The LAKE eight-issue publishing schedule kicks off for 2025 with this March issue.
Unbeknownst to many Michigan residents, most of our lakes go through a transformative stratification process every year that is necessary for the good of the waterways.
Whether its a public or private lake, the state has a hand in lake rules of operation.
An aerial view of Pontiac Lake in White Lake and part of Waterford.
Fishing is big business but its also a balancing act when it comes to what fish are in the lakes.
Short notes on what’s happening on the warming planet here and around the world.
News and gossip from the dining world in the metro Detroit area.
The latest lake levels as measured by the office of the Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner.
This March edition of LAKE officially kicks off the publishing schedule of the magazine for 2025, during which we will produce eight issues from now until the month of October
We attempted to identif y the key months of the year when lakefront activity is star ting to build or is at its peak for those living on the hundreds of lakes in Oakland County
Having lived on two lakes, Long Lake in Commerce Township and White Lake in White Lake Township, for over three decades, my sense of things is that some lakefront homeowners actually begin to plan out projects for their residences as winter wraps up So in this issue you will find marketing messages from fir ms that provide ser vices for projects you may be enter taining for this year Additionally, you will see boating and real estate fir ms that are focused on those living on the lakefronts The suppor t from all of these fir ms allows us to bring you this publication, so it helps us if you would tell them you saw their ad in LAKE magazine if you reach out to them
of Natural Resources; and a piece on how the state is involved with regulations on both public and private lakes
This March edition also marks the first issue in which we relied on contributions from lakefront residents for the cover photo of the magazine Last year we put out a call for photos that many of you take each year on your lakefront and we were more than pleased with what we received Readers sent us roughly 50 or more photos and from those we have been able to plan out covers for LAKE magazine through our July issue at this point in time
This month’s cover was shot by Asher Brent who lives on Lake Sher wood in Commerce Township Future covers we have planned involve photos from a variety of lakes, including White Lake, Long Lake in Lake Orion and Cass Lake, just to name a few When the cover of an issue is provided by someone living on the local water ways, we include photo credit on our index page
As we did last year, each issue of LAKE will ar rive a week or more before the star t of each month
For the most par t our editorial will remain focused on critical issues affecting the water ways in Oakland County Af ter all, you are par t of a unique population subset in the county where home values increase annually at a faster rate than houses not situated on the water fronts and the quality of your lake is an integral par t of this equation Our news content is meant to provide a thorough understanding of the general topics of lakes, and hopefully these educational ar ticles will result in an increased appreciation for the impor tance of preser ving lake quality
In this issue our writers tackle the stratification process most lakes go through each year; a look at the fish stocking effor ts of the Michigan Depar tment
We are still accepting photo contributions and in retur n we will send a check for $100 if we select a photo for one of our covers So please keep sending us your work We just ask that the photos you send be high resolution Too of ten some of the photos submitted were not high resolution so while we may have loved the pictures, we simply must have high resolution shots for the cover When you send in your photos, please include your mail address so we can send a check if your photo was accepted And it doesn’t hur t to give readers some infor mation about what you used to shoot the photo, something simple like cellphone or camera
We also encourage our readers to email me with stor y suggestions you may have for future issues
David Hohendor f Publisher
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STRATIFICATION TRANSFORMING LAKES NATURALLY
BY MICHAEL SCOTT
Unbeknownst to many Michigan residents, a large percentage of our lakes go through a transfor mative process ever y year that is both natural and necessar y for the good of the hyperlocal environment and lake life in general.
This natural process is called stratification, and it occurs when war m water mixes with cold waters in a lake. The mixing process replenishes dissolved oxygen levels at different layers in the water column which in in tur n suppor ts plant and biological life, water supply quality and more. Other environmental factors help to ensure this process happens, such as sunlight, wind and waves
Stratification occurs in most inland lakes with depth maximum depths of 20 feet or more in the state and par ts of the Great Lakes, according to Sarah Holden, environmental quality specialist in the Lake Michigan Unit and Water Resources Division of the state’s Depar tment of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE). It is primarily driven by chemical or ther mal processes
Stratification will cause significant changes in all three layers of a lake, the epilimnion (the top layer), the metalimnion (middle layer) and the bypulimnion (bottom layer) Lakes in southeaster n Michigan and other par ts of the countr y that experience four relatively distinct seasons usually “tur nover, ” which is another way to refer to the seasonal mixing of the lake’s water column The process generally happens twice each year – in the spring as winter ice melts and in the fall before ice for ms
During tur nover, war mer and less dense water floats towards the top of the lake while cooler, denser water falls to the bottom of the lake From there, temperature layering weakens as it gets colder in the fall, Holden said This allows the lake to mix, or stratif y, when air temperature matches water temperatures This phenomenon occurs because cold water is denser than war m water, and because the top later of a lake generally consists of water that is not as dense as water that sits in its bottom layer
Lake stratification is not a guaranteed occur rence As mentioned, lake depth is an impor tant factor in deter mining whether the process occurs, and lake depth can var y year- overyear For most lakes with a minimum of 20 feet of depth, there’s a “profound” change in the temperature at different depths in the lake, Holden said
“Most lakes in Michigan mix in the fall when the top of the lake cools off and approaches the temperature at the bottom Then a stor m or strong winds can cause the lake to tur n over or star t mixing,” Holden said
For example, if the water at the top approaches 39 degrees Fahrenheit it may become denser than the water below it and cause lake tur nover, she added Besides lake depth, ther mal stratification is also impacted by the shape of a lake, This can impact when tur nover occurs or the extent to which it stratifies
Seasonal changes in temperature, including sunlight intensity, help to change sur face water temperature in both the spring and fall, according to Clean Lakes Alliance Deputy Director & Chief Science Officer Paul Dearlove This causes the temperature of the top and bottom layers of the lake to equalize With the help of strong winds, this new equilibrium breaks the ther mal stratification, allowing for lake levels to naturally mix
Oxygen from the sur face then mixes with the bottom, while nutrients trapped near the bottom are free to mix throughout the lake While
environmentally beneficial, this tur nover can cause an unpleasant smell for anglers and local proper ty owners because decomposing organic materials are of ten chur ned up from the bottom of the lake The smell, according to the Clean Lakes Alliance, is a sign that tur nover is working, “just like Mother Natured intended,” he said
Some lakes can develop unstable stratification if they are near that threshold and stratif y, then mix, several times a year following stor ms or strong winds, Holden said
Even larger bodies of water that have shallow areas may not tur n over Examples include the par t of the wester n base of Lake Erie, which is known to be the shallowest of all five Great Lakes, and par ts of Saginaw Bay, according to Wayne State University Director of Environmental Sciences and Professor of Biology Donna Kashian
“From late spring to fall, the water at the top of the lake is war mer and less dense than the water deeper in the lake,” Kashian said “Once this type of stratification develops different biological and chemical processes occur in the separate lake layers ”
According to Kashian, wind and solar energy are two notable variables that can affect when lake tur nover occurs
Given the timing of the seasons in Michigan, stratification most of ten happens in May before Memorial Day in the spring, and in September or October in the fall But several factors can alter the timeline by a period of days or weeks besides a lake’s shape
When the conditions are right, it doesn’t take much for stratification to happen In fact, the “flip” may occur within just a few hours “High wind can absolutely influence a flip,” Kashian said “ When you have waves overlapping onto a shore it can also cause (the lake to flip) ”
She believes that the spring tur nover is par ticularly critical in Michigan, especially for fish and other living organisms Evolution is dependent on this stratification and tur nover process in Michigan because that is how these bodies of water have acted for centuries “ The entire food chain is tied to this process, ” Kashian said “ We may not realize how impor tant it is It’s not just the aquatic life but this matters to all of us ”
Experienced anglers know about this process and recognize when it’s happening “ When a lake is tur ning over, you of ten get this brown color rising to the top,” Kashian said “ That signifies the (movement) of silt ” More than anything nor mal tur nover is a natural and healthy par t of the ecological system
Bloomfield Township Clerk Mar tin Brook attends many of the township’s lake board meetings during the year and said that lake health is discussed at just about ever y one of those meetings Lake board members are familiar with the stratification process, although it affects different lakes in various ways, based on their unique characteristics
“Many of the lakes in the township are pretty shallow so you may not get (a full tur nover),” Brook said “I think (lakefront proper ty owners) are ver y aware of it ”
It appears that the timing of the fall tur nover varied more in 2024 than usual Unseasonably war m temperatures that lasted into October meant that this process may have occur red later than usual in many lakes, says John Lutchko, director of the Great Lakes Water Study Institute at Nor thwester n Michigan College in Traverse City
While Lutchko doesn’t have objective data to suppor t that claim, he is confident that more solar heat in par ticular had an impact on many lakes in 2024 and was potentially one of the reasons for a later lake tur nover Kashian agrees with his theor y
Some of the year-long temperature trends in Michigan suppor t it as well It was a historically war m year statewide in 2024 For example, Saginaw experienced the ninth war mest October on record, according to WNEM-TV The average maximum temperature in October in metro Detroit was 67 8 degrees, or 5 8 degrees war mer than nor mal, according to National Weather Ser vice Vir tually the entire state had more days of bright sunlight in September and October than usual
That war ming trend isn’t unusual Lutchko said that Grand Traverse Bay is regularly experiencing less ice cover each winter, which increases the time that the top layer of water remains war m Generating data to prove this is difficult given the high cost of tracking weather buoys that use expensive, advanced technologies, but Lutchko is confident there is enough subjective evidence to suggest it’s an ongoing trend
“ We may be seeing a situation where the lakes aren’t not being capped off as early,” Lutchko said “Even in (Grand Traverse Bay), a quick wind can provide a (significant) impact base on the wind direction ”
One reason for this is that wind can travel over long distances of water to create cur rents For example, Lutchko was par t of a group of family members who removed a dock at the family ’ s proper ty in Lake Leelanau, located nor thwest of Traverse City in mid- October He believes that Lake
Leelanau had already experienced stratification by then because of how cold the lake’s top layer was However, other lakes in the area or within a shor t drive may not have tur ned over yet because of wind patter ns
“ You get those colds nights and enough depth like we have (in Lake Leelanau) even with the duration of high temperatures during the day, which can be enough, even at a (hyperlocal) level,” he said “And remember, if a lake is ver y shallow you don’t always get that stratification ”
Those unfamiliar with lake stratification and tur nover are of ten surprised to hear how dynamic the process can be, Dearlove said Many Americans have the perception that lakes remain somewhat “static ” Even more surprising to them is the impact that this tur nover has and what it means for aquatic life
“ You can directly see the effects if you are (paying attention),” Dearlove said “It could be that an unexpected late fall algae bloom is for ming You can of ten point to the lake tur ning over as the cause ”
The seasonal effect is real, he confir med Cold winters and hot summers, provided with enough water depth, provide the per fect backdrop for lake tur nover occur ring at least twice per year
“ You’ll have temperature stratification in a deeper lake just by the physics of water and heating of the sun, ” Dearlove said
Lake stratification doesn’t happen ever ywhere in the U S According to Lutchko, having four distinct seasons is an impor tant par t of the equation For example, lakes in souther n states with minimal or no snowfall might experience stratified layer movement, but they may not mix or flip, in the same way that most lakes in Michigan experience it While the upper Midwest and Plains are among the most temperate areas, anywhere there’s enough war mth and depth can experience stratification
Instead of tur nover, war mer weather lakes may cause ther mocline in the metalimnion layer in lakes, to move ver tically while remaining stratified Ideally there’s some ice at the sur face which indicates cold water has moved to the top and war mer water has sunk to the bottom
“Souther n lakes can be unforgiving at their lowest levels,” Lutchko says “It can be tough to move the oxygen in many of those lakes As a result, those lakes may not be as conducive to cer tain types of life like we have here (in Michigan) ”
The Clean Lakes Alliance is located in Madison, Wisconsin, and Dearlove said that lakes in that area
of the Midwest will of ten experience tur nover simply from natural changes in ambient air temperatures Water can take a long time to cool and heat up, and lakes require some type of seasonal changes for the tur nover, or switch to occur
Dearlove agrees with Lutchko who stresses that wind can speed up the process as much as any other environmental factor The natural temperature change, combined with enough wind, can actually nix the entire lake column Water molecules become rear ranged, for ming what Dearlove refers to as a “temperature density gradient” that is based on the cooling effects and equalization of temperatures throughout the water column
“ When you have lakes that are too shallow, there’s not enough of a difference for it to occur, ” Dearlove said “ The upper layer (of the lake) may be the same temperature as the bottom of the lake, especially if sunlight penetrates to the bottom ”
The bottom layer of most lakes of ten have more oxygen for fish, resulting in war mer water, EGLE’s Holden said That oxygen causes organic material decomposition, which in tur n impacts how nutrients and other parameters are released from the sediment Lakes with higher nutrient levels and lower water clarity may not have much oxygen in the bottom lake layer This can make it difficult, if not impossible, for fish to live in a lake’s bottom layer
“ When a lake stratifies and then mixes it distributes anything in the water throughout the entire lake “(That) can add more nutrients to the top of the lake if the bottom of the lake was anoxic,” Holden says A common outcome is nutrients moving to the top of the lake is the creation of algae blooms, she added “ The process allows for oxygen to be replenished and nutrients to be distributed throughout the lake
On its own algae is good for inland lakes, as it is critical to the health of the Great Lakes ecosystem, according to GLISA, a collaboration between the University of Michigan and Michigan State University suppor ted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration GLISA also ser ves other midwester n U S states and the Canadian province of Ontario Algae provides the main source of energy that sustains many species of marine life
However, when algal blooms grow uncontrollably, they can create low - oxygen, hypoxic conditions, according to the GLISA website The amount of viable habitat for fish decline without the replenishing of oxygen These hypoxic or dead
zones in the lake are generally only suitable for cer tain bacteria, according to the Clean Energy Alliance
This is another reason why biannual lake tur nover is ecologically impor tant It can both mitigate the negative impacts of low oxygen dead zones while providing the lake environment needed by fish and aquatic organisms to thrive Having enough oxygen in lakes will thereby deliver oxygen and nutrients essential to aquatic life
Based largely on temperature, this tur nover allows aquatic life to successfully live in the lake as oxygen becomes more available “ Without this natural process, (Michigan’s lakes) would not be the vibrant ecosystem that it ser ves as today,” Kashian said
While the stratification and tur nover process is largely impacted by Mother Nature, humans can play a role as well Kashian of Wayne State infor mally refers to how human can “ mess up the process ” That refers to human actions like using fer tilizer on lands that border lakes or having leaky septic fields Ensuring a “healthy ” stratification process means that the local ecosystem is being maintained in a way that is beneficial to the longter m viability of the lake, and its living organisms
“Anything done on land can affect the water,” Kashian said
There’s a widely known par t of the Gulf of Mexico that is a “dead zone ” for aquatic and plant life It’s located in an area where much of the water from Mississippi land is discharged, Dearlove said That discharge has historically included water r unoff and pollution from manmade fer tilizers and other har mful r unoff
“ There’s so much “pollution” in that water that it causes bacteria decomposition to go crazy where the water enter the Gulf,” Dearlove said “ The decompensation makes the water devoid of oxygen, but it’s created by people That’s not natural ”
This can happen locally as well, although on a smaller scale “ We over-fer tilize our grass which causes too many nutrients to for m, ” he added This can include phosphor us nitrogen, algae blooms or plant growth Deeper lakes can also have dead zones, although they are much smaller than what has happened in the Gulf of Mexico
Lake Mendoza in Madison, Wisconsin is impact by a significant amount of contaminated r un off from far ms and city streets, Dearlove said When the lake stratifies in the summer, this deeper, cooler water gets sealed off from oxygen sources It doesn’t mix up to the atmosphere A bacterial respiration can for m as a result at the bottom of the
lake which depletes oxygen Other lakes experience similar issues, depending on their location and the amount of fer tilizers used by local landowners
“Some anglers are fishing in oxygen deficient water,” Dearlove said “If they don’t have experience fishing in that area or don’t see the signs, they may not know it ”
It’s not just proper ty owners adjacent to the water that can damage the lake with manmade products Dearlove says that anyone living in a lake’s watershed impact the health of that lake
“ We all live in a watershed Small watersheds rest in the larger watersheds,” Dearlove said “ What we do affects local waters and anything downstream Our actions matter ”
Lutchko agrees He believes landowners should confir m if their actions could have an adverse impact on lake health and stratification
“ You need to find out if you live within the watershed because you can be across the street from a lake but your land (leaks) into the lake,” Lutchko said “Even if you ’ re not (directly located) on the lake you need to decide just how impor tant it is to have that bright green lawn if you ’ re using (fer tilizer) to treat it ”
The af tereffects of tur nover can help to signif y the lake’s overall water health If large algae blooms for m immediately af ter stratification, it could mean that the water is par tially or completely void of oxygen, which signifies a natural and health tur nover may not be possible, Dearlove said
Outside of fer tilizer, having soil fall into the lake can also adversely affect its health, and thereby stratification “ You want to maintain soil on land,” Dearlove said Don’t let it leak or fall into the water ” That’s because nutrients in the soil may have a damaging effect
Lutchko summarizes the impact humans have on both lake health in general and stratification specifically as the fact that what people do on land affects what happens to the water As Kashian indicated, fer tilizer is perhaps the most damaging substance to a lake But Lutchko stressed that damage to septic systems is common and may be more prominent because septic system damage is of ten undiagnosed
“It’s impor tant to get your septic systems updated and inspected because unless that happens chances are you won’t know there’s a problem,” he says Many households don’t regularly get their septic system inspected because there of ten aren’t signs of an issue until it’s too late
Additionally, lakefront proper ty is more likely to stay within a family for many years, so there’s no
perceived need to get a for mal septic system review Fur ther more, Michigan law doesn’t requirement landowners to conduct regular checks of septic fields unless a proper ty is sold An unnoticed septic issue may be go unchecked for several years or longer, causing ongoing damage to the water
Another bar rier to a healthy stratification process are seawalls
Depending on the type of constr uction, seawalls can have no or significant environmental impact A natural seawall is typically is a complex ecosystem that sustains fish and wildlife and protects the entire lake Native vegetation along the shore acts as a buffer against ar tificial nutrients, which can cause erosion and r unoff It can also protect plants from sedimentation
The public perception is that native vegetation is less effective than something manmade but that’s simply not tr ue, Kashian said
On the other hand, “throwing a slab of sheet metal up and calling it a seawall” might protect a shoreline from erosion, but it can also har m the lake and it living organisms in other ways, Lutchko said Eventually, most manmade seawalls will begin to erode, increasing r unoff
Studies such as one conducted in April 2021 by Nature Communications suggest that stratification periods will last longer in slightly war mer climates But pronounced war mth or cold lead to “catastrophic changes” in some lakes and local ecosystems, disr upting the ecological lifefor ms that rely on it, the study indicates
Kashian agrees that moderate environments are best for healthy stratification She says that delaying temperature cool downs in the fall or speeding war ning in the spring by more than a few days could cause issues
“ The system has evolved around these nutrient inputs associated with tur nover and spring in par ticular is a time of reproduction, hatching, and spawning,” she said “If the nutrients (or food) is not available when species spawn or reproduce, there may be a mismatch and then the conditions are not optimal for reproduction or food availability for the young ”
The bottom line is the less humans interact with the lake, and the more moderate weather patter ns are, the more likely most lakes in Michigan will experience the type of tur nover needed to protect is health, its inhabitants and it’s future
“ These are complicated processes When you mess with them, there can be (significant) consequences, ” Kashian said
PRIVATE V PUBLIC
DNR HAS CONTROL OVER LAKE RULES
BY MICHAEL SCOTT
Spend enough time around the water ways of Oakland County and it’s only a question of when you hear someone use a popular misnomer as they refer to a body of water as a “private” lake, when in fact no such thing really exists in Michigan.
According to cur rent Michigan statute, no lakes are really “private.” Lakes that do not have public access are of ten infor mally called “private” since only proper ty owners theoretically have access to them. Of Oakland County ’s hundreds of lakes, over 65 have a state access site which allows someone not living on the water way to launch a boat. But both the so -called private lakes and public lakes are subject to the state laws gover ning their use.
Public inland lakes are usually defined as lakes with either a public access site or public proper ties along the shore, according to Clifford Bloom, a par tner with Bloom Slugget, PC law fir m in Grand Rapids Bloom is also the general counsel for the Michigan Lakes and Stream Association (MLSA) He said that in ter ms of land ownership, lots and parcels with frontage on a public lake also typically extend under the lake bottomlands to the center of the lake
“It doesn’t matter whether an inland lake in Michigan is public or private, the cour ts have generally held that the waters of such lakes are owned collectively by the people in the state of Michigan,” Bloom said
Although cer tain Michigan statutes and cour t cases have defined what constitutes a private lake for a ver y limited purpose in a par ticular context, there is no overarching legal definition, Bloom said Infor mally, there’s more of an understanding in a given community based on the availability of public access
Michigan cour ts have traditionally held that the waters of all inland lakes and streams are collectively owned by Michigan residents, Bloom said Riparian proper ty owners can use private lake or stream waters for various types of recreation from boating and swimming to fishing Members of the public can use the waters of a publicly accessible lake or stream for recreation as long as they follow posted ordinances
The state of Michigan defines riparian rights as “those rights which are associated with the ownership of the bank or shore of an inland lake or stream,” according to the MLSA Local cour ts have the ability to revise other r ulings and ordinances enacted by local gover nments, which can make local lake laws confusing and complex, Bloom says Water and riparian rights are similar to other proper ty rights, according to Bloom Those rights are subject to reasonable regulation by state and local gover nmental entities For example, members of the public cannot legally walk along the shoreline of privately- owned inland
lake proper ty without approval of the riparian owner
In fact, non-riparian owners need approval from riparian owners to access any par t of a lake, said Melissa DiSimone, Executive Director of the MLSA DiSimone provides consultation and acts as a problem solver for state residents with questions about lake rights
“ You’ll find that the law is ver y nuanced on a case-by-case basis,” DiSimone said “A lot of what I do is help people with riparian rights issues ” This includes solving debates on such topics as dock usage and building and other proper ty rights “I tr y to put (people) on the path so they can find the right answer or right contacts for a dispute or issue,” she added
There are many examples of a “nuanced” situation According to DiSimone, a public road that dead ends into a lake may actually be considered a public access point, even if there are no loading docks Ever y situation is different
“ There are some roads in the state that dead end into a lake, which may make it a public lake for our purposes, ” she said
Local municipalities have broad ordinance powers over lakes, Bloom said “However, they can’t contradict state laws ” Examples include ordinances involved with raf ts, shoreline activities and any dock activity
Yet even the ter m “ordinance” comes with gray areas There is no technical definition of a “lake ordinance,” Bloom said Ordinances affecting the water front and lakes can be contained in either the local municipal zoning ordinance or a separate regulator y ordinance
All zoning ordinance amendments must be enacted pursuant to the Michigan Zoning Enabling Act, he added This requires an action from a local municipality or municipal planning commission, a public hearing, and an enactment by the local body of gover nment following a planning commission recommendation
However, state law gives the Depar tment of Natural Resources
(DNR) oversight for issues of “compatibility of use or public safety,” said DNR Law Enforcement Division Marine Specialist Cpl Jill Miller, who works in the agency ’ s Recreational Safety, Education, and Enforcement Section That not only includes watercraf t and wake ordinances but issues regarding use of electric motors, towing and jet skiing, safety issues around docks and more Within that definition, Miller admits there are gray areas
“Ever y single body of water has its own issues,” Miller said
Legally these “special watercraf t r ules” are enacted under a por tion of the Michigan Marine Safety Act known as the special watercraf t r ule This r ule will not become effective unless the legislative body of the local municipality approves the same ordinance, Bloom said A new special watercraf t r ule must include DNR involvement and consent
There are many different types of special watercraf t r ules that can be approved by the DNR, including ‘ no wake’ lakes, ‘ no wake’ por tions of a lake, setting of high-speed boating hours, and more Once enacted, special watercraf t r ules have the force of state law and can be enforced by any police officer
While the DNR is involved with gover ning activities on a body of water, it does not have legal jurisdiction over a lake’s environmental considerations, such as nesting areas for wildlife or lake erosion, Miller added The DNR’s wildlife management team and the Michigan Depar tment of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE) can all suppor t some of the environmental needs in the state inland water ways depending on what is required
The DNR deals with questions around whether a lake is private or public as well, Miller said She agrees with DiSimone that the definition of a private lake in par ticular may not always match the opinion of riparian owners For example, lakes that the DNR has stocked with fish is considered public, even though there is no access for non-riparian owners, Miller said Many lakes connected by
streams to another body of water, or lakes with culver ts and dams are also considered public
Once a local gover nmental entity accepts a DNR recommendation, the DNR requires that an ordinance be posted in a local publication such as a newspaper, Miller said Her office is then notified about the posting, including what publication it will be in and when it will be r un The DNR also maintains a copy of the posting for its records From there, the ordinance is usually posted on both the local municipal website and the DNR’s website
DiSimone said that public communications for ordinances can be handled in other ways The use of buoys for example can highlight no wake zones and shallow channels for all boaters and lake users She stressed that regardless of the situation, municipalities should keep the DNR infor med of ordinance changes for public lakes If an ordinance falls under the DNR’s definition of compatibility of use or public safety, it must be documented and approved by the DNR, or it can’t legally be enforced
“It’s best to follow the process of keeping the DNR infor med if you have any question,” DiSimone said “It just makes sense to keep them infor med and follow those guidelines for public lakes ”
However, there are cases where local authorities don’t agree with the DNR’s findings At that time, they can submit an appeal to the director of the DNR That appeal process may take several months or longer to be resolved, Miller added
Many inland lakes in Michigan have an organized lake association comprised of riparian owners These associations generally have little to no oversight rights of the lake, DiSimone said Their role is largely to education fellow proper ty owners on environmental trends and local usage recommendations The intent of these associations is not to create or enforce ordinances or regulations
There are rare instances where an association has been granted super visor y rights to make lake
regulations, but in most cases the local municipality is tasked with those responsibilities
“Most associations provide infor mation and updates but have no r ule making power, ” DiSimone said There are also lake improvement boards which are volunteers separate from association boards Michigan’s Lake Board Law has been in place to manage the state’s inland lakes for more than 40 years It gives oversight rights to a local improvement board for such projects as dredging, stump removals, management of aquatic weed control programs, nuisance issues, water quality testing and more, said Ryan Woloszyk, a civil engineer with Oakland County Water Resources (OCWR) Lake improvement boards can also help to identif y educational resources to help with lake projects but they do not create r ules for lake use
In Oakland County, these lake improvement boards are comprised of elected officials from local municipalities, a riparian owner, other community representatives and a professional with OCWR For example, Bloomfield Township has eight established lake improvement boards alone The Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act – Public Act 451 of 1994, Par t 309 – outlines the rights and responsibilities of lake improvement boards, which are designed to be independent in nature
“ The (lake improvement) boards don’t make specific decisions but can help complete projects and can provide resource for (riparian owners),” Woloszyk said Board members generally have experience dealing with lake issues and addressing questions from fellow residents or constituents Their actions, including the cost of lake projects, are funded by local residents and riparian owners with lake access
Oversight of public and private lakes generally lies with local municipalities, provided they fall outside of the DNR’s definition of compatibility of use or public safety This includes such issues as zoning, environmental considerations, event use and more
However, those local gover nment
bodies do not have oversight of watercraf t usage on lakes Anything that is considered a compatibility of use or public safety issue must be reviewed by the DNR New watercraf t r ules, such as changing wake/nowake, powerboat usage and other watercraf t related laws must be approved by the DNR as well
Generally, there’s a process for altering or changing regulations with the DNR that residents should follow, DiSimone said The first step is of ten for riparian owners to connect with their local municipal board If a proposed ordinance falls under the DNR’s definition of compatibility of use or public safety, it will need to be a par t of the process Watercraf t regulations, ordinances regarding wakes and other related security issues qualif y, DiSimone said The DNR also oversees fisheries and all related laws
“ That’s where you want to star t with your local township or city,” she said The outcome of ten will “depend on the appetite of local leaders to pass lake laws” and whether the DNR is required to become involved
Michigan Public Act 303, of ten known as the Marine Safety Act of 1967, gives the county sheriff jurisdiction on all water ways within that county ’ s borders The county also provides boating safety education and enforces safe boating laws insure the safe operation of watercraf t through county marine divisions The DNR does not patrol inland lakes for enforcement purposes
“If the DNR is out on lakes they aren’t going to draw attention like the sheriff ’ s depar tment will,” DiSimone said The DNR will of ten wear muted green colors and will have more discreet branding on the side of their watercraf t “ They are going to be there to obser ve and not enforce ”
It can be difficult for some municipalities to find a common ground on ordinance changes for local, private lakes, DiSimone said
“I’m not sure the ordinance system in Michigan is strong enough to allow local municipalities to (institute) strong regulations in a number of areas, ” DiSimone said
Lake association members and riparian owners considering a new ordinance or usage change for its public lake should first contact its local municipality to get the process star ted, Miller said At that point, the municipality would hold a public hearing on the topic and may look to pass a resolution
If the ordinance involves compatibility of use or a public safety issue, the municipality will then send details of its proposed ordinance to the DNR Miller or members or her team then conduct an onsite assessment of the issue, considering ever ything from riparian complaints, accidents and incidents and other historical data and onsite obser vations The DNR compiles a repor t from that research and site visit and will share the findings of the repor t with local officials and residents at a second public hearing, attended by one or more members of the DNR team
The DNR will track and consider all feedback at this public hearing and then will render a final decision at a later date The DNR can accept the municipality ’ s proposed new ordinance fully, par tially, or reject it altogether
“Just because a (local township or city) asks for a cer tain regulation, it doesn’t mean we will approve it as is,” Miller said “ The decision is based on what the investigation finds ”
That’s what happened to Bloomfield Township last year Bloomfield Township Clerk Mar tin Brook and his colleagues attempted to get DNR approval for an ordinance they thought had been in place since 1970, which would have prohibited motorized watercraf t on 10 lakes in the township
The DNR never approved the ordinance over the last five decades, and thus it never became law The DNR recently r uled that while each lake would be designated as a slow no -wake water way, it did not prohibit watercraf t with inter nal combustion engines and limited-sized electric boats on the lakes
The township board appealed the DNR’s decision Township officials,
like Brook and treasurer Michael Schostak, held private and public meetings with local lake boards and members of public and sent letters to all homeowners with lakefront proper ty in the community about these proposed changes According to township officials, hundreds of residents attended these public meetings Bloomfield Township officials also set up a public hearing that featured DNR officials where residents could ask questions and provide feedback
For now, the township continues to pursue a change in the state law that would remove DNR oversight of local ordinances relating to compatibility or public safety
“ We were surprised (about the DNR’s decision) but it’s not the last word,” Brook said “ We hope some action could happen in 2025 ”
While local municipalities generally have ordinance control over local lakes and water ways, statute changes are possible, sometimes through legal actions More than 70 townships and several counties brought a lawsuit against Michigan Public Ser vice Commission on November 8, challenging the commission’s rights for managing large-scale renewable energy projects
The Michigan legislature passed the renewable energy siting law, Public Act 233, in 2023, which gave the commission authority to approve large-scale renewable energy projects like solar and wind It allows renewable energy developers to go around local gover nments
While that is not the case with oversight of inland water ways outside of one exception, statutes change, Bloom said “ What we saw last year (with energy projects) is that if state lawmakers want to take over local control, they can ”
Brook and other members of the township board are among those local leaders who suppor t having more local control over issues the DNR defines as compatibility of use or public safety, such as watercraf t and wake regulations According to Brook, it should be easier for an ordinance to be added, removed or changed at a
local level when a plurality of riparian owners of a cer tain lake suppor t it
The township has developed a board resolution that would provide for significant control covering watercraf t on private lakes and that the DNR should be subject local control, rather than deter mining if local control is per missible That resolution has also been sent to Michigan State Sen Jeremy Moss and State Rep Donni Steele with the hope it will prompt new legislation Brook says there is suppor t in Bloomfield Township for a law change that gives the township gover nment authority over all private lake ordinances, even those involving safety issues
“It’s really an issue you should have interest in whether you ’ re a Democrat or a Republican,” Brook said “Politics doesn’t matter here We just feel if a majority of local residents and (water front proper ty owners) agree with a (law change), we should have the ability to implement it ”
Brook stressed that the township’s effor ts to have more say in all local private lake ordinances would not ignore environmental considerations In fact, under the township’s recent proposed changes, local municipalities would still petition the DNR with their proposed ordinance changes The DNR could still advise on best practices and help conduct research on an issue but wouldn’t have oversight rights
“In that case the DNR would be compelled to approve it if 75 percent of local residents suppor ted it as well,” Brook said “It’s a different stor y if there is public access But I think most people would prefer more local control over our local lakes ”
Despite the DNR’s position with Bloomfield Township lakes, it doesn’t actively look to restrict lake access to anyone, Miller said
“Our purpose is to keep ever yone safe and let ever yone be able to use our water ways in an appropriate way, ” she said, adding that the agency doesn’t actively seek to create lake restrictions, but it will enforce ordinance decisions coming from its depar tment along with local law enforcement agencies
Pontiac Lake
Pontiac Lake, a 640-acre all- sports lake in Oakland County, Michigan, is located along the Huron River, primarily within White Lake Township, with a small portion extending into Waterford Township; as the fifth largest lake in the county, Pontiac Lake is a public lake with a public boat launch and offers excellent fishing for bass, pike, and panfish
Fishing in Michigan is big business And that’s no fish tale In both commercial and recreational industries, billions of dollars are generated in economic activity, with nearly two million Michigan residents and 334,000 non-resident tourists fishing in Michigan each year Approximately one-third of all recreational fishing in Michigan depends on stocked fish, including a substantial por tion of Great Lakes trout and salmon fishing For the fiscal year 2003-04, fish production in Michigan cost $7,242,118, which accounted for 30 percent of the Depar tment of Natural Resources (DNR) Fisheries Division’s budget. Anglers spend approximately $850 million per year with effects on the tourism and fishing equipment sectors of Michigan’s economy of $2 billion per year.
The Great Lakes Fisher y Commission estimates that recreational fishing in the Great Lakes provides more than $4 billion into the state of Michigan’s economy. Commercial fisher men are generating over $4 million annually har vesting anywhere from 1.9 to 2.5 million pounds of fish. And one reason the industr y continues to be healthy and moving for ward is the work of the fish stocking process.
Through August of 2024, the DNR had stocked more than nine million fish – 321 tons – including 12 different species and one hybrid across an ar ray of Michigan bodies of cold water, cool water and war m water The fish stocked include l;ake trout, brown trout, rainbow trout, brook trout, Nor ther n pike, muskie, steelhead salmon, chinook salmon, Atlantic salmon, Coho salmon, walleye, grayling and splake (hybrid of brook trout and a lake trout )
According to a published 2004 DNR study, there are four purposes for stocking fish including restoration of fish populations, providing diverse spor t fishing oppor tunities through introductor y, continuous and supplemental stocking, improving ecosystem balance and aiding experimental studies Numerous factors come into play before stocking decisions are made Costs, benefits, effects on the aquatic community, genetic effects on existing fish populations, biological soundness, community suppor t, geographical need, existing regulations and availability of fish are the major factors considered Protecting and restoring habitat is usually the most impor tant method for managing selfsustaining fish communities And stocking is usually not recommended where fish populations are selfsustaining, such as bass and bluegill and several others
Stocked fish can negatively affect healthy fish communities through degradation of genetic fitness, competition, predation and other biological factors
Stocked fish generally demonstrate poor sur vival in the presence of healthy fish populations, so benefits are usually small and sometimes lacking To assess the success of management actions in areas of natural reproduction, hatcher y stocks are uniquely marked to distinguish hatcher y and wild fish and to assess possible hatcher y-wild interactions
Stocking Michigan lakes streams, and rivers with var ying fish species provides many benefits for fisher men and outdoorsmen, as well as keeping those water ways in balance and healthy However, there can be drawbacks Too much of a good thing can unbalance a body of water and create unintended problems The process of stocking has been around since the 1880s in Michigan, and the work continues today with continual research and development to keep fisheries across the state in balance
The idea of fish stocking was the idea of Rober t Roosevelt, a state of New York congressman who was an early conser vationist (and uncle of President Theodore Roosevelt ) He captained the idea to establish the U S Fish Commission in 1871 to investigate declining fisheries and the potential of aquaculture to replenish depleted water ways That urging led to the new transcontinental railroad shipping brook trout from east to west and rainbow trout from west to east, of ten stopping repeatedly en route to seed local bodies of
water This early stocking was haphazard and just thought to be a good thing but led to some native fish becoming non-existent In 1910, the yellowfin cutthroat trout that hit weights of 11-plus pounds disappeared from Colorado’s Twin Lakes The hybridization with rainbow trout and the competition of other introduced game fish even killed off the silver trout in New Hampshire A 1989 study showed that the introduction of nonnative fish directly caused the extinction of more than two dozen Nor th American fish species The problem has become an inter national one as well, according to San Francisco State University Herpetologist Vance T Vredenburg
“ The Califor nia golden trout is a really beautiful fish and because of that you can find them introduced in Mexico and the Andes You can find them in New Zealand You can find them on Mount Kilimanjaro ”
The introduction of non-native fish can disturb the ecosystem in different ways They can take over or inter r upt the food sources of other species, including frogs and birds and star t to limit their population Without the proper study of a body of water, fish stocking can cause problems In Michigan, the cisco has become a threatened species and grayling were nearly extinct but the DNR has been working to maintain native fish and broadened its effor ts to help restore them as well Fish stocking by the state of Michigan began in 1874 when Atlantic salmon fingerlings were released from the Cr ystal Springs State Fish hatcher y located near Niles From then on, the state has continued its effor ts and refined the process along the way
Cleyo Har ris works for the DNR Fisheries Division as a fisheries technician in the Lake Erie Management Unit (LEMU) and has more than 22 years of experience as a fisheries biologist
The 2003 Michigan State University graduate’s ter ritor y encompasses all of the waters that drain into Lake Erie, including all or por tions of Hillsdale, Lenawee, Livingston, Macomb, Monroe, Oakland, St Clair, Sanilac, Washtenaw and Wayne counties LEMU covers a diverse ar ray of inland waters and nearshore Lake Erie from a field office located in Water ford Har ris came about the job naturally
“I grew up fishing My parents owned a bait shop, so I got to know one of the local biologists over in Jackson (where a previous DNR office was located) and af ter talking to him, I got into the field and realized that's what I want to do ”
He delved into the nuts and bolts of the fish stocking process
“For the most par t, a lot of our lakes, especially in souther n Michigan and southeast Michigan, are mostly naturally reproducing lakes We don't have to restock much of anything The stocking that we do is when we want to provide oppor tunities or we're tr ying to pull
increased predation in a lake to get bluegills or other species to grow better More of ten than not in our area of the state, it's to provide (fishing) oppor tunities for people ”
But not just any fish can be stocked in any lake or body of water Har ris used trout as an example
“ The species has to be able to sur vive in there And not ever y lake is suitable for trout Not ever y stream is suitable for trout We have a lot of really war m water lakes and the trout need that cold water habitat We have to take that into consideration,” he said
Research is done to find the best areas for each species of fish to stock Water temperature and the oxygen mix are key factors
“ We have ver y few lakes that have enough cold-water habitat in the summer time We have a lot of lakes that get really deep But once you get below that ther mal climb or where the lake stops mixing from all the wind That area is well- oxygenated at the sur face, probably the top 15 feet in the summer Once you get below that, the dissolved oxygen really drops out and so fish cannot sur vive below that ”
Har ris noted that “ a few lakes, like Maceday Lake, Cass Lake and some other lakes do have those cold-water reser ves that go really deep into the lake Maceday Lake is one of those lakes where we do stock trout to provide that oppor tunity ”
When stocking fish, attention must be paid to the lake's population so that no par ticular species is over r un
“ We have naturally reproducing species like cisco that are cold water in those lakes as well and that's a state-listed species,” he said “ We can't stock competitors and predators We don't want to stock ver y many competitors and predators on top of a state-listed species since we're tr ying to protect them ”
Plenty of research is done beforehand to understand the needs of any par ticular lake, river or stream
“ We do sur veys When we're making a deter mination for lakes, most of them are naturally reproducing All of our lakes around here (Oakland County) have typically bluegill, pumpkin seed, crappie, and largemouth bass Some of our lakes have smallmouth bass but not all of them Most of them have largemouth bass They have a lot of nor ther n pike as well All of those species are typically naturally reproducing,” Har ris said
The sur vey consists of setting a variety of different gear in the lake and then collect the fish, take samples, measurements, and get all the different fish species in the sur vey
“ We then look at the growth rates and other data and make a deter mination based off all that data that we collect to see if it does or doesn't need help If a Nor ther n Pike lake, for example, can suppor t Nor ther n Pike but they're just not reproducing ver y well because a lot of the wetlands are disconnected and they don't have
a lot of spawning habitat anymore, we come back in and stock if we have the fish available A lot of our stocking in Oakland County is walleye and we don't have a lot of naturally reproducing walleye in the county even though we have a world-class walleye fisher y ver y close in the Lake Erie and Lake St Claire River system that’s naturally reproducing inland We don't have that type of resource, so we have to stock them and if we don't stock them, the walleye populations will just completely go away ”
Using a variety of sur vey techniques to evaluate the stocking process to gauge fish growth, future stocking can be adjusted Sometimes stocking is to produce a better fishing oppor tunity and sometimes stocking a cer tain species is to predate another, such as stocking walleye to target a larger than needed bluegill population
“A lot of people like to target bluegill, and so we're tr ying to improve oppor tunities for bigger bluegill in Crescent Lake,” Har ris said “ The walleye will eat bluegill when they're really small, and so they're reducing that competition and they can get a better jump star t in those early life stages to grow faster and get to a better size class ”
The sur veys continue, Har ris said, so “it doesn't tip the scale in the other direction We know there's some lakes we sur veyed them enough over the years We have an idea of how much sur vival we get out of these and with our cur rent stocking rates, we don't have to tweak a whole lot at this point We get somewhere between 0 5 and 1 5 walleyes per acre, and that's not a big walleye fisher y ”
Up nor th lakes stocked with walleye have a lower sur vival rate and it takes time for them to grow to a size where they begin eating bluegills – up to three years That’s why fish size limits are created for fisher men to adhere to
“ We put walleye in at about one and a half to two and a half inches so we know some of those are going to get eaten before they get to a large enough size to eat bluegills,” Har ris said “It takes about three years to reach legal size – 15 inches for walleye,”
One way the DNR sur veys is to tag and track fish
“Marking and tagging fish helps DNR researchers understand fish sur vival, age, growth and movement, as well as the amount of natural reproduction of a species,” said Jay Wesley, the DNR’s Lake Michigan basin coordinator
Through mass marking assistance by the U S Fish and Wildlife Ser vice, Great Lakes states mark popular game fish like steelhead, Chinook salmon, Atlantic salmon, brown trout and lake trout These marks include both clipped adipose fins and coded-wire tags
The DNR has used a coded-wire tag program to mass-mark various fish species in Michigan since the
1980s The program involves implanting a small, codedwire tag, invisible to the naked eye, into the snout of a fish The tag is small – like the tip of a lead pencil – and lab technicians are needed to remove it
Trout and salmon containing a coded-wire tag can be identified because their adipose fins (the small, fleshy fin between the dorsal and tail fins) have been removed
The DNR asks that anglers who catch a fish with a clipped adipose fin remove and freeze the head of the fish and tur n it in at a local drop- off station in Michigan
Jaw tags – metal bands attached to a fish’s upper or lower jaw – are also used Fish tags or markings include temperature depth-recording tags discovered when cleaning a fish; jaw tags, which are metal bands attached to a fish’s upper or lower jaw; anchor tags inser ted near the base of a fin; and fin clips (total or par tial removal of fins) on fins other than the adipose fin
Anglers can repor t marked fish through the DNR’s Eyes in the Field app to provide infor mation such as species, tag details, photos, and date and location caught, or by contacting a local DNR fisheries office
Some tags can be reused, and some tags offer small monetar y rewards for repor ting them
According to Har ris, the cycle of stocking lakes, streams and rivers across Michigan varies Cass Lake is stocked ever y other year “As long as we have fish available and then Crescent Lake and Big Lake, we're stocking ever y third year ”
Har ris explained the different hatcheries car r y a variety of fish and has different processes depending on the type of fish
“ We have six hatcheries that are cur rently operating Like Marquette, being all the way up in the UP , they raise all of our lake trout Whereas Wolf Lake, they do our muskie production, steelhead and chinook And they do some walleye, too,” he said
The hatcheries either have stock fish that lay eggs that are hatched and fed and grown to stocking size Some hatcheries have eggs brought in that have been collected
“It depends on the species For chinook and steelhead, we have weirs on specific rivers that stop the migration of fish up the river and force them into our ponds and we'll collect them And then for species like lake trout and brown trout, we have what we call captive broodstock where we have adults in the hatcher y that we collect eggs from ”
Walleye gametes (eggs and sper m) are collected from rivers and brought to the hatcher y
“ They go to the hatcher y for a few days or a bit longer until the eggs actually hatch Three to five days af ter they hatch, we put them in rearing ponds at Drayton Plains in Water ford or Camp Dearbor n in Milford And then 45 to 55 days later, we're pulling them back out of the pond to stock in local lakes ”
Other fish take more time Steelhead salmon are moved to a cement raceway stream where electric feeders are set up
“ They can keep putting food to them because those fish are in the hatcher y for a year, ” Har ris said “Muskies can be spring to fall and released Some are held longer and used as a broodstock source in lakes like Lake Hudson and Thor n Apple Lake We also use the Detroit River ”
Most fish spawn only once a year but some Michigan species will spawn multiple times a year, according to Har ris One key par t of the process is keeping fish disease-free so the hatcheries are on constant aler t for any diseased fish
“ We do a lot of testing in our hatcheries from the adults that we're sampling in the wild to get gametes from We send those to the lab We take samples of the eggs, ” he said “ We take samples throughout the whole process until the fish go out to make sure we're not stocking anything that has any diseases or pathogens And if we do have issues, then we're going to have to go out and get them If we find any disease, we have to kill the whole lot That doesn't happen ver y of ten ”
Regarding private hatcheries, Har ris explained the DNR still has oversite
“ We require them to get a per mit before they can sack any fish They have to show that those fish have been tested for any pathogens and meet our requirements We have to get their cer tificate number and verif y that they've been tested,” Har ris said
In addition to the 12 species of fish that are grown in hatcheries, there is one hybrid fish and one native fish that is being reintroduced
“ The newest thing that we've been working on in our hatcheries is the grayling, which is an extinct species in Michigan So historically, we're here in Michigan and introduced them back into Michigan And we've tried this a few times and we're tr ying it again We have a brood stock source in our hatcher y at this point And splake is a hybrid that we stock It’s a hybrid between a brook trout and a lake trout That one's mostly stocked up nor th in the UP We do have a few lakes in souther n Michigan and in the lower peninsula that we stock Maceday Lake being one of them as a local one, ” according to Har ris
The grayling stocking has been progressing positively
“A long time ago, that was one of the main food fish that loggers were going af ter because it was right there and they were easy to catch But af ter multiple seasons, they got wiped out They're beautiful, too They have a large dorsal fin that's really color ful They're a cold-water species And we're cur rently on the global landscape at the lower edge of their range ”
The next phase of bringing Arctic grayling to Michigan waters will be a ceremony Monday, May 12, at
LAKE MAGAZINE
Upscale,
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the Oden State Fish Hatcher y Visitor Center in Alanson, Michigan The DNR will provide approximately 400,000 grayling eggs to the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians, the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians and the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians These par tners will reintroduce the eggs at locations along the Nor th Branch of the Manistee River, the Maple River and the Boardman- Ottaway River
The Arctic grayling (Thymallus arcticus) – of ten refer red to simply as “grayling” – are a freshwater fish in the salmonidae (salmon) family They have a unique and striking appearance, with a prominent, sail-like dorsal fin and of ten iridescent markings Grayling can be found in the Arctic Ocean and Alaska, as well as in rivers and streams of the nor ther n U S and Canada
Native to only Michigan and Montana in the lower 48 states, grayling historically were found in cold-water streams in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula and were common in the Manistee and Au Sable rivers – the city of Grayling, Michigan, along the Au Sable, is named af ter the Arctic grayling Despite the impor tance of grayling as a food source, spor t fish and cultural resource, habitat destr uction, unregulated timber har vest and pressures from non-native fish species led to the extirpation (local extinction) of grayling from Michigan by 1936
In 2016, the DNR, in par tnership with the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians, announced a proposed initiative to reintroduce Arctic grayling to the state, creating the Michigan Arctic Grayling Initiative, or MAGI Consisting of more than 50 par tners, the MAGI seeks to establish self-sustaining populations of this historically and culturally significant species within its historical Michigan range
As previous attempts to bring back the grayling have failed, new technologies and methods have improved the likelihood of effective reintroduction The grayling eggs being reintroduced will be placed in streamside incubators that will allow them to imprint on the waters in which they are placed, helping them thrive MAGI par tners will closely monitor the hatching and development of the fr y, as well as follow up on how they move through these systems as they grow
The retur n of grayling to Michigan is a years long process, and this initial handoff of eggs begins the reintroduction phase of this effor t In November 2023, three Michigan lakes were stocked with Arctic grayling that were surplus from the DNR’s grayling broodstock While establishing the broodstock was an impor tant milestone in the reintroduction process, this stocking did not (and was not intended to) establish a self-sustaining wild Arctic grayling population
“One of the biggest things is making sure we have the right habitat Outside of lakes, the other stocking we do is in our rivers Like the Clinton River, where we have
like a captive brood stock in some of our hatcheries And occasionally they have to replenish those stocks And when they need to remove some of those brood stocks from the hatcheries, we then bring those down to some highly populated areas, ” Har ris said “Southeast Michigan being one of the most populated areas We stock the Huron River over at Proud Lake And the Clinton River and Aubur n Hills area with these adult brood stock They ’ re big fish They're 17-to -24-inch trout and they're instant fisheries for people to target We tr y to make sure we let all the communities know where we're going Stocker Fest at Proud Lake is an annual thing We regularly bring walleye only for the first month and kids could har vest one fish in that first month and then it opens up because it gets hit hard The Clinton River is open as soon as the fish go in We have people in their waders with their fly rods ”
With bluegill and bass having a high population, the DNR does not typically stock those species
“ They're really good at reproducing on their own; they don't need us to stock We just protect the populations that are there so that they can reproduce on their own We've tried to stock trout all over the place in many streams and found out they didn't work ever ywhere We lear ned over that process of what habitat metrics we need to collect and what we need to look at to make sure that that these species are going to be able to sur vive and we're going to use our public tr ust and the public funding that we have because my wages come out of fishing game licenses That’s what pays for us to do our work and we get some federal spor t fish restoration money and we sell stock fish as well This is all paid for by our anglers and hunters,” Har ris said
The DNR does par tner with other organizations such as Trout Unlimited
“ We work with our par tners as much as we can That's how we get habitat projects done Locally, we have the Clinton River Watershed Council, the Huron River Watershed Council andFriends of the Detroit River,” Har ris said
Dan Paske is president of the 275member, Rochester-based Guardian chapter of Trout Unlimited, a national organization that was founded in Michigan in 1959 and is now headquar tered in Virginia The nonprofit is dedicated to the conser vation of freshwater streams, rivers and associated upland habitats for trout, salmon and other aquatic species Paske’s chapter has a special interest in the Paint Creek stocking of various trout
“ The organization continues to work so trout can thrive and be enjoyed by future generations Trout is a unique species of fish It can only sur vive in cold water, which generally is defined as, you know, water temps that are below, you know, 65 degrees,” Paske said “ We've really focused most of our conser vation work on
is Paint Creek in Oakland County And Paint Creek is really the only cold-water creek in southeast Michigan ”
Each Trout Unlimited chapter focuses on “habitat conser vation and restoration On Paint Creek there's a stocking that the Michigan DNR does of brown trout, but we've also noticed that there's natural reproduction going on there as well, not only of brown trout, but of rainbow trout The theor y is if you can create the habitat, it makes the water conditions more ideal for trout to sustain themselves in that environment ”
The chapter has a four-phase project on Paint Creek creating trout habitats dating back to 2000 Recent fish stocking in Oakland County has focused on walleye to help with bluegill population and stocking trout to provide fishing oppor tunities down here
Aaron Switzer and Jeremiah Blaauw are par t of the stocking process
Switzer has been with the DNR fisheries division for 25 years with most of that in fish production He worked his way up from his one day just walking into the Wolf Lake Fish Hatcher y and asking for a job From his temp job, he now manages the program Blaauw said he “ wears three hats I deal with all the health within our six state fish hatcheries, as well as the public/private aquaculture business in Michigan I also deal with all stocking in inland and Great Lake fish that are marked or tagged ”
The duo explained a bit more of the process noting the DNR uses 17 specialized tr ucks, that have traveled over 100,000 miles taking 451 trips to 691 restocking sites
“Generally speaking, fish production, our budget annually is around $10 million, and that rearing in transpor tation, it takes up the lion's share of that,” Switzer said “About $4 million is what I estimate that we put towards rearing in transpor tation ”
The stocking season was a success this past year, according to Switzer
"We had another excellent spring and summer stocking season that will bring ecological benefits and fishing oppor tunities to Michigan anglers," Switzer said "Thanks to the hard work and dedication of our staff, healthy, high-quality fish were reared and delivered to stocking sites in excellent condition The numbers produced and stocked met the targets for most areas "
The number and type of fish produced var y by hatcher y, as the source and temperature of the water deter mine which fish can be raised in that location Fish are reared in Michigan's state fish hatcheries anywhere from one month to 1 1/2 years before they are stocked
Switzer said, “ The Chinook salmon process is usually occur ring at about six months so the first spring af ter they ’ re spawned in the fall, they're ready to go out to big water Other species like Coho and Atlantics you're looking at 18 months in the fish hatcher y before they're
ready Small steelhead take about a year from springtime spawn to the next spring Browns and rainbows in the cool water again can range from nine to fif teen months in the hatcher y Walleye fr y plants which are five-day old fr y that have hatched and we'll stock high numbers or we'll keep them in our cool water facilities rearing ponds and get growth on them to a spring fingerling and stock them at that point when they're two to three inches long We even do some fall fingerlings where we keep them all summer and continue to give them forage (food) but forage costs money which makes those fish more expensive but they do have a higher sur vival rate ”
And the stocking and growing calendar is planned at least two years out, according to Switzer
“Each fisher y has their own calendar with lakes that are going to be restocked I'll be working on the 2027 rearing assignments We're already looking for ward to our responsibilities at each hatcher y and those will be finalized in the summer time because it does take a lot of planning up front and enough eggs to of course make those fish ”
In Michigan, there are six state and two cooperative hatcheries working together to produce the species, strain and size of fish needed for fisheries managers These fish are delivered and stocked at a specific time and location to ensure success An update of each hatcher y showed that the Marquette State Fish Hatcher y (near Marquette) stocked 323,710 yearling lake trout, brook trout and splake (a hybrid of lake trout and brook trout) weighing 41,771 pounds They also stocked 90 inland and Great Lakes sites
The Thompson State Fish Hatcher y (near Manistique) stocked 1,171,696 fish including yearling steelhead and spring fingerling Chinook salmon These fish weighed 102,442 pounds total This hatcher y stocked 64 sites (the majority located on the Great Lakes)
The Oden State Fish Hatcher y (near Petoskey) stocked 762,074 yearling brown trout and rainbow trout that in total weighed 112,704 pounds Oden also stocked 3,689 adult brown and rainbow trout that in total weighed 8,148 pounds This hatcher y stocked 159 inland and Great Lakes sites
The Har rietta State Fish Hatcher y (in Har rietta) stocked 684,487 yearling brown trout and rainbow trout that in total weighed 84,812 pounds This hatcher y stocked 200 sites that were mostly located inland
The Platte River State Fish Hatcher y (near Honor) stocked 2,272,494 fish weighing 161,396 pounds, including yearling Atlantic salmon, yearling coho salmon and spring fingerling Chinook salmon Platte River also stocked 31,514 Skamania steelhead obtained from the Indiana DNR that in total weighed 4,314 pounds This hatcher y stocked 23 sites with the majority located on the Great Lakes
The Wolf Lake State Fish Hatcher y (near Kalamazoo)
stocked 1,485,711 fish, including yearling steelhead, yearling muskellunge and spring fingerling Chinook salmon that in total weighed 123,381 pounds Wolf Lake also stocked 22,067 channel catfish obtained from the Ohio DNR, with a total weighing 670 pounds This hatcher y stocked 51 sites with the majority located on the Great Lakes
In addition, a cooperative teaching hatcher y at Lake Superior State University (in Sault Ste Marie) stocked 19,285 Atlantic salmon, weighing 1,849 pounds, into the St Mar y ’ s River
Included in this year ’ s total fish stocked were 2 4 million walleye spring fingerlings reared in ponds by the DNR, with extensive suppor t provided by local spor ting organizations These fish were stocked at 61 inland lakes and rivers and Lake Michigan
Some hatcheries will also provide fish for a few additional stockings (consisting of brook trout, Atlantic salmon, walleye, lake sturgeon and muskellunge) to be made this fall The lake sturgeon will come from the cooperative hatcher y in Tower, Michigan, that is operated with Michigan State University
Har ris notes that “for what we stock in Oakland County alone, we spend an average of about $112,858/year stocking walleye, brown trout, and splake in Oakland County with the occasional lake trout being stocked ”
DNR numbers show that since 2020, 16 different Oakland County water bodies – both lake and river systems – have gotten five different species, including brown trout, lake trout, rainbow trout, splake, and walleye They include Big Lake, Big Seven Lake, Cass Lake, Clinton River, Crescent Lake, Huron River, Kearsley Creek, Lake Orion, Lakeville Lake, Long Lake, Maceday Lake, Paint Creek, Pontiac Lake, Union Lake and White Lake
The decision to stock a public lake is made by the DNR But with so many lakes in Michigan, it’s an ongoing process
“ We have fisheries biologists in each management unit and then a crew of technicians Some lakes are on a rotational basis, some are on a discretionar y basis But they go out and sample those lakes, look at predatorprey ratios and other data and then the biologist writes a prescription,” Switzer said “ That prescription is what we use to allocate fish to a lake But a biologist may only be able to conduct 8 to 12 sur veys a year And with 11,000 public water bodies in the state of Michigan, you star t doing some math on that, it will take us a career plus, maybe even a lifetime to get to ever ything sur veyed ”
Blaaww added, “ These lakes have to have public access That's a big thing on the completion of those sur veys to make sure that our fish are gaining Another big thing is restoring threatened species It's not only game fish that we do but it's also sturgeon We have a
cooperative hatcher y at Black Lake and they release sturgeon there We have another one that's r un by DNR personnel up in the UP , Cedar River in Ontonagon
They're doing sturgeon releases too They actually collect fr y in the springtime, bring them back to the streamside rearing facilities, raise them up to fall fingerlings They're anywhere between 10 and 12 inches And then release them back into the river in hopes to increase that population and enough adults where they can capitalize on the habitat and reproduce on their own ”
Professional walleye fisher man and PhD candidate at Wayne State University in Aquatic EcologyAli Shakoor explained a possible downside of fish stocking “I know in Lake Orion, Lake Oakland, they're doing some walleye fishing and putting in a bunch of fingering There could be negative ecological impacts Walleye are piscivorous, so they're a predator They feed on other fish They exer t this topdown control on the ecosystem through predation Baitfish populations or juvenile fish populations of other species, bluegill, crappie, blunt-nosed minnow, fathead minnow, whatever those smaller fish If their populations aren't healthy, there could be negative impacts to those populations When these fish are stocked in a lake, the DNR doesn’t just say, ‘hey, the walleye population is low here Let's go throw in 500 fingerling walleye’ They have to go out and do an assessment They're going to assess populations of other fish because it's going to be competition They're going to assess populations of prey fish because that's another for m of pressure that's going to be exer ted on those prey fish populations Bass and walleye are going to compete for some of the same fish Bass and nor ther n pike Bass and bluegill or perch at cer tain life stages may compete for cer tain types of food sources ”
He also explained, “It's impor tant that they take a holistic view of the lake’s spawning habitat If they put in too many walleye, then density dependence would dictate that you're going to be competition If the ecosystem can't suppor t those 500 or 1,000 fingerling walleyes you may have decreased growth rates or those fish may become stunted They're not going to grow properly They may stop growing at 12 inches and never reach legal size They may reach their full potential There's a lot of background work that needs to be done before the decision is made to stock a par ticular species of fish in a body of water ”
For tunately, that’s just what the DNR and their suppor ting organizations are doing to help keep the Michigan fish supply healthy and strong for generations of fisher men and outdoorsmen to come
T H R E AT E N E D P L A N E T
Threatened Planet is a newsletter of curated information gleaned from over 30 print and online news sources where reliable information is provided on the health of the environment and the efforts to remedy problems facing the planet We constantly monitor a diverse list of sources – the major daily newspapers in the country and in Europe, a variety of scientific journals and government websites, along with newsletters from environmental groups, as well as a wide-ranging list of other reliable print and online news outlets For those concerned about the environment, we do the legwork by aggregating relevant information from a wide swath of sources and attempt to offer links mostly to those sources not restricted by a paywall Those interested can sign up for the newsletter at ThreatenedPlanet com
Research and composition of the Threatened Planet newsletter is the work of Austen Hohendorf
Hours af ter being swor n in as for ty-seventh president, Tr ump signed an executive order to withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement created to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions (Max Bearak/The New York Times)
The Michigan Depar tment of Natural Resources (DNR) is facing public pushback for the proposed lease of state managed forest land for solar development outside of Gaylord (Keith Matheny/The Detroit Free Press)
Thousands of Califor nia insurance policies were dropped by State Far m before the Pacific Palisades wildfires, following a growing trend with insurance companies in regions prone to climate disasters (Aimee Picchi/CBS Moneywatch)
For the first time, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) war ned “forever chemicals” in sewage sludge fer tilizer can pose risks to human health (Hiroko Tabuchi/The New York Times)
A quar ter of freshwater animals are threatened with extinction, according to new research (Christina Larson/The Associated Press)
According to a new United Nations repor t, more than threequar ters of the world’s land is now considered dr ylands (Cristen Hemingway Jaynes/EcoWatch)
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Renewable energy makes up over sixty two percent of Ger many ’s electricity publicly (Paige Bennett/EcoWatch)
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How the impacts from climate change and er ratic weather are affecting Michigan’s cher r y industr y (Ayurella Hor nMuller, Izzy Ross/Grist)
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A new type of grassroots community solar project in Brooklyn will sell renewable energy to the grid reducing local energy bills and investing funds into a community wealth fund (Maria Gallucci/Canar y Media)
The Supreme Cour t declined an appeal from major oil and gas companies to block the Honolulu lawsuit holding them accountable for their role in climate change, including misleading the public about damages from bur ning fossil fuels (John Kr uzel/Reuters)
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A new study finds Michigan lost nine days of freezing weather annually due to human-caused climate change (Kelly House/Bridge MI)
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A new Michigan Depar tment of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) repor t finds the state is on track to meet its climate goals aiming for carbon neutrality by 2050 (Rachel Mintz/Michigan Public Radio)
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More than 400 city buildings in Chicago are r unning on renewable energy supplied from a new solar far m in Illinois (Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco/Canar y Media)
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The Tr ump administration’s new Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) head threatens to fire over one-thousand employees immediately as a par t of an agency overhaul (Lisa Friedman/The New York Times)
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A new study shows that bats “sur f ” stor m fronts in longter m migration each year shedding light on the little-known phenomenon (Erin Blakemore/The Washington Post)
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The wildfires in Souther n Califor nia are one of the most costly natural disasters in U S histor y as the estimated economic loss climbs over $250 billion (Roger Vincent/The LA Times)
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Scientists have identified bacteria that can break down ”forever chemical” PFAS and their byproducts (Paige Bennett/EcoWatch)
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Despite generous tax breaks and interest across the countr y, red tape is slowing the development of community wind and solar projects (Hilar y Howard/The New York Times)
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President Tr ump signed an executive order ending the Biden administration electric vehicle (EV) mandate that pledged EVs would make up 50 percent of new car sales by 2030 (Lauren Kaori Gurley/The Washington Post)
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The Colorado Supreme Cour t r uled against an animal right group’s lawsuit alleging a zoo mistreated its elephants saying human rights do not extend to animals (Jonathan Limehouse/USA Today)
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The Tr ump Administration directed federal agency staff to remove climate references and scientific data from gover nment websites as researchers work to archive it (Kiley Price/Inside Climate News)
Metro Intelligencer is a monthly column devoted to news stories, tidbits and gossip items about what's happening on the restaurant scene in the metro Detroit area Metro Intelligencer is reported/ created each month by Gigi Nichols who can be reached at GigiNichols@DowntownPublications com with news items or tips, on or off the record.
W ilder’s opens in Birmingham
Chickpea Hospitality owner Samy Eid has added Wilder’s in Bir mingham to his restaurant por tfolio joining Forest and Phoenicia in Bir mingham and Leila in Detroit Eid, along with Saroki Architecture, Bir mingham, designed Wilder ’ s to be a nostalgic throwback to the glor y days of American dining The Ar t Deco -inspired design infuses a classic char m into an interior that showcases burled wood, polished brass and black-and-white photographs each capturing moments from a bygone era “ Wilder ’ s is our most intimate venture yet,” said Eid “It’s small, but there’s a richness to the space that I just adore We’re tr ying to restore some of that old-school char m to dining out that beautiful, wonder ful circumstance of dinner This restaurant is elegant, ar tful, and restrained No space is wasted It’s an homage to the glor y days of dining Those restaurants that feel like magic, because, well, they are Wilder ’ s is the great American steakhouse, but reimagined in a more intimate setting It’s mar tinis at lunch, big comf y booths, Ar t Deco design, suited ser vers, classic American steakhouse fare, and exquisite hospitality To eat at Wilder ’ s is to dine with a purpose It’s dining with love ” The kitchen is helmed by chef Brandon Goerlich Prime steaks on Wilder ’ s menu include: filet mignon; wagyu New York Strip; Kansas City strip; and por terhouse All steaks offer the following enhancements zip sauce, au poivre, Oscar style, and blue cheese cr ust Other menu options include dover sole au meunière brown butter, capers and almonds; Ora king salmon with champagne sauce, cur r y, mushrooms and kale; and Cajun chicken tomato beur re blanc and coleslaw 458 N Old Woodward Avenue, Bir mingham wildersbir mingham com
Noble Fish Village comes to Clawson
Noble Fish has been a staple of the Clawson community for over 40 years Opening its doors in 1984 and adding a kitchen in 1991, the tiny Japanese market and sushi bar has continued to ser ve their community unique Japanese products and cuisine In 1998, Takayuki “Guchi-san” Sakaguchi became the manager and built Noble Fish into the quirky sushi fan favorite Bor n on a tiny island in Kyuushu, Japan, Guchi-san came to the Midwest and worked in several sushi restaurants before taking over Noble Fish His knowledge and passion for top quality seafood put Noble Fish sushi on the map long before the sushi craze hit Michigan It was recently announced that two staples of the local Asian food scene – Noble Fish Sushi & Market and White Wolf Japanese Patisserie, which are located several doors apar t on 14 Mile Road in Clawson – are taking over an
empty storefront that separates them and creating a new 12,000+ square foot Asian food hall and grocer y called “Noble Village” that will celebrate the food culture of Asia The expanded operation will merge Noble Fish, and White Wolf, a five-year- old baker y specializing in Japanese pastries, under one roof The new space will also include: new fresh seafood and meat counters; new ramen and cocktail bars; an expanded grab-and-go section; interior seating for over 100 people plus 50 seats outside Both businesses are owned by the same company and will remain open during the expansion, which began this fall Target date for the completed project is late 2025
Two Ferndale restaurants shutter
The Emor y and Scout Vester, both located in Fer ndale, have closed The Emor y, a place known for sliders, small plates, craf t cocktails announced their closure on social media citing a lyric from Semisonic’s song Closing Time “Ever y new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end ” The post went on to say “Since 2007, The Emor y has been a place for our community to find comfor t food, split a bottle of wine with a friend, spend time with family, or find other locals who want to spend some time alone together We’ve loved seeing the city grow, and seeing our staff evolve and move on to do amazing things We’ve seen our guests’ first dates, New Years’ kisses, farewells, and many other moments that we ’ re honored to have shared ”
Scout Vester was located at 177 Vester Street, in the for mer home of M-Brew, and had just opened in August 2024 The establishment was owned by Bobcat Bonnie’s founder Matt Buskard As previously repor ted in December, Buskard, also owned The Fly Trap in Fer ndale but sold that establishment back to its original owners, Kara and Gavin McMillian Buskard stated in a social media post that his focus will now shif t more towards the Bobcat Bonnie’s community The good news is that Dana Taucher, the owner of Syndicate Fer ndale, which is across the street from Scout, will be bringing a new concept to the vacant Scout Vester space with more details announced later this year
Ham sandwich and Lebanese Sundae
Writers from The New York Times have scoured America in search of the best dishes for its list of “ The 26 Best Dishes We Ate Across the U S in 2024 Two Detroit restaurants have ear ned spots on the prestigious list Mike’s Famous Ham Place and Leila Mike’s Famous Ham Place, located at 3700 Michigan Avenue, has been open since 1961 and was owned by Sadiq “Mike” Muf tari, who ran the eater y since 1974, and just recently sold the restaurant to longtime customers “I don’t know if Mike Muf tari dreams of ham, but his ham sandwich has been on my mind since May,” said The New York Times writer Sara Bonisteel “He’s been plying pork for 50 years at Mike’s Famous Ham Place on a desolate stretch of Michigan Avenue His is an honest and satisf ying
sandwich built on a poppy-seed roll, with five or six solid planks of ham, a slice of cheese, a squir t of yellow mustard and some pickles He sold the business in October, but has stayed on through the end of the year to teach the new owners the ropes Aside from for ms of payment, they don’t plan to change a thing ” Leila, located 1245 Griswold Street, made the list for its special Lebanese Sundae “Ar riving to the table like a Star Trek tribble ready for a night on the town, this desser t holds your attention from the first bite,” said Bonisteel “Pistachios cover the mop of fair y floss atop the dish, and ashta, the rose-flavored ice cream with hints of orange blossom water, hides under neath the gossamer The restaurant, on Capitol Park in downtown Detroit, is named for the matriarch of the Eid family, also the owners of Phoenicia, and the menu nods to home cooking This desser t delights with its simplicity and whimsy ” Mike’s Famous Ham Place, 3700 Michigan Avenue, Detroit Leila, 1245 Griswold St, Detroit leiladetroit com
Farewell to Brady’s
Popular neighborhood hangout Brady ’s Taver n, located on Southfield Road in Beverly Hills, has closed The establishment has been ser ving up burgers and pub food to customers for over 30 years A local favorite for St Patrick’s Day celebrations, the Taver n also staged a “Last Brady ’ s St Patrick’s Day Bash” on December 20 before closing at year ’ s end while selling off the entire contents of the restaurant, including spor ts memorabilia, fur niture and even the beer taps Owner Bob Berg posted one last message to customers on Facebook, stating, “ We are incredibly grateful for the oppor tunity to have been of ser vice to the B H community these past 34 years We have watched generational patronage, what were once little leaguers are now bringing the new group of energetic kids in for our food & friendly ser vice It has been a rewarding ride suppor ting community events and effor ts, being your community gathering place for your celebrations, life events, or just to grab a bite and beverage From the bottom of our hear ts, thank you for the privilege to ser ve you ”
Quick-serve gourmet burger
Four Man Ladder Hospitality, the team behind Grey Ghost, Second Best, and Basan, has acquired a nearly 1,000-square-foot building in Fer ndale at 22305 Woodward Avenue to create their first fast-casual restaurant concept The yet-to -be-named eater y will focus on a small, scratchmade menu, spotlighting the team’s burger, chicken sandwich, and sides Designed for efficiency and flavor, the restaurant will cater primarily to takeout customers “Over the past nine years, our beloved Grey Ghost burger has developed a loyal following,” says chef and co - owner John Ver miglio “Its simple preparation and exceptional ingredients resonate with our guests, and we ’ re excited to translate that same spirit into a quick-ser vice for mat Alongside this fan favorite, we’ll introduce fresh new menu items, all craf ted with the same commitment to quality ” The new concept plans to open in the summer of 2025
THE RIGHT HOME THE RIGHT REALTOR THE RIGHT PUBLICATION
Fish where the fish are biting, as the saying goes.
If selling / searching for lake proper ty, then look to the publication with readership on the water ways of Oakland.
Reaching by direct mail over 40,000 lakefront homeowners. Quality editorial content.
The right homes in the right place.
A) Oxford Multi includes: Cedar, Clear, Long, Squaw, Michelson & Tan Lakes
B) Waterford Multi includes: Cemetery(Middle), Dollar, Greens, Maceday, Lotus, Lester, Van Norman, Williams, Mohawk, Wormer, Schoolhouse, Silver, Upper Silver & Loon Lakes
C) The Loon Lake control structure also controls Mohawk, Wormer, Schoolhouse Silver & Upper Silver Lakes
D) The Van Norman control structure also controls Green, Maceday, Lotus & Lester Lakes
E) Lake Angelus, Huron River, and Clinton River levels are not under the jurisdiction of this office
F) The Dawson Mill Pond and Sylvan-Otter Lakes are controlled by the Price Dam
G) Crystal Lake is controlled by the Walter Moore Dam
H) Lake Louise and Huff Lake are controlled by the Ruth Johnson Dam
I) Waumegah Lake reading in N.G.V.D (1983)
J) Some Winter Levels are set by Court Order Others reflects customary drawdown
