More than 50 members of the angling community - including the heads of several area fishing groups - met Wednesday with representatives from the Great Lakes Fishery Commission and Department of Natural Resources to share concerns regarding a proposed fish passage project at the Union Street Dam.

The GLFC convened the meeting at the Hagerty Center to seek input from recreational fishers on the experimental FishPass system set to replace the deteriorating Union Street Dam. The estimated $18-$22 million project – which is anticipated to be fully designed by the end of this year, with construction beginning as soon as 2019 – aims to provide groundbreaking scientific research on controlling invasive species while also introducing new landscaping elements, canoe and kayak portage options, and a public educational center to the downtown Traverse City property.

Plans call for constructing a linear straight channel on the north side of the Boardman River for fish-sorting, which would feature multiple gates and technologies used to pass desirable fish through the system and either deter or remove invasive species, notably sea lampreys. The south side of the river, meanwhile, would feature a more naturalized channel. Once FishPass is constructed, scientists would experiment with invasive species technologies and tweak the system until it was fully optimized by 2026, at which point it will become fully operational for long-term use at the site. Researchers hope species-sorting innovations learned through the project can be applied at other locations throughout the Great Lakes. Nearly $2 million in Great Lakes Restoration Initiative funding has been dedicated to the project to date.

The possibility that new species – notably steelhead – could be allowed to enter upstream into the Boardman River as part of the FishPass project has alarmed some fishing groups, who worry the river’s existing wild population of brook trout would be decimated by the arrival of competitors. The DNR, the agency responsible for determining what species would be allowed to pass through the Union Street barrier, has hinted steelhead could be allowed through the system to help promote a more diverse fishery. However, the agency has not yet made any final decisions about which species will be allowed through FishPass, and may not until the system is close to completion – a process that could take several years. Officials are seeking input now ahead of those decisions.

Mike Coonan, a board member of the regional Adams Chapter of Trout Unlimited, told GLFC officials Wednesday that while his group thought FishPass was a “marvelous opportunity for science,” the community needed to take caution with “what we are sending up this river.”

“If something happens that adversely affects this river and the way it’s being fished now, or can be fished, and that’s lost, whose responsibility is that to make it whole?” Coonan asked, noting that the range of partners involved – from the DNR to the GLFC to the City of Traverse City – could make accountability for failures in the system difficult to track. “If FishPass, however it’s operated, adversely affects the river, where does the responsibility lie for mitigating those impacts?”

Other Trout Unlimited members echoed Coonan’s concerns. Gabe Schneider said the group was looking for “a good baseline of data before we accept fish passage into the river,” while Mike Sipkoski said he opposed “the passage of non-native fish” into the Boardman out of concern for protecting its upper reaches. Steelhead compete with brook trout for resources, members said, posing the threat of throwing the watershed ecosystem out of whack.

But other fishing groups advocated for the project Wednesday, saying FishPass offers the possibility to boost recreational fishing opportunities and interest in the region. Ryan Matuzak of the Grand Traverse Area Sport Fishing Association (GTASFA) advocated for including a glass observational window in the FishPass system to allow children and other visitors to observe fish up-close, and said refining fish-sorting technology at the site could allow for reintroducing a variety of species to Michigan watersheds, such as the grayling.

“One thing I find very important about this whole project…is the educational opportunities for angler recruitment and angler education,” said Matuzak. “This site provides an opportunity to reverse a trend of generations of kids and families that haven’t fished like we used to.” GTASFA President Wes Newberry also said he had faith that the DNR has the best interests of the Boardman River at heart, and wouldn’t allow the passage of any species that would ruin the ecosystem.

“I don’t think they’re going to select a fish to pass that’s going to ruin the fishery,” he said. “I don’t think our fisheries division is in the business of crushing a fishery.”

Wednesday’s meeting was the first in several planned engagement sessions in the coming months and years with both angling groups and other community members. GLFC plans to hold additional focus groups with anglers today (Thursday), and told audience members Wednesday they will analyze all of the collected input from the meetings to identify possible solutions within the FishPass design to address concerns raised by fishers. While acknowledging potential risks in the system, GLFC officials also pointed out the Boardman River’s existing barrier is already failing – primarily passing sea lamprey, salmon, and steelhead – and that the FishPass project could lead to scientific breakthroughs that would protect not only the Traverse City river but numerous other waterways. 

“This project, if successful, has global significance,” said GLFC Sea Lamprey Program Director Dale Burkett. “If there’s an answer produced here, it’s an answer that will travel the world.”