Spiel

'Spring melt in January'; Record January thaw prompts response to rising lake levels By Colin McKim Wednesday January 23 2008 orilliapacket.com With Lake Simcoe close to brimming over because of a record January thaw, Parks Canada has had to open sluice gates downstream to draw the big lake back down to normal winter levels. This emergency outflow has created strong currents in the canal between Lake Couchiching and Lock 42 that have swept away the ice and will make the three-kilometre stretch unsafe for snowmobiling the rest of the winter, even if it does freeze over again. "I'm not sure we've ever experienced the lake so high this time of year," said Dave Ness, water control engineer with the Trent-Severn Waterway. "It's basically a spring melt in January." Every fall, the TSW opens sluice gates at locks along the Severn River to draw the water in lakes Simcoe and Couchiching down 20 centimetres to create capacity for the spring runoff. But so much water flooded into the basin in January that Lake Simcoe is only two centimetres from the maximum. If this excess water was not drained away between now and the spring thaw, Lake Simcoe could overflow dikes and spill into parts of the Holland Marsh that are below lake level, said Ness. Flooding in the Black River water- shed north and east of Lake Couchi- ching would also be severe if the two lakes were not drawn down again, he pointed out. The three-kilometre canal between Lake Couchiching and Lock 42 is typ- ically iced over in January, Ness said, and it is fairly safe for snowmobiling most winters. But the current caused in the canal by opening the discharge valves at Lock 42 eats away at the underside of the ice and makes it unsafe. The TSW sent out an information bulletin Monday advising people to stay well clear of the channel above and below the lock. Ness said the water will be running through the canal to Lock 42 for the balance of the winter, so if ice reappears it will not be safe for walking or snowmobiling. The unexpected flow through the canal has already washed away several docks and a canoe, said one area resident. Jim Partridge, president of the Orillia and District Snowmobile Club, said there are no designated trails that cross the canal between Washago and Lock 42. "Our major trail to the north is on the east side of Lake Couchiching," said Partridge. "It doesn't affect us."

ENVIRONMENT / Clock is ticking for conservation dream Development, funding threaten 50-year plan to fill in `missing links' along our waterways Wednesday, January 23, 2008 Phinjo Gombu / Staff Reporter TheStar.com Brian Denney likes to think his job is about building infrastructure, only it's the green kind. He's in charge of protecting and nurturing one of the GTA's largest tracts of publicly owned river valleys and conservation areas. Denney compares the network of waterways that stretch from Lake Ontario to the Oak Ridges Moraine to the roads, pipes and power lines found in the urban environment. In their own way, both create the foundations for a great city. And it's vital not to forget that. "We want this city to become more dense," says Denney, CAO of the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority, best known for managing publicly accessible conservation areas and trails. "But it's really important that, as part of the city-building process, we have a green infrastructure layer that we are working to achieve, along with other aspects of urban infrastructure." But it's not easy, and time is running out. The authority first drew up a wish list of lands it would like to acquire back in the 1960s – all part of a vision to knit together continuous ribbons of green, flowing from the Oak Ridges Moraine to Lake Ontario, that would preserve waterways, provide conduits for wildlife and allow amenities such as a continuous trail system. The plan has been updated regularly, but the dream is only half complete. Acquiring the missing links – some 16,000 hectares – along water systems such as the Humber River, Highland Creek, Rouge River and Duffins Creek is going to be a long slog. That's because the authority has no money of its own to buy private land, such as the parcels it covets along the Humber near Highway 401. In recent years, it has received modest but encouraging support from an unlikely source – cash-strapped municipalities (Toronto, York, Durham and Peel regions) that came forward with funds to buy small but significant parcels. In Toronto's case, the money has come from something called the Source Water Protection Acquisition Program. Other regions simply have dug into reserve funds. One parcel was the two-hectare Boyer property, which the authority acquired last month for about $285,000 provided by Peel and Toronto. It's situated at the headwaters of the Humber near Glen Haffy. But the authority's larger dream will remain unfulfilled unless senior governments step in to make it happen. Municipalities have contributed up to $3 million a year – just not good enough to fulfil a long-term vision. "If we had $20 million a year for land acquisition over the space of the next two decades, most of this stuff is doable," says Denney wistfully. "This is not a billion-dollar problem." The immense area he's referring to covers nine watersheds, stretching from Etobicoke Creek in the west to Duffins Creek in the east, and encompasses municipalities that are home to more than 3 million people – one-fourth of Ontario's population and Canada's most densely populated region. Councillor Glen De Baeremaeker, an environmental activist who champions a stable fund for the TRCA, says it's a race against time – especially because the agency is often competing for the land with developers. This is especially true in the northern headwaters, where developers and other private interests are staking claims, although strategic purchases are also needed in more heavily urbanized areas to the south. What's desperately needed is a stable pot of money. That kind of funding would allow the body to move quickly and even approach private property owners to negotiate pre-emptive sales. As it is, opportunities can be lost by the time funding is put together. Even sellers who would prefer to see land preserved don't want to wait a year or more as the authority scrambles to find the money. "The government had zero muscle before, and now we have a teeny-weeny muscle," says Baeremaeker, in reference to budding municipal funding. "Land acquisition for green space is no different from any other public policy issue," says a philosophical Denney. "You make the most progress when the federal government, the provincial government and the municipal government are all aligned toward the same goal." Denney says the conservation authority's most significant growth took place in the years immediately after Hurricane Hazel, the 1954 storm that killed 81 people in Ontario and left thousands homeless. Much of the land the body owns today was bought or expropriated in an effort to keep development out of areas vulnerable to flooding. The province did give the authority a one-time grant of about 1,335 hectares in the Rouge River Valley, near the Toronto Zoo, in 2004. But in general there's been "less alignment" with the conservation authority's goals since the post-hurricane era, says Denney. He praises the province for stepping in to protect the Oak Ridges Moraine and the new Greenbelt by freezing development. But much of the protected land still remains privately owned, and unless the authority or some other preservation-minded body acquires it, a change of government could mean it could get built upon one day. In recent years, as concerns about flooding receded, the authority also has seen its primary focus of flood control and dam-building evolve to address broader environmental concerns. Denney says environmentally conscious municipal politicians have begun to walk the walk with their budgets, and that gives him hope other levels of government will step up. "It's about air quality, aesthetics, wildlife in the city. It's about nice places to walk, all coming together in a green space system," says Denney. "It's about maintaining some aspects of the natural system that are unique to this part of the world ... at the same time that we are building a big city."

Botulism takes fatal toll on thousands of Great Lakes birds Botulism and the infamous zebra mussel are blamed for killing birds - from gulls to loons - by the thousands By James Janega | Tribune reporter January 16, 2008 Rentrop counted 80 carcasses on a remote mile of beach near Cross Village, just a fraction of the estimated thousands of dead mergansers, gulls, loons and other birds whose migration last autumn ended in deadly poisoning from Type E botulism on Lake Michigan. The mounting toll on migrating birds has stoked fears among researchers and ecologists that blame for the deaths lies with invasive populations of zebra mussels and round gobies -- which arrived in ballast tanks in the 1980s and 1990s -- spreading over the Great Lakes and effectively creating a new food chain. Zebra mussels and their deep-water kin, quagga mussels, filter naturally occurring botulism and other toxins from the water. Gobies eat the mussels, and birds, in turn, eat the gobies. Scientists theorize this new food chain is concentrating botulism and other toxins and passing them up to predators. The theory is the subject of a handful of scientific papers and upcoming research proposals. Whatever the mechanism of transmitting the botulism, scientists in 1999 counted 311 birds in Lake Erie that appeared to die of it. The next year they counted 8,000, and the toll has remained in the thousands in the Great Lakes every year since. And instead of fading quickly as outbreaks did in decades past, the toxin has spread -- first through Lakes Erie and Ontario, then Huron. In 2006, Lake Michigan was the most recent lake to be affected and by last autumn was one of the hardest hit. In spreadsheets, scientists have noted the fatal effects of the annual outbreaks on more than 50 species of birds throughout the Great Lakes, from bald eagles to lowly pigeons. The list names 16 species of ducks, four types of grebes and six types of gulls. It includes double-crested cormorant and four of Lake Michigan's tiny piping plovers, a bird so threatened its nests get protection from police tape and fences at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore (this sentence as published has been corrected in this text). The deaths of many hundreds of loons have focused new urgency on the now-annual die-offs that occur from summer to fall. Loons live in small numbers, are slow to reproduce and are a symbol of northern wilderness. The die-off that ended in November claimed an estimated 3,500 to 8,500 birds -- including the loons and plovers -- over hundreds of miles of beach in seven northern Michigan counties. It spread from an estimated 2,900 birds in 2006 along just 14 miles of shoreline at Sleeping Bear Dunes, said dunes biologist Ken Hyde. The die-off also sparked preparations for a sprawling and macabre bird count in 2008 that will involve scores of volunteers combing hundreds of miles of Lake Michigan beaches over the summer and fall -- to add up, bury and haul off what are expected to be thousands more poisoned birds and fish. "We wish we weren't dealing with this," said Mark Breederland, who as extension educator for the Michigan Sea Grant research program is organizing the upcoming response. "We've got enough challenges on Lake Michigan, but it's here. It's upon us." The heightened threat to Lake Michigan became clear over the summer, when shore birds began dying, possibly of picking maggots off infected fish carcasses that washed ashore. Then came autumn. "We were getting so many loons," said Thomas Cooley, a Michigan Department of Natural Resources biologist who performed necropsies on the birds. It takes 10 or 12 of the big birds to cover a laboratory table, he explained. "When you have two or three tables covered with those, it's pretty sobering to look at that." Among the birds found dead was one of the most-studied loons in Michigan, a venerable male with four boldly colored tags on his legs and a name: C-3. Each year since 1993, he had been observed at an Upper Peninsula pond in the Seney National Wildlife Refuge, said Damon McCormick, a biologist at Common Coast Research and Conservation who studied the bird. Researchers knew C-3 had spent much of his life with the same female loon on a secluded pond in a corner of the refuge and that for unexplained reasons, he had recently left her for another loon on a neighboring pond in the refuge. They knew that he stayed behind at the new pond a few weeks this year to supervise one late blooming chick as other loons began their fall migration, which may have timed his migration perfectly to a botulism plume and indirectly spelled his doom. To their knowledge, C-3 had raised more than 15 chicks over the years, and only once let a chick drown -- when its leg got caught on a submerged log. For a loon, made him a good father, researchers said. The loon's body was found Nov. 1 by an old friend, of sorts, on a deserted, sandy crescent of Lake Michigan's north shore. Biologist and Common Coast co-director Joe Kaplan had handled C-3 "four or five" times in 14 years, most recently in 2006. Kaplan was on his last day of surveying bird carnage along the shore when he discovered the body. "I remember specifically walking up to this bird," Kaplan said. "There are thousands of thousands of birds that died on that lake, and here's a bird that had a known history. I had a relationship with this bird. It's an element of familiarity that you didn't want to find." Adult loons return to their northern nesting grounds by early spring about 93 percent of the time, McCormick said. This year, researchers will be watching for them anxiously. A decline in adult population would almost certainly spell a decline among loons. "We expect to see all our birds," McCormick said. "But based on finding the C-3 male, there's a lot more trepidation of what we'll find this spring."

Forecast for steelies is a bit cloudy Fishing /By Will Elliott 01/20/08 buffalonews.com Seasons change. Fishing seasons have their peak periods. Rainbow/steelhead trout season remains open throughout the year in Great Lakes waters. But in the lower Niagara River, “steelie” season gets fully under way after waterfowl seasons end in mid-January and river waters begin to clear. Boaters and shore casters have some wind protection in the lower river’s deep escarpment. Powerful currents level waves. But water clarity depends wholly upon water conditions up current. A good ice covering on Lake Erie assures lower river steelie anglers better trout tallies. Not so, so far this steelie season. Tuesday morning, I joined a staunch trio of steelie specialists trying to hammer a few steelheads. Capt. Frank Campbell did chartering chores for Bill Hilts Jr., a Niagara County fisheries promoter, Capt. Bruce Blakelock of Riverside Sport Fishing and me for a few drifts along the not-so-straight strait known as the lower river. Conditions looked good Monday, but by Tuesday a modest stain had moved into lower river waters. Capt. Vince Pierleoni of Thrillseeker Charters, the only other charter boater on the river that morning, had clients and had netted one steelie. Pierleoni had boated eight trout the day before, but a solid stain — not chocolate milk, but milky — made things less than visible for feeding fish. Campbell went with both live minnows and smaller egg sacks to get their attention. Both Campbell and Blakelock had clients do fairly well before the latest round of discolored water. “We had eight [steelies] in less than two hours, when the water was clearer last week,” Campbell said, as we bumped drift rigs along bottom near shore in Devil’s Hole. Pierleoni’s people hooked another trout about an hour later, but our totals included just a couple of hits and the start of a running count of lost sinkers, leaders and hooks. Campbell moved us down river and, on the second drift past Artpark, Campbell set up tight with shore and Blakelock finally locked into a nice, brightly colored steelie that fell somewhere between the five- and six-pound mark. After a quick group photo, the steelie went back in the water, we went back to hooking another fish, and we ended with that one silvery steelie and an uncertain count on the lost tackle items. Cell conversations with other charter captains confirmed Campbell’s read that the steelie run has begun. Lake trout numbers have dwindled, but lower river waters are solid with steelies. Fishing will improve as water clarity gets better. “They [fishermen] are doing better each day,” said Nick Custodi at Village Hardware Bait Shop in Lewiston. Custodi has sold crawlers, grubs and assorted live baits, but starting this year he has installed tanks for baitfish at his shop next to Clark’s Restaurant. Custodi’s bait and tackle operation will be set up for the Roger Tobey Memorial Winter Steelhead Tournament, which the Niagara River Anglers Association (NRAA) stages each year in mid-February. This year, NRAA officials will be set up for registrations and weigh-ins at Lewiston Landing on the morning of Feb. 16 for a tournament that can see any entrant take one of the top three prizes. Steelhead fishing conditions — in general throughout the winter and specifically during the tournament — change each year. Campbell did not bring in a steelie from heavily stained waters during the 2006 contest. In 2007, his two clients took first place and had another steelie weighing more than the second-place finisher. Boaters who have winterized their vessels can book charters with any of about a dozen charter options. Here is a brief listing of captains who regularly fish for steelies in the lower river during the winter: Cinelli’s Niagara Guide Service, Chris Cinelli, 479-2812 or Joe Cinelli, 773-7910; Great Lakes Charter Service, Phil Rowan, 759-1127; Sparky’s Charters, Mark McGranahan, 418-6632 ( www.sparkyscharters.com); Ernie’s Guide Service, Ernie Calandrelli, 609-3064; Fish Hook Charters, Eric Elenfeldt, 694-6995; Hawg Master Charters, Jim Taylor, (800) 464-0103; Niagara Region Charters, Campbell, 284-8546; Niagara River Guide Service, John DeLorenzo, 297-9424; Riverside Sport Fishing, Blakelock, 754-4101 ( www.niagarafish.com); Roy’s Fish Niagara Guide, Roy Larson, 692-1438; Thrillseeker Sportfishing, Pierleoni, 778-7536; or Thumbs Up Guide Service, Joe Fonzi, 438-2366. Hilts provides a fishing update for the lower river on the Niagara County Fishing Hotline at (877) 325-5787. This hotline also supplies a copy of the Greater Niagara Hot Spot Fishing Map, which provides a listing of fishing sites and charter captains and other useful fishing information for areas in Erie and Niagara Counties

....Well I'd say they are both very lucky to have you for a father Roy. Best wishes to the three of you.

Municipalities asked to pay more for conservation; Conservation Authority sets lower budget but asks 15-member communities to pay 12 per cent more By Don Crosby owensoundsuntimes.com While the overall budget for Saugeen Conservation is down this year, the share its 15 member municipalities are being asked to pay is up by $121,268 - slightly more than 12 per cent - to $1,209,628. The proposed total budget is $4.19 million, down from $4.5 million in 2007. Programs paid for by local taxes include some administration, environmental planning, flood control structures and community relations. Directors accepted a consultant's report that recommended a six per cent increase in salaries, including some pay equity. The total impact of wages on the budget amounts to about $75,000 phased in over two years. To offset the wage increases directors agreed to cut some discretionary spending. "Reasonable compensation for staff comes first," said general manager Jim Coffey. The board rejected suggestions by some directors to reduce staff or cut programs to save money. Brockton representative Dan Gieruszak wants a review of how successful the authority is at offering its programs. "Our strategic plan is 15 years old so we don't know if we are answering the requirements of the many municipalities that we serve to make sure we are spending our resources appropriately," he said. Minto representative Don Ross asked directors to consider raising planning fees and drawing on reserves to decrease the levy on municipalities. Chair Doug Freiburger said he thought the budget should be easy for municipalities to approve, once they consider what they are getting for their money. "What do we hear about today? Climate change, environmental footprint, things that everybody is speaking to. That's our business . . . we help take care of water, land and air. That's what the population today wants . . . I think if any (directors) would talk to their ratepayers, they would applaud them in their choice to accept this budget." Freiburger, who represents Saugeen Shores on the board, was re-elected as chair for the third consecutive year. Ron Hewitt of Kincardine was acclaimed first vice-chair and Dan Gieruszack was voted in as second vice-chair. Anne Eadie of Huron Kinloss was selected as this year's past-president, something that is done when the incumbent chair is re-elected and there is no past president on the board.

Racism cited in angler attacks Georgina Jan 16, 2008 yorkregion.com Chinese community groups have asked the Crown attorney to consider “extensive evidence” that racism motivated a series of attacks on recreational angler last summer. So far, York Regional Police have laid charges in five of six alleged assaults, which mostly involved Asian Canadians fishing in Lake Simcoe. The organizations hope to provide victim impact statements if any of the three accused are convicted. If a judge decides racism was a factor, it might mean the difference between a conditional sentence and jail, said lawyer Peter Lindsay. “The main thing is that if a crime was motivated by hate, we want to send the message that this sort of crime won’t be tolerated,” said Lindsay, who represents the community groups. “We can’t allow people pushing other people into rivers in the middle of the night, just because they’re Asian.” A pretrial hearing for two accused in Newmarket was postponed yesterday because a court officer had a death in the family. Nicholas Perry, 19, and Trevor Middleton, 20, are charged with assault. They’re accused of pushing two anglers into Lake Simcoe in the early hours of Sept. 16. That some locals have been calling this “nipper tipping” – a variation on cow tipping, using a derogatory slang word for Asians – seems to prove hate was a factor, lawyer and activist Avvy Go said. “The phrase ... suggests they are targeting certain fishermen because of their race,” she said, adding it’s part of a pattern rather than isolated incidents. The Ontario Human Rights Commission ended the first phase of its inquiry into the attacks last month. Middleton is also charged with criminal negligence, after he allegedly ran a car of anglers off the road on the same night, leaving one man in a coma. The father of the victim, Shayne Berwick, says the four months since that night have been agonizing as he and his wife take turns at the hospital so someone is always at their 23-year-old son’s side. “Sometimes he can open his eyes,” said Colin Berwick. “We think he knows where he is.” Torstar News Service

U.S. Energy Company to Face Prosecution for Cross-Border Pollution in Canada: Citizen Prosecution Brought for Mercury Contamination of St. Clair Watershed by Waterkeeper Alliance January 17, 2008 waterkeeper.ca SARNIA, ONTARIO, (January 17, 2008) - A Canadian Court has given the green light for the prosecution of a U.S. energy company. On Wednesday, the Superior Court of Justice in Sarnia, Ontario issued an order directing a lower court to summon DTE Energy to face charges for poisoning the St. Clair River with dangerous amounts of mercury. Michigan's DTE Energy Company is being charged for its role in polluting the St. Clair River with mercury. Scott Edwards, a Canadian citizen, filed charges last year alleging that DTE Energy's coal-fired energy complex on the banks of the St. Clair River has been violating Canada's Fisheries Act for two years. Detroit Edison, a wholly owned subsidiary of DTE, operates the St. Clair/Belle River coal-fired power plant complex in eastern Michigan. Monitoring data show that these facilities emit significant amounts of mercury each year, with more than half landing locally in Canada and the St. Clair watershed. When the mercury enters the St. Clair River, it spreads throughout the food chain, harmfully altering fish habitat and rendering fish unsafe for human consumption, which is a violation of Canadian fisheries law. Mercury is a dangerous neurotoxin; a single gram of mercury per year is enough to contaminate a 25-acre lake to the point that fish are unsafe to eat. Currently, both the Canadian and U.S. sides of the St. Clair are subject to highly restrictive fish consumption advisories because of elevated levels of mercury. Native populations along the Canadian side of the river have had their commercial fishing rights stripped away because of the devastating neurological effects on developing fetuses and young children that can result from eating mercury-contaminated fish. Edwards launched the private prosecution in March of 2007. "DTE has acted with a blatant disregard for the health and welfare of Canadian citizens and Canadian law," states Edwards. "My hope is that this prosecution will result in significant reductions in DTE Energy's mercury emissions and a cleaner and safer St. Clair River." Private prosecutions allow any Canadian citizen to independently prosecute offences in the criminal courts, and potential fines under the Fisheries Act can be up to $1-million a day. "What makes this even more egregious," adds Edwards, "is that DTE could stop poisoning local residents with mercury tomorrow if it wanted to." A U.S Department of Energy-sponsored test of pollution control technology in 2004 reduced mercury emissions at the St. Clair plant by 94%. At the conclusion of the 30-day test, DTE Energy stopped using the mercury control technology and today continues its mercury emissions unabated.

Brunswick Names Marine Veteran Marlow As Director Product Integrity and Government Affairs Jan. 09, 2008 - LAKE FOREST, IL. fishingworld.com ... Brunswick Corporation (NYSE: BC) announced that David C. Marlow has been named director of product integrity and government affairs, reporting to Brunswick Vice President and General Counsel Lloyd C. Chatfield II. Marlow, 47, joined the company in 1987 and has held a number of positions of increasing responsibility, including director of product integrity for the Brunswick Boat Group. In this new role, Marlow will coordinate Brunswick’s global product regulatory, safety and legislative affairs, with an emphasis on issues related to the marine industry, although he will work with all Brunswick operations, including non-marine businesses. He will be based in Knoxville, Tenn. "Dave is the right person to lead this ongoing effort," commented Chatfield. "His knowledge, expertise and 21 years of experience with Sea Ray and the Brunswick Boat Group, as well as his affiliations with numerous industry associations, will be invaluable as he develops this new role. We look forward to his continuing contributions." Marlow has a business management degree from Miami’s Barry University and currently serves on the Board of Directors for ABYC (American Boat & Yacht Council) and IMCI (International Marine Certification Institute). He also chairs NMMA’s (National Marine Manufacturers Association’s) Risk Management Council and ABYC’s Technical Board. About Brunswick Headquartered in Lake Forest, Ill., Brunswick Corporation endeavors to instill "Genuine Ingenuity" in all its leading consumer brands, including Mercury and Mariner outboard engines; Mercury MerCruiser sterndrives and inboard engines; MotorGuide trolling motors; Teignbridge propellers; MotoTron electronic controls; Albemarle, Arvor, Baja, Bayliner, Bermuda, Boston Whaler, Cabo Yachts, Crestliner, Harris, Hatteras, Kayot, Laguna, Lowe, Lund, Maxum, Meridian, Örnvik, Palmetto, Princecraft, Quicksilver, Savage, Sea Boss, Sea Pro, Sea Ray, Sealine, Triton, Trophy, Uttern and Valiant boats; Attwood marine parts and accessories; Land ’N’ Sea, Kellogg Marine, Diversified Marine and Benrock parts and accessories distributors; IDS dealer management systems; Life Fitness, Hammer Strength and ParaBody fitness equipment; Brunswick bowling centers, equipment and consumer products; Brunswick billiards tables; and Dynamo, Tornado and Valley pool tables, Air Hockey and foosball tables.

....Congratualations Mike, I'm sure you're loving being a Dad.

Fishing Line By Will Elliott buffalonews.com Lake Simcoe Boaters could access the lake at Orillia and head out to troll for lake trout before the Sunday freeze. Much of that midlake open water was still visible at midweek. Solid, green ice held along the Pefferlaw/Port Bolster shoreline. Steve Barber at Steve’s Fish Huts has huts out over 16- to 20-foot depths on ice measuring 6 inches and more in places. Check with Barber on current conditions at (888) 525-3474. Randy Carleton at Randy's Fish Huts in Port Bolster has been heading deeper to set his huts. "Right now, huts are set up over 25-26 feet along Round Shoal," Carleton said. Catches are mixed, with some midsized and jumbos showing among what locals call "runners," runt-sized ringbacks that are put back. Cooks Bay has seen a hefty run of runners, with better sizes coming from deeper drop-offs (15- to 20-feet) off Keswick. At all ice sites, the "J" or 'Jack" Hooks have gotten major mention. J/Jack Hooks are basically a small, bent willow-leaf spinner blade with a bead brazed onto a hook shank at one end and an eye or split ring as a connector at its head. Colors vary. Most have a red, yellow or green finish on one side or on its head on a silver or gold/copper body. This lure can be tipped with small grubs or larger minnows, but, when the fish bite is on, an ice angler adept at giving it the right drop and twitch can "jack" in perch at a fast pace. Perch schools tend to move through in intervals, so being able to get fish in and then to quickly get the lure back down to feeding fish can up the bucket count by the end of the day or outing. Lake Simcoe lake trout and whitefish seasons opened Jan. 1. Anglers can keep two trout at Simcoe; most of the Southwestern Ontario region allows for 25 whitefish. On Simcoe, the limit is set at two. Anglers have seen a resurgence of lake herring, a species that had dominated Simcoe ice catches decades ago. Currently, that species remains protected. No herring can be kept. Fines for possession of herring have been set at $120 each.

Anglers must register huts Georgina Jan 16, 2008 yorkregion.com To protect the environment and ensure the safety of anglers and boaters, anglers must register new or previously unregistered ice fishing huts on lakes. Registration is free and helps prevent anglers from abandoning their huts. Abandoned huts can end up in the water when the ice thaws. Huts must be registered in fisheries management zone 16, which includes the special designated waters of Lake Simcoe. To register your ice hut in Ministry of Natural Resources Aurora district’s portion of Lake Simcoe (from Keswick north to Gamebridge), call the Aurora office at 905-713-7400. To register your hut anywhere else on the lake, contact the Midhurst district office at 705-725-7500. Anglers must remove ice huts from all the waters in fisheries management zone 16, including Lake Simcoe by March 15. This is the same date lake trout, whitefish and walleye season closes. The ministry advises anglers to place huts on six-inch high wooden blocks to make it easier to remove them at the end of the season. Ice hut owners must keep the area around their huts clear of garbage. For better visibility, registration numbers on ice huts need to be at least two-and-a-half inches high. Anglers do not need to register tent-style huts that are made of cloth or synthetic material, if they are less than two square metres in dimension when erected. For ice hut registration in other districts, refer to the 2008-2009 Recreational Fishing Regulations Summary available from licence issuers, Service Ontario centres, or on the ministry’s website at www.mnr.gov.on.ca/MNR/pubs/pubmenu.html#fish

New bridge across Mindemoya River on Hwy 542 will be two full lanes wide Separate dam structure will better regulate water levels by Jim Moodie manitoulin.ca MINDEMOYA-A wider bridge and fancier dam are in the works for the juncture where the Mindemoya River leaves its titular source to flow under Highway 542. Earlier this month, the Ministry of Transportation (MTO) announced the completion of a engineering plan for replacement of the existing bridge and dam, both of which are getting rather long in the tooth. The two structures, which are situated one over top of the other, date way back to 1928, putting them well beyond retirement age. "The undercarriage has deteriorated to the point where it can't be fixed," said Central Manitoulin Reeve Richard Stephens, adding that the one-lane nature of the vehicular span is behind the times, given the traffic that occurs on this highway. While there's never, in Reeve Stephens' memory, been an accident at the site, "there is a bit of a bottleneck there, and we've been promoting for a number of years that the bridge be widened." Doug Dixon, whose engineering firm completed the design study on behalf of the MTO, assured that the new bridge will "be upgraded to meet or exceed the current standards for a road of that speed and volume," including the addition of a lane for two-way traffic. It will also be resituated slightly to the south, allowing for the continued use of the existing span while work on its replacement proceeds. "There will be no roadway closures," promised Sergiy Morozevych, project manager with the MTO. That's a relief to the municipality, which didn't relish the increased traffic (and upkeep) on back roads should a detour have been required, said Reeve Stephens. And of course it is welcome news to residents and visitors of the area who might have experienced an inconvenience. Once the new bridge is completed-likely in 2010, as the job won't commence until 2009-work will begin on the replacement dam, slated for the same spot as the current one. "Construction is planned for two years," said Mr. Morozevych. "In the first year the permanent bridge will be constructed south of the existing dam and bridge, and in the second year the dam will be replaced." By separating the two structures, the MTO anticipates a greater ease of maintenance, as well as considerable improvements in the functioning of the dam. "Due to refinements made in the structure's design, the operation of the dam will help improve the water levels in both Lake Mindemoya and the Mindemoya River," indicated Mr. Morozevych. "The new system will enable operators to make fine adjustments to levels during critical life-cycle stages of resident and migratory fish species." An environmental assessment has been completed for the project, with input from the Ministry of Natural Resources, said Mr. Morozevych, and mitigation measures have been identified "to address any potential impacts" on the fishery, which includes both resident warm-water species and migratory salmonids. Once the design study is approved, the MTO will issue a public tender for a contractor to perform the work. At present, the ministry is still inviting public input on the proposed bridge and dam replacement project. Copies of the design report are available for review at the Central Manitoulin municipal office and the Mindemoya and Providence Bay public libraries.

High water levels in the Maitland Watershed are getting back to normal By Gerard Creces Signal-Star Wednesday January 16, 2008 High water levels in the Maitland Watershed are getting back to normal, according to Dave Grummett, director of operational services for the Maitland Valley Conservation Authority, but that’s no reason to let your guard down. “The authority would like to continue to stress staying away from watercourses,” he said. “It is receding but still we have some very high flows.” Last Monday, Jan. 7, the MVCA put out a flood monitoring bulletin due to the rapid thaw that took place and the amount of runoff this caused. On Jan. 3, the MVCA conducted a routine snow survey, which averaged 35-40 centimetres of snow in the watershed with an inch and a half of water content. “Then we got into the rain and high temperatures,” Grummett said. “That has depleted the snow pack.” More than 45 millimetres of rain have fallen, in addition to the water from the melting snow-pack, making the low-lying areas of the watershed a dangerous place to be while the water runs high. However, Grummett said the water hit its high point last week and things should be settling down soon. “The last of the rivers and headwaters peaked at Thursday at 8 in the morning,” he said. “Those water levels have been receding.” While the highest water levels have been recorded in North Huron, people should still practice caution, especially around low-lying areas in the watershed, where flooding was most likely to take place. However, there are some positive aspects to the warmer temperatures. One of the benefits of the thaw, Grummett said, was that much of the moisture was able to seep into the ground instead of running directly off into the river. This helps counter the effects left by a hot, dry summer. “We came into the fall with very dry ground conditions, Grummett said. “I think a lot of moisture has gone into the ground. We are now looking at saturated soil conditions. “It’s a good way of replenishing.” With the mercury poised to drop once again, winter is easing back into itself, though not with a devastating deep-freeze. In the meantime, water levels are receding in the watershed, accommodating the influx caused by the rain and the melting snow. “There won’t be any potential for additional flooding, but we have to pass through what we have in the system,” Grummett said. “I think we’re getting back into winter mode. The flood threat is definitely diminished.” Temperatures hovered around zero all this week, but are expected to start sinking Friday, according to weathernetwork.ca. By Sunday, it’s expected to be -10 C with light snow expected. In the meantime, Grummett and the MVCA will continue to monitor the watershed and advise the public to avoid watercourses.

....Well I can assure you Bernie you're not getting any younger. But then again who is? Have a swell day.

Alewives rebound in latest Lake Michigan forage fish survey By Kevin Naze Great Lakes Sport Fishing Council If there's anything positive that can come out of a survey that found the fewest Lake Michigan forage fish in more than 30 years, it's that alewives are holding their own. Though at numbers well below the long-term average, alewives — the favored forage for the big lake's multimillion-dollar salmon and trout sport fishery — were up about 18 percent over the fall 2006 survey, which was one of the three lowest ever. Chuck Madenjian, a research fishery biologist for the U.S. Geological Survey's Great Lakes Science Center, said scientists believe there were 30 kilotons of prey fish in the lake last fall. That's more than 66 million pounds, but about half of the 2006 estimate. The biggest drop was in bloater chubs, only at about 1 percent of their high two decades ago. Deep-water sculpin numbers also plunged, and smelt numbers — already very low — declined more. On the other hand, the volume of quagga and zebra mussels increased about 13 percent, to 245 kilotons. That adds up to more than 500 million pounds of mussels. "It's almost all quagga mussels now, not many zebras," Madenjian said. "Some trawl catches had over 1,000 pounds of mussels in." The specially equipped boat — about 75 to 80 feet long, Madenjian said — annually surveys the bottom off seven ports, including Sturgeon Bay and Port Washington off the Wisconsin shoreline. Tows are done every 60 feet of depth, starting in 60 feet of water and ending in 360 feet of water. Ten-minute tows that take only a few minutes to lift at shallower depths can take nearly a half-hour at the greatest depths. Whitefish and yellow perch will eat the smaller mussels as part of their diet, but it's not enough to stop the growing mussel population from filtering out phytoplankton important to small fish and invertebrates. "There's a lot of doom and gloom talk these days," Madenjian said. "People are really concerned. But I do think it would be a mistake to put all the blame on the mussels. There maybe were too many salmon in the lake, and bloater populations could be somewhat cyclic. Let's see what happens." Some commercial fishermen don't think bloater numbers will come back, but Madenjian is not so sure. The population was lower in 1976, he said, prompting an emergency closure. As for the alewives coveted by salmon and trout — and the anglers who seek them — Madenjian said the most common length seen in the trawls was between 5 and 6 inches, likely from a strong 2005 year class. Still, alewife numbers were lower only three times since the survey began in 1973. "The overall trend is smaller size (of salmon)," Madenjian said. "With the states stocking fewer, the numbers might come down some, but it depends on natural reproduction, too." (Naze is field editor for the Great Lakes Sport Fishing Council)

Survival of Chinook Salmon in Lake Huron Great Lakes Sport Fishing Council The following report "Causes of Variable Survival of Stocked Chinook Salmon in Lake Huron" was just released last week and is the final research report on early survival of Chinook salmon in Lake Huron covering 1991-2002. The 58 page document does not cover the 2000-2004 OTC marking study; that will be covered in a different report. This is a research document that reports on the findings of a particular intensive study on chinook salmon. Net pen survival is one of the items covered in this report. For more info or questions, go to Jim Johnson at the Alpena Fisheries Research Station, [email protected] or 989-356-3232. To review the full report, go to: http://www.michigan.gov/documents/dnr/RR2086_219958_7.pdf

RECOVERY: 30 survivors of fish gut frenzy flown to Anchorage for care. Slimy eagles take to the air in plane rides to rehabilitation By BETH BRAGG January 14th, 2008 Anchorage Daily News The 30 bald eagles that survived a deadly feeding frenzy in a dump truck filled with fish guts are flying again. Era Aviation and Alaska Airlines are bringing the birds from Kodiak to Anchorage so they can be cleaned and cared for by the Bird Treatment and Learning Center before being returned to the wild. Six of the eagles arrived on afternoon flights Sunday and 12 more were expected on evening flights, said Cindy Palmatier, director of avian care at the center. The rest of the birds should arrive on flights today, said Gary Wheeler, manager of the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge, which has been caring for the birds since Friday's bizarre episode at the Ocean Beauty Seafoods plant in Kodiak. Twenty bald eagles died when about 50 of the birds dived into an uncovered dump truck filled with fish guts. Most of the dead birds were drowned or crushed in the gooey substance, which one wildlife official in Kodiak likened to quicksand. Two died later Friday night, but the rest appear to be getting better, Wheeler said. "They're getting a little feisty now," he said. "They're feeling their oats, for sure, so you can tell they're feeling better. They're more perky. They're wanting to fly." Wheeler said wildlife workers in Kodiak planned to wash the eagles again this weekend when a bird biologist with the International Bird Rescue and Research Center recommended sending the birds to the rescue center in Anchorage instead. "The folks there have more expertise," Wheeler said. "This is the first time since the Exxon Valdez oil spill that we've had to handle this many birds. We've kind of improvised." No one's certain where the eagles will be released once they have recovered. The city of Kodiak -- home to about 500 eagles, Wheeler said -- would like them back. But the logistics of flying the eagles back to Kodiak -- three on this flight, five on that flight, until all 30 have made the trip -- could mean they're released in Anchorage, Palmatier said. At least there's no rush to determine the birds' fates. The eagles are likely to remain at the recovery center for at least two weeks, Palmatier said. If bird lovers want to help, she added, they can do so in two ways -- by donating salmon (frozen is fine; processed is not) or cash. The salmon will help keep the eagles fed and the money will help pay for the center's utility bills, which are expected to soar as high as an eagle with so many birds to take care of. Workers at the center cranked up the heat this weekend to between 75 and 80 degrees to keep the eagles warm, and it will use a lot of hot water in the coming days to wash and rinse the birds. Keeping the birds warm is as important as getting them clean, Palmatier said, because the birds can't stay warm by themselves with feathers soiled by oily fish guts. "They don't have a lot of thermal regulation because of the oil," she said. "They're very cold." And stinky. "It's a new form of aromatherapy," Palmatier said with a laugh as she described the scene at the center. "It smells very fishy."

Counties yanking fishing bylaw By NICK GARDINER Staff Writer newsfeed.recorder.ca A United Counties council committee is pulling the plug on a month-old bylaw banning overnight fishing along roadsides and rights-of-way in its jurisdiction. The public works committee agreed Wednesday to rescind the bylaw imposed by counties council on Dec. 12 under the heading of public safety, but with open acknowledgment it was also aimed at curbing local poaching complaints. Warden Jim Pickard, like his colleagues, brushed off a proposed amendment already prepared for the meeting as well as staff proposals to "tighten up" the bylaw in favour of an absolute withdrawal on the question. "I'm prepared to sign a motion to rescind the bylaw. I would like to just table the whole issue," Pickard told the meeting. He said the OPP has expressed concern about enforcement, especially considering it doesn't have a contract to provide services to the United Counties. He said it wouldn't be realistic to expect individual municipalities to use local bylaw enforcement officers to maintain the fishing ban. "It was well-intended, but it can't be enforced," he said, noting municipalities may apply a local ban as they see fit. Pickard's recommendation was quickly picked up by Rideau Lakes Mayor Ron Holman who was one of several who indicated they have been flooded with public complaints. Holman said he'd heard "many serious and logical concerns" from residents, including tourism operators who feel their business will suffer. During an interview after the meeting, Holman said he's talked with many people who have fished overnight for years alongside counties roads and off bridges and they don't see the need to stop. "They were concerned about changing this tradition. But that wasn't the intent of the bylaw. It was for safety." The bylaw won't be rescinded, he noted, until it passes at the full meeting of counties council on Jan. 24. That should be a formality as all council members also sit on the committee. Meanwhile, Bill Thake, mayor of Westport, said the village will retain the ban on overnight fishing it enacted last month. "We're leaving our bylaw in place," Thake told The Recorder and Times. Thake said he took the village bylaw to the counties last month to ask for its support because the ban includes counties roads and bridges. He reiterated previous comments that he never intended it to become a countieswide bylaw. "I was as surprised as anybody at the time. We never sought a wider restriction." He said village council continues to have concerns about the safety of people fishing at night off bridges and close to the roadside. Otherwise, he said, "it's not going to affect local fishing much because the biggest part (covered by the bylaw) is the fish hatchery, where there's no fishing allowed at all." Complaints about the countieswide fishing ban were also cited by Front of Yonge Reeve Roger Haley who told council he had heard "some legitimate concerns" raised by residents. Haley also questioned the OPP's willingness or ability to enforce the bylaw. Chief administrative officer Steven Silver noted the bylaw provided no penalties and suggested "a more narrow wording" could satisfy some concerns. Director of public works Les Shepherd said he, too, had received letters, e-mails and phone calls opposing the ban and also suggested rewording the bylaw to more closely reflect safety concerns about fishermen standing on bridges or too close to the roads. But Shepherd's suggestion that counties lawyer John Simpson be brought in to examine the proposed bylaw was rejected by past warden Doug Struthers, who endorsed Pickard's call to rescind the regulation. "We don't need to have our solicitor vet the bylaw," said Struthers. Councillor Frank Kinsella said he supported the original bylaw to address the situation of illegal fishing and not to interfere with local sportsmen. "Our intention was to give us something in our arsenal to address poaching." Concerns about illegal fishing have been raised for years along the Rideau Canal waterway, but enforcement from the Ministry of Natural Resources has been seen as inadequate. That sentiment was reinforced with last fall's release of a report by Ontario auditor general Jim McCarter who decried the ministry's chronic underfunding and inability to enforce hunting and fishing regulations. In recent years, Canadian-Asian anglers have been assaulted around Peterborough, on Lake Simcoe and in the Westport area, leading to a preliminary report issued from the Ontario Human Rights Commission which states the incidents are the result of racism. However, some anglers argue the assaults have resulted from frustration over the MNR's inability to prevent poaching involving Canadians of Asian descent.

One Expensive Fish Monday, January 14, 2008, SooNews Wire for SooNews.ca A Sault Ste. Marie area resident has been fined $ 2,400 for having walleye out of season. Martin H. Harris, 33, pleaded guilty to catching and keeping 12 walleye before the 2007 opening of walleye season. He is also suspended from fishing for one year. Court was told that Harris was camping on Kebskwasheshi Lake on May 18, 2007, when Ministry of Natural Resources conservation officers inspected his boat and coolers. Officers found 11 whole walleye and two walleye fillets. Justice of the Peace Alex Spence heard the case at the Ontario Court of Justice, Chapleau, on January 9, 2008. Anglers are reminded to review the 2008-2009 Recreational Fishing Regulations Summary for information on catch and possession limits, and open seasons. To report a natural resource violation, call 1-877-TIPS-MNR (847-7667) toll free any time or contact the Chapleau District office at 705-864-1710 during regular business hours. You can also call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).

Bruce County asked to take up low water cause By DON CROSBY Owen Sound Sun Times South Bruce Peninsula is calling on Bruce County to support a petition it sent to the federal government calling on it to do something about declining water levels in the Great Lakes. The request, initiated and approved by South Bruce Peninsula council last September, and an accompanying petition signed by municipal residents, is expected to come before the county's agriculture, tourism and planning committee Jan. 17. The petition calls for measures to stop the loss of water from Lake Huron through the St. Clair River. The request is supported by a study done in 2005 by the Georgian Bay Association, a coalition of landowner groups in the Georgian Bay area that has taken a lead role in concerns about low water levels in the upper Great Lakes. According to the group, 2.5 billion gallons of water - the equivalent of 10 million tonnes or a block one square mile and 12 feet high - is escaping Lake Huron via the St. Clair River every day and that's why water levels in Lake Huron and Georgian Bay are so low. "Once it's gone, that water is gone forever. We don't get it back," Mary Muter, vice-president of the GBA, said in an interview Friday. She said only one per cent of the water in the Great Lakes comes from rainfall; the rest was left from melting glaciers millions of years ago. Muter said from her home in Toronto that Lake Huron is 34 centimetres below normal and while Lake Superior water levels, which had been at an 80-year low, began to rebound in 2007, the same can't be said for Lake Huron. Muter said instead of spending $200 million on dredging at U.S. ports on Lake Michigan, a system to reduce the St. Clair River flow could be built for about $10 million. She said years of dredging the St. Clair River, the mining of protective sand bars, the realignment of the main shipping approach through Lake Huron and years of erosion has changed the profile of the river. It's now 60 feet deep, double what is required for shipping and is the cause of the increased flow of water out of the upper Great Lakes. "Put some kind of control measures in the St. Clair River to bring water back up to average levels so this kind of costly dredging doesn't have to happen on an annual basis," Muter said. South Bruce Peninsula Mayor Gwen Gilbert said water levels near Oliphant are worrying cottagers, who are unable to get to their cottages by boat and, in some cases, by land. She noted a cottage burned on Frog Island last year because low water levels prevented firefighters from getting to the island quickly to fight the blaze. "We'd like to know some action is being taken with the water levels being so low and getting lower," said Gilbert. "It's a great concern to people along Colpoys Bay, who are digging their water lines and putting them deeper because they are losing the ability to get water." She said if water levels continue to drop, the municipality will have to extend the water intake pipe for Wiarton, which gets its water from Georgian Bay. Level changes are concerning many Huron-Kinloss will spend about $200,000 this year combating the environmental effects of low water and protecting its beaches along Lake Huron. A growing number of algae blooms have floated ashore in recent years, stinking up swimming areas and leading public health officials to close some beaches last year. "The effect is to turn the near-shore water dark and murky. Just to walk out into the water is like you're stepping in slime," said Huron-Kinloss Mayor Mitch Twolan. The invasion in recent years of Phragmites grass, a tough common reed, is creating havoc for cottage owners along some of the same beaches. Twolan blames both problems on declining water levels. The grass has been gradually spreading for the past four or five years and is competing with native species. "It has been around before, up and down the shore, but not to the extent that it is now," Twolan said. Northern Bruce Peninsula Mayor Milt McIver said recently that in the past, fluctuations in lake water levels have been cyclical and always bounced back. Now there are concerns climate change has disrupted that pattern. "It's changed the shore property all along Georgian Bay and Lake Huron," adversely affecting boating and reducing access to cottages. "Where is the water going? . . . that's the main concern of a lot of people . . . we should be stopping it or trying to put a stop to it," said McIver, who wants Bruce County to be involved. "We want to be at the table where people are discussing and making decisions about what action should be taken about what happens to the Great Lakes," he said. South Bruce Peninsula has also forwarded the petition to MP Larry Miller, MPP Bill Murdoch, the Grey Sauble Conservation Authority and the Association of Municipalities of Ontario. The GSCA, for one, will not support the petition, said chair Dick Hibma. Hibma, a member of the International Joint Commission's International Upper Great Lake Study Public Interest Advisory Group, said there's already an ongoing study to deal with concerns over the St. Clair River and it's an oversimplification to say its dredging is the cause of low lake levels. The International Joint Commissions Great Lake Study is a five-year, $17-million study to determine whether the regulation of Lake Superior outflows can be improved to address the evolving needs of users on Lakes Superior, Huron, Michigan and Erie. Physical changes to the St. Clair River, which forms part of the connecting channel between Lake Huron and Lake Erie, will be investigated as one factor that might be affecting water levels and flows. The commission was established by the Boundary Waters Treaty of 1909 to prevent and resolve disputes over the use of waters shared by the United States and Canada. Depending on the nature and extent of the physical changes and their potential impact on water levels and flows, the study may also explore potential remediation options. Hibma said the Great Lakes system from Thunder Bay to Cornwall is self-regulating and there are a number of factors involved including climate change, water taking, evaporation and changing landscapes. "There are so many things that we don't understand yet, it would be premature and misguided to react to this petition," Hibma said.

....Well "Dang", I go out for one day and you go and have yourself a Birthday. I hope it was a good one!

At least 20 eagles die looking for easy meal Factory workers try to save birds from quicksand-like goo By JAMES HALPIN January 12th, 2008 12:25 AM Anchorage Daily News Dozens of bald eagles descended on a dump truck hauling fish guts at a Kodiak processing plant Friday and got tangled in the mess, leaving at least 20 of the birds drowned, buried or crushed, according to federal wildlife officials. About 50 eagles were watching and waiting for a meal outside the Ocean Beauty Seafoods plant when the uncovered dump truck pulled out of a garage, said wildlife biologist Brandon Saito, of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Once the birds began landing to gorge themselves, their massive numbers pushed others down into the sludge, which was about the consistency of quicksand, Saito said. Factory workers, who had apparently moved the truck out only for a few minutes, pulled it back inside when they saw what was happening. "It's not a very big space for that many eagles to get into," Saito said. "Some of the birds got crushed and buried. Some were drowning in the slime. It was really heavy, thick stuff." Temperatures in Kodiak on Friday afternoon were in the midteens, causing some of the soaked eagles to "flash freeze" when they were pulled free, Saito said. Several workers shoveled through the mess to pull birds out as the dump truck incrementally released loads of the guts onto the garage floor, Saito said. As the birds were rescued, they were taken to a "triage" room, where employes of the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge washed them off in large tubs of soapy warm water and evaluated them, he said. "We cleaned them up and tried to warm them up, but some of them weren't doing too good," he said. The eagles were exhausted from struggling to escape the goo, Saito said. Many were hypothermic from being submerged in the cold water. Thirty surviving eagles were taken to refuge headquarters, where they were being kept indoors in tarp-covered truck beds because there were not enough kennels to house all of them, he said. Saito said he expected more of the birds could die overnight. They were to be evaluated this morning to figure out which were doing well enough to be released and which would need to undergo physical therapy, he said. Those that need further medical attention likely will be shipped to Anchorage, where the Bird Treatment and Learning Center can care for them, he said. Shipping them might be an issue, though. While the fish and wildlife agency has agreements with ERA Aviation and Alaska Airlines to fly injured birds for free when space is available, moving them in such large numbers could pose a problem, he said. The dead birds will be shipped to a U.S. Department of Interior clearinghouse where Native American groups could apply to be given the birds or their feathers for ceremonial purposes. Tony Olazabal, production manager at the Ocean Beauty plant, declined to comment when reached at home Friday night.

O.C.O.A December 7, 2007 HEFTY FINES FOR BUYING FISH ILLEGALLY BLIND RIVER - A Toronto man has been fined $1,500 for illegally buying a sturgeon and then lying to a conservation officer in an attempt to conceal the offence. Alexandre Goloubev, 27, pleaded guilty to the charges and was fined $1,000 for unlawfully buying fish and $500 for making a false statement to a conservation officer. Court heard that on October 5, 2007, Goloubev was checked by a conservation officer while angling just west of Blind River. Goloubev told the officer he only had salmon in his possession. After being questioned about a large pool of blood on shore, he admitted he had bought a sturgeon from an angler who caught it earlier in the day. The sturgeon was cut in pieces, placed in a cooler and hidden under vegetation in the forest near their campsite. Justice of the Peace Philip Stanghetta heard the case in the Ontario Court of Justice, Blind River, on December 4, 2007. To report a natural resource violation, call 1-877-TIPS-MNR (847-7667) toll-free any time or contact your ministry office during regular business hours. You can also call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477). ------------------------------------------- December 7, 2007 BASS OVERLIMIT CATCHES ANGLER $750 FINE BARRIE — A Maple-area resident has been fined $750 for having too many smallmouth bass. Frank Attard, 65, pleaded guilty to catching and retaining 19 bass over the limit of six per day. In addition to the fine, he forfeits his fishing rod and tackle box to the Crown. Court was told that Attard was angling on Lake Simcoe at the Barrie waterfront on September 30, 2007, when a Ministry of Natural Resources conservation officer inspected his catch and found 25 smallmouth bass Attard caught that day. Conservation officers had been patrolling the area after getting complaints of over fishing of bass and perch in the fall and early winter. Justice of the Peace Robert Norton heard the case at the Ontario Court of Justice, Barrie, on November 27, 2007. Anglers must be able to identify the species of fish they catch and the legal number of fish they can catch and possess. These limits vary depending on whether you have a sportfishing licence or a conservation fishing licence. To report a natural resource violation, call 1-877-TIPS-MNR (847-7667) toll free any time or contact the Midhurst District office at (705) 725-7550 during regular business hours. You can also call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).

New board leadership announced for Kenora Bass International There will be new faces at the top for the 2008 edition of the summer’s biggest fishing tournament. By Miner and News Staff Friday January 11, 2008 Kenora Daily Miner There will be new faces at the top for the 2008 edition of the summer’s biggest fishing tournament. Tracy Laffin of Tunnel Island Management will chair the Kenora Bass International this year -- taking over from Sue Loewen, who chaired the tournament of the last two years -- with Ernie Friesen, who is employed as the sporting goods department manager for Canadian Tire in Kenora, as her vice-chairman. The board of directors of KBI had advertised the need for new leadership in order to continue holding KBI. “The intent of the Kenora Bass International is to attract anglers, their families, tourists and people of our own great community to the event. We know from previous economic surveys that KBI has a 1.5 million-dollar impact on our local economy each year, which is why it was extremely important to our previous board of directors to ensure the future success of the event,” said director of finance Vanessa Nowe in a release. Laffin’s work with Tunnel Island Management Company which provides marketing services for local Kenora businesses such as Super 8 Motel, Casey’s Grill Bar and the MS Kenora, is expected to bring a wealth of experience and knowledge on marketing KBI as the premiere bass fishing tournament of Northwestern Ontario. Nowe said the board was also pleased other community members stepped forward into other roles on the board of directors. Angler services will be handled by Duncan McEwen of Sunset Strip Husky, while Lori Beaucage of DST consulting will help look after sponsorships. In total, 13 members will serve on the board, including nine who decided to return this year. The re-invigorated board is excited about 2008 being the best tournament yet and has announced Shaw Cable has committed to returning to broadcasting the final weigh-in as a live event. The announcement follows their meeting Wednesday, where they focused on gathering their team for the competition, scheduled for Aug. 7-9. The event will continue at the Harbourfront. The board noted in its release the city has updated it on the impact of the downtown revitalization project. “They have acknowledged the economic benefit that the tournament provides to our city and have made the necessary concessions to ensure that we are able to host the event in a suitable format for both the anglers and spectators. Despite the increased traffic on Bernier Drive they have indicated that they will do everything possible to ensure that we are able to host the Top Ten Angler Boat Parade which they acknowledge as the pinnacle point of the event,” stated Nowe.