantine period before the boat can be used in Lake Casitas again. Tampering with the ID tags earns a one-year ban. Using a boat in a lake that is infested with the quagga mussel will require a 28-day quarantine before being allowed back into Lake Casitas.

We commend Casitas Municipal Water District for doing an excellent job of trying to accommodate the wishes of fishermen even as it seeks to protect the lake from the destructive quagga mussel.

But fishermen must understand they are being given a privilege to fish on the lake. The importance of Lake Casitas remains as a reservoir. If the efforts taken so far to protect the lake fall short, fishermen will have no choice but to cut bait because the safety of that water supply must always come first. About that, there can be no debate.

Waiting list

Once the protocol for inspecting boats has been established, the lake will call boaters on an exiting list of people wanting to store their boats at the lake. To get on the list, which has at least 240 people on it now, call 649-2233, ext. 7.