You see quite a bit of this on the SW streams also. They have almost the same regs on the Kalama. People still can use weighted flies but no weight on the line. A weighted line allows the fly to get down. It would be impossible to fish ANY species unless trying to catch fish on the surface. The weight of the hook alone wouldn't allow the fly to get to species that hole up in deep water. I've seen people go as far as putting a fly reel on a casting rod to try to catch fish. I haven't fished those northern streams much but I'm sure the snaggers have just found a new tool to perfect they're "art". If they got rid of all weight on the leader, tippet and fly it would make it much more difficult to snag fish. Of course if they is a hook and line, some people will find a way to snag fish.

~steelymann~