TRAVERSE CITY — Fish passage is a complex and controversial subject in Great Lakes communities that have rivers once blocked by dams.
Two state conservation organizations — Trout Unlimited and Michigan United Conservation Clubs, with funding from the Great Lakes Fisheries Trust — hope to make that discussion more informed.
They will offer a free public symposium Aug. 28-29 at the Hagerty Center in Traverse City to provide information on the subject.
The goal is to increase public awareness, said Bryan Burroughs, executive director of Trout Unlimited.
The focus won't be specifically on the Boardman River, but on the positives and negatives of fish passage, he said.
About 10 speakers, mostly fish biologists from Michigan, Indiana and Wisconsin, will paint a biological and ecological picture of what occurs when various fish species are allowed or blocked from upstream.
Individual presentations will focus on sturgeon, salmon, lamprey, round gobies and climate change. All speakers have been cautioned to keep personal biases out of their presentations.
Area speakers include Rick Westerhof, based at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service office in Elmira; Brett Fessell from the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians; and Marty Holtgren from the Little River Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians.
The symposium is scheduled to start Aug. 28 at 6:15 p.m. The all-day session on Aug. 29 is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Bob Summers, a River Road resident in Grand Traverse County, is trout fisherman and well-known fly-rod maker. He thinks the symposium is a good idea.
"It's quite controversial really," he said of fish passage. "It's almost a black-and-white thing. You're either going to let them up or you're not."
Ryan Matuzak, president of the Grand Traverse Area Sports Fishing Association, thinks the symposium will be helpful.
"Using science and relying on it to reduce speculation is the best way to address the issue of fish passage," he said.
Ultimately, the state Department of Natural Resources will decide what Great Lakes fish species, if any, will be allowed upstream above the Union Street Dam.
The DNR decision won't be made until sometime next year after an internal Boardman River assessment report is completed and published for public review, comment and meetings.
It will include detailed biological, geological and hydrological information, said Todd Kalish, a DNR fish biologist and a member of the Boardman River dam removal and restoration implementation team.
The symposium will be a starting point for that process, he said.
Brown Bridge Dam is slated for removal this year, followed by Sabin and Boardman, both owned by Grand Traverse City.
Union Street Dam, owned by Traverse City, will be modified and continued to be used to block lamprey and to maintain Boardman Lake levels.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' detailed feasibility report on removal of those dams also won't be ready for public review until sometime next year.
Region
Both sides of fish passage issue to be examined
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