TOPIC:

On Oct 6th two of our Board members attended the Lake Michigan Citizens Fishery Advisory Committee meeting. As always, we would like to keep our members and the public informed on issues affecting our fishery. We can tell you the overall attitude of this meeting was optimism towards our future. There is growing scientific and anecdotal data that shows Lake Michigan has turned the corner and is headed in the right direction for our silver fishery. And with this we have seen increased Chinook stocking in Michigan waters from a low of 330,000 in 2017 to 860,000 in 2021. The GLSI formed to help save our king salmon fishery and we are thrilled to see the progress made over the last few years. The Fishery Advisory Committee members agreed to recommend the State of Michigan stock 1,000,000 kings for 2022 and 2023.

GLSI has been collaboratively working on and submitting future Chinook stocking proposals to MDNR and other angling associations since this summer. We are proud to say that these proposals were close to the final agreement. The proposal agreed upon by the Citizens Fishery Advisory Committee will be presented to MDNR Leadership for approval. If approved there, it goes to the Lake Michigan Technical Committee comprised of managers from all Lake Michigan states and tribal representatives for final approval.

Jay Wesley gave a presentation on Cormorants, and we are very encouraged by progress to manage and control them. Michigan was awarded permits to lethally control over 11,000 cormorants in 2021. These permits are issued by the Dept of Agriculture. Considerable effort was made by Randy Claramunt, Lake Huron Basin Coordinator, to obtain these permits and with that Michigan received more than any other single state in the US. We are also very pleased that work is underway for a process to obtain and notify volunteers when stocking is to take place to provide non-lethal deterrence to protect smolts from avian predation. We know many anglers have asked for this and the GSLI is committed to help with communications and volunteers to make this happen. We will provide more info in late winter and spring to help organize this effort.

Jay Wesley also gave a presentation on the new online creel dashboard; it is a resource to check creel results. Here is a link to look up results, somewhat similar to the stocking database:  app.powerbigov.us/view...

Michigan Sea Grant reviewed success with the new Angler Diary program last year. Their priority last year and this year is to collect information on steelhead in our rivers. There is serious need for more scientific data on steelhead regarding wild production, angler effort and creel results, especially on rivers. They are looking to increase involvement this year. You can follow this link to learn more and participate in this important project. We hope more volunteers will help so we can improve our steelhead fishery. Here is a link:  mailchi.mp/.../december-steelhead-meeting-5030237...

We encourage you to renew your membership in the Great Lakes Salmon Initiative to support our efforts to improve our Great Lakes Fishery. You can renew here for as little as $20:  glsalmon.org/great-lakes-salmon-initiative.../

Well, the 1 million kings for next season is not going to happen. This just came in this morning.

We will continue to stock about 654,000 plus any predator equivalents that are available for 2022 and will pursue a stocking increase in 2023. As you all know, our management decisions depend on the science/biology as well as social/political and economic information. Biologically, I think that Lake Michigan can handle some more Chinook salmon stocking. However, the Lake Michigan Committee (Reps from Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Chippewa Ottawa Resource Authority) did not have consensus to stock more in 2022 and wanted to see how the last stocking increase played out for three years (2022 would be third year). We are also in the middle of 1836 Tribal Consent Decree negotiations and did not want any distractions from that process.

I assume this is for Michigan. Still, it's sad when a management agency only takes baby steps....

Mike, 
I wouldn't call it baby steps as Michigan was poised to go to the 1 mil number and will for 2023 There was much work done on stocking numbers by port and which Michigan ports had the better ability to produce stocked Kings.

I would call it management with consensus from all the other states out there. That is the way it is supposed to work. Not like Wisconsin did.
The biggest factor is the tribal negotiations. Everything else is secondary. I think we both feel the same and would not like to see miles upon miles of gill nets again.
 

In 2020 the GLSI asked MDNR to increase stocking of kings and it was granted. This move was to replace steelhead that did not get collected because of covid.

MDNR agreed and increased king stocking for 2021 to 891,832. Now MDNR is going back to it's agreed upon stocking number of 654,000 kings for 2022, and 2022 is the last of the 3 year agreement.

Some are trying to sell this as a stocking cut, but as you can clearly see it is not.
 

The GLSI is the one who appears to be pushing that this is a cut in king stocking.  In their FB post yesterday they noted that MDNR will be “cutting king stocking”    In my opinion this really affects the southern ports more than anyone,  if you fish out of Ludington and Manistee you already get the bulk of the plants plus they get natural reproduction.  The fall king fishing is spotty at best at  most southern/central ports and this will likely continue until stocking increases.  

Regulator you are correct,,  that is what was on FB . The facts that I have laid out are spot on. I guess others will have to make up their own minds on this one.

Just like other good groups, all paid members are allowed their own opinions. But,, when paid members who support a business or own a business associated with this fishery, control the narrative then the water gets muddy and the group doesn't function the way it was intended. Big donors should not be lobbyist.
MDNR is not the bad guy, 
This is why I laid out the facts.
In 2020 MDNR stocked nearly 500,000 kings between 2 of Michigan's southern most ports . The Grand and St. Joe

Jay Wesley/Chinook Stocking proposal
I want to thank the Lake Michigan Citizen Fishery Advisors Committee for working with us since April to develop a proposal for increased salmon stocking.
It is disappointing that we are still in consent decree negations and did not have Lake Michigan Committee consensus to move on the plan in 2022. We will implement the plan in 2023 if Lake Michigan conditions continue to improve.
The plan is to stock at least 1 million Chinook per year.
These sites would be stocked every year:
Little Manistee River 250,000
Medusa 125,000
Big Sable Ludington 125,000
These sites would be stocked every other year:
Fairport 75,000
Manistique 150,000
Boardman 100,000
Muskegon 125,000
Grand Haven 150,000
South Haven 125,000
Saugatuck 125,000
St. Joe 150,000
This is a great plan, and we appreciate the time that committee members spent working on it.

www.michigan.gov/.../LMCFAC_Oct_2021_Minutes