Minnesotans asked to serve on fish and wildlife budget oversight committees

Do you buy hunting or fishing licenses and wonder how the money is spent? Are you interested in good fiscal stewardship and how key elements of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources’ operations are funded? If so, here is an opportunity to play an active oversight role.

Minnesotans who would like to serve on committees that review how the DNR spends Game and Fish Fund dollars are encouraged to submit an application. The committees are established pursuant to state law.

“Committee members play important and valuable roles in conservation delivery here in Minnesota,” said Dave Olfelt, DNR Fish and Wildlife Division director. “Through the budget oversight process, they have an opportunity to learn about and assess the DNR’s fish and wildlife management activities.”

The DNR needs at least nine people to fill vacancies on the fisheries oversight and wildlife oversight committees.

A detailed request for applications with an online link to submit an application is available on the DNR website at mndnr.gov/gamefishoversight. The application deadline is Wednesday, Sept. 30. DNR Commissioner Sarah Strommen will appoint committee members for two-year terms.

People who want to serve should have a strong interest in natural resource management and how it is funded, financial review, and working together. Applicants must be Minnesota residents and must have purchased at least one of the personal or commercial Minnesota licenses for hunting, fishing or trapping since Jan. 1, 2019.

“We want committee members who represent Minnesota — people with a variety of experiences and perspectives who come from all corners of the state,” Olfelt said.

Minnesota’s Game and Fish Fund is the fiscal foundation for many of the state’s core natural resource management functions. Upwards of $110 million is deposited into this fund annually.

The dollars come from hunting and fishing license sales, a sales tax on lottery tickets and other sources of revenue — including a federal reimbursement based on an excise tax on certain types of outdoor gear and marine fuels. The Minnesota Legislature authorizes all allocations from the Game and Fish Fund.

More information about the fund, expenditure reports and its oversight committee reports are available on the DNR website at mndnr.gov/gamefishoversight.

Water levels to remain low on Marsh Lake

Hunters and anglers will continue to see lowered water levels on Marsh Lake in west-central Minnesota as the result of a three-year ecosystem restoration project that will provide habitat for fish and wildlife and improve water quality.

The lowered water levels on the lake located west of Appleton are part of the $13 million project that included a new water control structure, fish passage and a reroute of the Pomme de Terre River into its historic channel below the Marsh Lake dam.

Water levels on Marsh Lake are currently less than a foot deep, and boat access is not possible. Boating conditions below the dam on Lac qui Parle Lake have not been impacted and remain open to boat traffic.

“The signs so far are encouraging,” said Walt Gessler, Lac qui Parle wildlife area manager. “Native vegetation is re-establishing where we had hoped, which will provide a tremendous benefit for clean water, fish and wildlife.”

That re-established vegetation is the product of lowered water levels. Lowered water levels mimic drought conditions, which allows aquatic vegetation to grow. Once water levels rise, vegetation helps hold the lake bottom in place, resulting in clearer water.

“The lowered water levels really represent a significant step in this ecosystem restoration project,” said Dave Trauba, regional wildlife manager. “The drawdown and vegetation growth are critical for improving water quality and habitat for fish and wildlife. That vegetation needs time to build strong roots before we can allow the water to rise and submerge that plant community.

By next summer, vegetation is expected to be established well enough for wildlife managers to raise water levels once again. After that, the plan calls for water levels to fluctuate naturally dependent upon weather conditions. Future drawdowns will depend on habitat and water conditions.

One benefit to the current drawdown is that the exposed mudflats are providing excellent feeding conditions for thousands of migrating shorebirds, which has created excellent birdwatching opportunities.

Once the lake’s water levels rise to normal levels, the area is expected to draw large numbers of waterfowl and provide high quality habitat for a variety of fish species, access to the lake for the boating public will also improve when water levels return to normal levels.

More information is available on the Marsh Lake ecosystem restoration project page (link sends email).

Bluegill improvement central to proposed special fishing regulations

Anglers should consider weighing in on proposed special fishing regulations that, if adopted, would become effective next year. Most of the proposed changes are aimed at protecting and improving bluegill sizes by lowering bag limits on lakes in 26 counties.

“The DNR’s bluegill initiative is a way to address concerns by some anglers about bluegill sizes by lowering the number of them people can keep on some lakes,” said Jon Hansen, fisheries program consultant for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. “We know there are a large number of lakes involved in this initiative, so we want to make sure we provide a variety of input opportunities, including offering online options to the traditional in-person meetings.”

The DNR launched an online presentation and comment opportunity for the bluegill initiative in May. Thus far, the DNR has received 2,500 comments through the online survey.

Hoping to invite conversation and reach a broad audience, the DNR will hold the first of five virtual town halls focusing on the bluegill initiative on Monday, Oct. 5.

“We are excited to offer these town halls and encourage people to use these and our online comment option as an alternative to the more traditional in-person meetings in each county,” said Hansen.

Each town hall will focus on a particular geographic area and will include a presentation and an opportunity for questions and comments. The schedule for the virtual town hall events is as follows:

Region 1 — Monday, Oct. 5, 12-1 p.m.

Region 2 –Wednesday, Oct. 7, 12-1 p.m.

Region 3 — Monday, Oct. 12, 12-1 p.m.

Region 4 –Wednesday, Oct. 14, 12-1 p.m.

Statewide — Tuesday, Oct. 13, 6-7 p.m.

Information on how Minnesotans can connect with these virtual town hall meetings will be available at mndnr.gov/sunfish.

Consistent with state law, the DNR will also host in-person open houses in each county where the proposed changes would apply. The DNR is making a number of changes to the in-person meeting format in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. For those who want to attend an in-person meeting, information can be found on the DNR’s sunfish information page at mndnr.gov/sunfish or by calling an area fisheries office.

Notification of the proposed changes to special fishing regulations have been posted at the accesses to each lake for most of the summer.

Other proposed regulation changes

The DNR is also proposing new regulations for other species on some lakes. Island Lake Reservoir has abundant but very small walleye. A new slot limit and increased bag limit are intended to improve fish size.

Yawkey, Sagamore and Pennington lakes, three mine pit lakes in Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area, have the potential to support naturally reproducing lake trout populations and a minimum length limit is proposed to help achieve that goal.

Finally, among the lakes being proposed for bluegill bag limit reductions, the DNR is proposing that 24 also have reductions in crappie bag limits.

More details

Special or experimental regulations are intended to improve fishing quality or provide unique opportunities. These regulations are found in their own section of the 2020 Minnesota Fishing Regulations handbook (pages 39 to 54).