# Fish farms coming to Michigan waters?



## kzoofisher (Mar 6, 2011)

I'm up in the air on this. Yes, the pens have created pollution problems in places and they can be vectors for disease. On the other hand, the lakes are already below target fertility levels so it's hard to see the pens having too great an influence. 



> New panel to explore commercial net-pen aquaculture in Great Lakes
> Michigan DNR sent this bulletin at 06/02/2015 12:38 PM EDT
> Press Release
> 
> ...


http://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/MIDNR/bulletins/1076057


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## Lou is Blue (Sep 14, 2014)

but I guess I could be persuaded.

It would seem like you'd want to do something native, so escapee's don't introduce a new invasive; but the trouble with that would seem that the logical extension would be to yellow perch or walleye in say Saginaw Bay; and become a serious disease threat to one of the few viable fisheries we have.

otherwise what? an open water rainbow trout farm?


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## kzoofisher (Mar 6, 2011)

No question it would have to be fish that are already established in the lakes and not destructive. Salmon and steelhead are likely options, maybe whitefish or cisco too. I would hate to see new strains introduced though. No reason to dilute the gene pool of species that are recovering naturally.


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## Fishndude (Feb 22, 2003)

Not sure which freshwater fish grow to eating size in a year. It will be interesting to see how these aquaculture projects get through winters, when the great lakes often freeze.


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## Lou is Blue (Sep 14, 2014)

Sure they'll raise tipalia fry somewhere and dump them in there and force feed them. 

I will lose my mind.


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## Fishndude (Feb 22, 2003)

Lou is Blue said:


> Sure they'll raise tipalia fry somewhere and dump them in there and force feed them.
> 
> I will lose my mind.


I'm pretty sure Tilapia are raised in ponds, and small lakes. Not in water the size of the great lakes.


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## GuppyII (Sep 14, 2008)

It's for rainbow trout.


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## kzoofisher (Mar 6, 2011)

I suppose you could grow 7" fish to 14" in one season if you fed them enough. How deep do they make those pens? Even in the northern lake the surface gets pretty warm.


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## Jager Pro (Nov 8, 2013)

I saw a show on either the History or the Discovery channel of one of those pens in the ocean (I think it was for cod???) they're pretty cool how they're taken care of.


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## Far Beyond Driven (Jan 23, 2006)

Those guys that specialize in catching those insane rainbows somewhere in Canada - aren't those escapees from a fish farm?


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## danthebuilder (Nov 22, 2011)

We need more money spent on tracking every fish that is planted to tell it apart from what is natural. That way if a farm moves in and brings disease which they have done in a few areas where there are farms. They DNR could easily solve the problem by planting more fish to make up for the natural reproduction losses. The other areas where there are natural reproduction they deny that there are any issues because they don't want the farms shut down. Since salmon/steelhead aren't really "natural" Lets just agree from the start that it'll probably effect our natural reproduction but we have a plan in please to increase plants if needed to increase plants to make up for it.

If they come i'd also would want mandatory bird nets placed on top of the cages.


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## Whitetail_hunter (Mar 14, 2012)

danthebuilder said:


> We need more money spent on tracking every fish that is planted to tell it apart from what is natural. That way if a farm moves in and brings disease which they have done in a few areas where there are farms. They DNR could easily solve the problem by planting more fish to make up for the natural reproduction losses. The other areas where there are natural reproduction they deny that there are any issues because they don't want the farms shut down. Since salmon/steelhead aren't really "natural" Lets just agree from the start that it'll probably effect our natural reproduction but we have a plan in please to increase plants if needed to increase plants to make up for it.
> 
> If they come i'd also would want mandatory bird nets placed on top of the cages.


I was just watching a documentary on fish farms and how diseases are being spread from them to the wild fish in BC and it's causing them to die pre spawn I think it was called ISA and it came originally from Norway. It causes the fish to die pre spawn. Even though salmon and steel are not native I don't think we want that. I'll see if I can find the video.


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## Whitetail_hunter (Mar 14, 2012)




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## RedM2 (Dec 19, 2007)

Whitetail_hunter said:


>


Wow... I just watched this. I'd highly recommend everyone watch this. No thanks to fish farms.


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## syonker (May 7, 2004)

RedM2 said:


> Wow... I just watched this. I'd highly recommend everyone watch this. No thanks to fish farms.


Amazing video. And we thought controlling Asian carp was a bureaucratic mess.

Even if Michigan/Wisconsin said no to fish farms, Canada needs to as well or it will become a mell of a hess.


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## swampbuck (Dec 23, 2004)

Whitetail_hunter said:


> I was just watching a documentary on fish farms and how diseases are being spread from them to the wild fish in BC and it's causing them to die pre spawn I think it was called ISA and it came originally from Norway. It causes the fish to die pre spawn. Even though salmon and steel are not native I don't think we want that. I'll see if I can find the video.


That same type of thing has been happening to trout and salmon in the Great Lakes for decades. It's called early mortality syndrome and it's caused be alewives....and our Mdnr is spending millions to keep it happening


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## RedM2 (Dec 19, 2007)

swampbuck said:


> That same type of thing has been happening to trout and salmon in the Great Lakes for decades. It's called early mortality syndrome and it's caused be alewives....and our Mdnr is spending millions to keep it happening


Based on the information in the documentary, they are two different things. ISA (Infectious Salmon Anemia) causes salmon to die from what biologists say are flu like symptoms...basically it's the salmon flu. It doesn't even allow the salmon to spawn because they die before the spawn. Alewives (I am sure you already know this) contain thiaminase, which destroy the thiamine in fish that consume them, which can cause the spawn to die at an early age. 

B.C., Canada is at risk of losing an entire (former) healthy fishery that is being replaced with a farm fishery that brings food to markets that might not be safe for human consumption (think disease crossing the species barrier). In Michigan, our DNR is allowing natural reproduction of a fish (the main focus seems to be lake trout) that has a notable consumption advisory. I'd rather have a fishery that allows for greater consumption of the available fish as opposed to natural reproduction of a fish with more restrictive consumption guidelines. Btw, if I had to guess it's costing the us more to develop a sustainable lake trout fishery than the previous fishery... Lake trout have to stay in hatcheries for a much longer period of time (more $) and the money lost due to people giving up on, or spending significantly less hours, fishing.


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## WoodyMG (May 29, 2013)

The great lakes are to small of an ecosystem to have fish farms. This is a terrible idea.


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## Robert Holmes (Oct 13, 2008)

They are already raising a hybrid Atlantic Salmon/Brown Trout near Chicago in big pole barns using water from Lake Michigan. I think that just shy of 2 years they are about 6 lbs. These are being sold on a commercial market.


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## Mr Burgundy (Nov 19, 2009)

That was a cool and very informative watch. Tnks for posting


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