Captain Phil Harris, one of the most famous Deadliest Catch captains died last Tuesday in Anchorage; he was 53. The captain of the Cornelia Marie had suffered a stroke on January 29 while aboard his boat and was admitted to an Anchorage hospital. He was in port on St. Paul Island and accompanied by his friend and business partner, Russ Herriot.

The Captain of the Deadliest Catch vessel has been traversing the perilous waters of the Bering Sea, illustrating to viewers the stress and danger involved with making a living in the commercial fishing industry. Deadliest Catch has become one of the top rated shows on television, and the loss of Captain Phil Harris has shook the television world as well as the lives of fans of Deadliest Catch. The hard edged Phil Harris and his husky, tattooed appearance is legendary in the world of Deadliest Catch; the Cornelia Marie is one of the four boats to be heavily featured on Deadliest Catch.

Along with the other heavily featured vessels on Deadliest Catch (The Northwestern captained by Sig Hansen, Wizard; Keith Colburn, and Time Bandit; Andy and Jonathan Hillstrand) the Cornelia Marie has become one of the most famous commercial fishing boats in the entire world. The vessel was involved in the rescue of a fellow ship by the name of Big Valley that sank in the first season drowning all but one of the crew. Captain Phil Harris joined the search for the missing sailors and caught the attention of Deadliest Catch producers.

His sons Jake and John, who work aboard the Cornelia Marie will carry on Phil Harris’ legacy as they will continue to be featured on the 6th season of Deadliest catch. Philip Harris was born on Dec. 21, 1956. His father was a fisherman, and Phil first worked on fishing boats when he was 7. Described by friends and crew members as ‘earthly and excitable’ the Deadliest Catch captain became one of the icons of the show. Entertaining; compelling; and professional, Captain Phil Harris will be missed in the world of Deadliest Catch.

The New York Attorney General has joined Michigan in the fight against Asian carp and for the safety of the Great Lakes. Andrew Cuomo says he’ll file a brief in U.S. Supreme Court on Monday to support Michigan’s request to sever a century-old Chicago canal that connects Lake Michigan and the Mississippi River water basin.

Many of Chicago’s neighbors including Indiana, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Ohio support the closing of the canal for the sake of the ecosystem and Michigan fishing. The Asian carp, which can grow to be 100 pounds can consume a great deal of Great Lakes plankton, the base of the ecosystem. Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller issued a brief to the Supreme Court in support of the lawsuit issued by Michigan attorney general Mike Cox.

“The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago have failed to halt the invasion of the Asian carp that threatens the freshwater ecosystem supporting one of the greatest fishing bodies of water on earth; and so legal action is unfortunately necessary,” Zoeller told the Northwest Indiana Times.

Last month, Metropolitan Water Reclamation District spokeswoman Jill Horist called the lawsuit “unfortunate,” and said it won’t bring a solution any sooner.

Horist claims that even if the locks to the canal were closed, that there are plenty of ways for the Asian carp as well as DNA to get through to the great lakes. Asian carp and silver carp which were brought over from Asia have been migrating north for the last few years and have recently been found in waterways that share access with the Great Lakes. The species reaching the Great Lakes could potentially devastate the ecosystem and ruin the business of Michigan fishing.

Officials poisoned a section of the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal in early December  to prevent the carp from getting closer to Lake Michigan while an electrical barrier was taken down for maintenance.

The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago has said that closing the canal would not prevent the carp from migrating.

The future Michigan fishing and other Great Lakes fishing may be put in jeopardy, and what is becoming the biggest story this season for fishing continues to rage on.

In what has become the biggest story and threat to Michigan fishing, the Asian carp invasion has caused the state of Michigan to take legal measures against Illinois. The case will be taken to the Supreme Court to potentially re-reverse the flow of the river to prevent the Asian carp from invading the Great Lakes. The case will also address Chicago’s controversial withdrawal of up to 2 billion gallons of water a day from Lake Michigan. The court’s decision could dictate the entire future of fishing in Michigan as well as the vitality of the all important Great Lakes.

When the flow of the river was initially changed to dump Illinois sewage into the Mississippi river instead of the great lakes, it was seen as engineering genius. Now it may be time to reverse the flow once again in order to keep Asian carp out of the great lakes where they could ruin Michigan fishing as well as the entire lake’s ecosystem. Environmental groups have long proposed a separation between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River basin to quell the spread of invasive species such as the Asian carp. It is also estimated the Chicago diversion has lowered lakes Michigan and Huron by three inches.

The Chicago River was reversed by connecting it through a system of canals to rivers whose waters flow into the Mississippi. Varying degrees of ecological separation could be achieved by closing the canals: using sluice gates to allow lake water to flow but blocking fish or boats; or using measures such as bubble or sound “curtains,” chemicals or electricity to limit the movement of fish and smaller organisms.

Since 2002, engineers have been building electric barriers in order to keep the Asian carp out of the Great Lakes, but recent studies have found carp beyond the barriers, suggesting that they may not be enough to stop the relentless species. If introduced into the Great Lakes, scientists claim that the Asian carp will eat the plankton that makes up the base of the food chain. Michigan fishing and lake tourism could suffer greatly from the foreign invaders. The supreme court case would reopen a 1922 case filed by the Great Lakes states challenging Illinois’ right to divert water. The result of the case may be a federal mandate to close the barges and waterways connecting the Mississippi river basin with the Great Lakes. State officials are worried about the future of Michigan fishing and the jobs connected to the lakes.

Asian carp aren’t the only invasive species of fish that threaten fishing in Michigan either. Zebra muscles have been depleting Great Lakes plankton and clogging water intake structures, while round gobies compete destructively with native species. Electric barriers were initially installed to stop the spread of the gobies, but was implemented too late. Experts state that 1% of the Great Lakes water is replenished each year, and that too much diversion could eventually drain the lakes.

The price of progress

Fishing expeditions along the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal and the Calumet Sag Channel this month netted exactly one Asian carp, the voracious invasive fish officials fear could devastate the Great Lakes’ $7 billion commercial fishing industry. A $3 million dollar operation in a state already plagued by economic downturn has people wondering, but officials say that this is the right maneuver to save money and Michigan fishing in the long run. Aside from tracking Asian carp, the expedition were also on the lookout for Snakeheads and Weatherfish, other foreign species threatening to disrupt the delicate great lakes ecosystem. Many of these species are released into the wild by pet owners when they become too large or aggressive to care for in household aquariums.

Although neither of these species were found in the canal, biologists did find several round gobies, small fish that cause big problems. These gobies, which are only about three to five inches long are believed to be the cause of the extinction of three native species in the great lakes: the mottled sculpin, logperch and greenside darter. The whole expedition was semi-good news since not all of the exotic species were found, but there is still a great deal of concern with the future of great lakes fishing.
Officials initiated the fish kill by dumping the liquid toxin rotenone over a six-mile stretch of the shipping canal, coinciding with the temporary disabling of an underwater electric barrier erected to keep Asian carp from advancing north toward Lake Michigan.

Biologists said that 99 percent of the species were common carp or other native species that would not threaten the ecosystem. The fish kills are a hefty price to pay to stop the advancement of the Asian carp, and hope to limit the number of times this action is carried out, but know that it may need to be done again. Many sport fish were shocked and removed from the canal before the poisoning including largemouth bass, bluegill, and catfish. Members of congress have pushed for emergency action to prevent the spread of Asian carp to the Great Lakes.

With recent highs in the 20′s it’s officially frozen in the state of Michigan. The DNR has closed open water fishing in various areas around the state, and ice fishing season might be coming up soon. Shallow lakes have started to freeze over however there is no safe ice to report. This would be a good time to get the ice fishing gear ready to go. Fishing reports dictate that some open water fishing is still open and that the results differ depending on which day.

Southeastern Lower Peninsula

Detroit River: Boat anglers jigging large minnows near Horse Island caught some nice walleye.

Huron River: Those fishing all the way up to the dam at Flat Rock were still catching nice steelhead when using spawn or wax worms.

Kawkawlin River: Anglers were catching good numbers of perch.

Lake Erie: The Metro Park dock is still in. Those fishing in the marina were catching bluegills.

Southwestern Lower Peninsula

Muskegon: Pier anglers were catching steelhead when using spawn. Whitefish were caught in the channel near the Coast Guard Station.

St. Joe: Pier anglers were still heading out for perch.

Northeastern Lower Peninsula

Au Sable River: Steelhead could be found between the mouth and Foote Dam.

Houghton Lake: Covered with skim ice. There is no safe ice to report.

Northwestern Lower Peninsula

Ludington: Pier and shore anglers are still catching steelhead.

Manistee River: Steelhead is only activity.

Upper Peninsula

Open-water muskie fishing is wrapping up. Many shallow lakes are ice covered with no safe ice. Deeper lakes still had open

The invasive species from another land

DNA from an Asian Carp was found just seven miles from Lake Michigan and has conservationists, scientists, and federal officials on the offensive. The discovery means that the animal has gotten past the electric barriers constructed in hopes of keeping them out of Lake Michigan and could threaten the entire ecosystem of the great lake. Predatory in nature, the Asian Carp could threaten an already fragile balance in Lake Michigan and threaten disrupt a $7 million sport fishing industry.

The species was introduced in Arkansas from Asia and has already traversed the Mississippi and Illinois river on a steady course toward lake Michigan. There are four species of Asian Carp, one of them weighing near 100 lbs. and measuring four feet in length.

Federal officials are brainstorming ways to get rid of the invader and they include poison or electro-fishing for the Asian Carp, while many officials say that more than this needs to be done. Some experts are suggesting that the Illinois river is disconnected from Lake Michigan entirely in order to prevent the spread of the Asian Carp into the lake. The carp breed incredibly fast, eat a lot, and are obviously not native to the ecosystem and thus could disrupt it to catastrophic proportions. Wildlife experts and officials hope that blocking the river from Lake Michigan will be at least a temporary solution to the invasive species destroying the Lake Michigan ecosystem.

As an emergency measure, fish killing poison will be deployed into the Illinois river waterway in an attempt to stop the spread of the Asian Carp. The electrical barriers have been proven unsuccessful in keeping the carp from spreading, and it seems as though a costly severance of the waterways leading to Lake Michigan is the only way to stop the potential ecological disaster.

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources and the five tribes in the 2007 Inland Consent Decree reached a resolution on Thursday to prevent the elimination of walleye fishing on Mullett Lake in (holla at) Cheboygan. The previous debate was for the lake to be catch and release only due to quotas for take home fish being met. Low population of walleye have resulted in the surrounding tribes to request their full, treaty-entitled amount of fish.

Both the DNR and the tribes have reached a resolution to increase the fish population during the next 5 years to the 2014 season. Smith cited current adult walleye estimates for Mullett Lake at 2,001 to 3,577, but that there is some uncertainty about those numbers because of the nature of how Mullet, Burt, Crooked and Pickerel lakes interact as a chain.

Unknowns pertaining to the walleye population are being dealt with by the DNR in cooperation with the tribes. The announcement that steps were being taken to preserve the current population and increase it in the future has been hailed as a victory for the city of Cheboygan. The public rigidly opposed the ban on take home fishing in Mullet Lake, which led to further investigation on the situation. This resolution would not have been possible without public outcry and cooperation on all fronts.

Northern Michigan residents have been holding meetings and issuing letters to the DNR regarding the matter for the past two weeks.

The DNR will have a meeting in December at the Natural Resources Committee meeting to make a final ruling about the total count of keeper-limit for walleye for recreational fishing and finalize legal changes for the 2010 Michigan Fishing Guide.

The world headquarters to Dow has a river running right next to it, and on that they have an annual “All Things Walleye” fishing tournament. Signs warn anglers not to eat the fish, which are contaminated with cancer-causing dioxins that the company dumped into the Tittabawassee River for most of the last century. Yet tournament organizers sell hats featuring the slogan “Dioxins My Ass.”

Major dillemas arise when addressing the issue of Dow Chemical. It employs hundreds of Michiganders, but is undoubtadely responsible for poisoning a vast river valley that stretches more than 50 miles into the Saginaw Bay and Lake Huron. A battle spanning three decades demanding Dow to clean up the mess has finally resulted in the Obama administration to step up with a plan to scour the area of decades of contamination.

Last month, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Dow announced a deal they contend will finally address dioxin contamination from the company’s chemical complex in nearby Midland, about 200 miles northeast of Chicago.

Under provisions in the federal Superfund law, Dow will be required to evaluate and clean up dioxin-contaminated land along the Tittabawassee and Saginaw rivers starting this winter. Dow also agreed to work downstream from its plant to remove or cap dioxin-contaminated sediment, preventing toxic muck from churning back into the water and spreading farther into the Saginaw Bay. The goal is to restore the watershed by 2018.

With the condition of Michigan lakes and especially the Great Lakes, it is important that steps taken to clean begin immediately.

Dioxins, which are a by product of Agent Orange are so toxic that they are measured in trillionths of a gram and have led to two of the nations most famous enviornmental disasters. Given the sluggish pace of previous cleanup work, the EPA’s inspector general recently had concluded the sites wouldn’t be restored until 2086. The Obama administration has promised to set aside more money to speed things up and is pushing to restore a tax on polluters to help cover the tab, estimated to reach $4.5 billion.

The Tittabawassee River downstream from the Dow chemical plant in Midland, Mich

ESCANABA, Mich. – State conservation officers say they caught three men fishing with an illegal gill net in Lake Michigan’s Big Bay de Noc. The men were spotted early Monday in Delta county and eventually caught with a ridiculous amount of fish caught illegally. Officers confiscated the 1,200-foot net, a boat and other gear. They seized 1,100 pounds of fish, including mostly whitefish valued at $860, along with burbot and walleye.

The DNR asked the county prosecutor to charge Two of the suspects are being charged with fishing with an illegal device which is a misdomeanor offense. The third will be charged in the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians Tribal Court with subsistence fishing without a license.

A felony resisting arrest is being issued to one more suspect who fled the scene.

Thanks to oversea liners dumping contaminated ballast water into the great lakes, there are now 185 non-native species of creatures living in them. Those familiar with the current state of the Great Lakes and the surrounding lakes know that zebra muscles are the worst species that was brought from foreign liners. The creatures are now filling every gap of many lakes surrounding the Great Lakes, and the population is moving inward. The pest now fills virtually every crack of every rock and is eating great lakes plankton and causing species of fish to starve.

The zebra muscles are also clogging industrial and municipal water intake pipes which is costing the state billions. The Great Lakes zebra muscle infestation is moving toward the inland lakes of Michigan and Wisconsin and causing numerous problems with its spread. Beaches becoming overrun with the zebra muscles are injuring swimmers, and laying waste to many of the lakes native populations. The damage to the Great Lakes done by freighters is undeniable and the trade commission does show a desire to fix the problem, but many of the proposals for ships to have a ballast treatment systems installed is simply unreasonable.

Infestations of lakes has brought property value down for the houses surrounding the lakes. Blue and green algae have flourished in the lakes infested with zebra muscles as the plankton that controls the population of algae is being eaten by the zebra muscles. The toxic algae has also flourished because it is said that the excrement of the muscles fertilize the algae.

Zebra muscles are not the only invaders on the way for the Great Lakes, a virus known as VHS which can kill off populations of fish species is said to be on the way along with the larger cousin of the quagga muscle which has spread throughout the bottom of Lake Michigan and threatens everything above it including the prized salmon industry. There is also the round goby which thrives off the eggs of the native fish, and spiny fleas that are difficult for the native fish to eat due to their fitting moniker.

Photo by Dan Egan