# Federal Order - Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia (vhs)



## Hamilton Reef

USDA Shuts Down Live Fish Shipments in the Great Lakes 
http://ohioseagrant.osu.edu/discuss...4e66d41ddae84296fd5&topic=562.msg6599#msg6599 

FEDERAL ORDER - VIRAL HEMORRHAGIC SEPTICEMIA (VHS) 

The purpose of this Federal Order is to prevent the spread of viral hemorrhagic septicemia (VHS) into aquaculture facilities. This order is issued pursuant to the Animal Health Protection Act (AHPA). The AHPA authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to prohibit or restrict the importation or movement in interstate commerce of any animal, article, or means of conveyance if the Secretary determines that the prohibition or restriction is necessary to prevent the introduction or dissemination of any pest or disease of livestock into or within the United States. 

http://www.aphis.usda.gov/vs/aqua/pdf/vhs-fed-order_ogc-changes.pdf


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## unregistered55

The interstate shipping of live brook trout is an exception.


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## Hamilton Reef

Lakes hit by deadly virus

http://www.mlive.com/news/muchronicle/index.ssf?/base/news-10/116196216736950.xml&coll=8&thispage=1

Friday, October 27, 2006 By Jeff Alexander CHRONICLE STAFF WRITER

A federal order designed to prevent the spread of a fatal fish virus in the Great Lakes could increase the cost of live bait, cripple commercial fish farms and take a bite out of the region's $4.5 billion sport fishery. 

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, or APHIS, issued an emergency order this week banning the interstate shipments of 37 species of live fish between the eight Great Lakes states and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. 

The order was aimed at preventing the spread of Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia, or VHS, a saltwater virus that showed up in parts of the Great Lakes last year. The virus, suspected of being imported to the Great Lakes in the ballast water of ocean freighters, has caused die-offs of 14 fish species in Lake Huron, Lake St. Clair, the Detroit River, Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, according to federal officials.

Fish managers said the virus likely will spread to Lake Michigan and Lake Superior and eventually kill a portion of many species of fish, including trout and salmon. The virus does not affect humans, according to state officials. 

"We're going to see more dead fish because of this," said Gary Whelan, fish production manager for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. He said, "it's just a matter of time" before the virus spreads to Lake Michigan and Lake Superior. 

Federal officials said preventing shipments of live fish across state lines and international borders in the Great Lakes basin would halt the spread of the virus to private and government-owned fish hatcheries. 

Fish managers said the rule will hurt bait dealers, anglers and fish hatcheries -- private and government-owned -- that distribute trout, steelhead and other species across the Great Lakes basin. 

"It's going to drive up bait prices and it's going to put some people out of business," said Gary Studt, owner of Wendel's Wholesale Bait and Tackle, a live bait wholesaler near Ionia. "I can almost guarantee there are going to be bait shortages." 

The order could disrupt Michigan's fish hatchery program by next spring, Whelan said. Michigan, for example, raises steelhead for the state of Ohio in exchange for channel catfish; the federal order immediately banned that exchange of live fish for the foreseeable future. 

Halting the interstate transfer of live fish could hurt the $4.5 billion Great Lakes sport fishery, much of which is supported by salmon and other fish raised at hatcheries in Michigan.

"This will certainly have an impact on people who raise fish in Michigan," Whelan said. "It's unclear what it will mean for (the state's) hatchery system." 

Chris Weeks, president of the Michigan Aquaculture Association, said the federal order will be financially devastating for people who raise trout and other fish to sell to restaurants and food brokers in neighboring states. 

"We have growers in this state who will be severely impacted by this rule," Weeks said. 

The VHS virus found in the Great Lakes last year is a new strain of the saltwater virus, according to federal officials. The virus causes bloating in fish, lesions and bleeding from the eyes and gills; it is transmitted from fish to fish. 

VHS has not been detected in any aquaculture facilities in the Great Lakes basin, according to federal records. The source of VHS in the Great Lakes is not known, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture records. 

Some Great Lakes fish managers believe the deadly fish virus was imported here in the ballast water of ocean freighters from Europe or Asia. 

"VHS probably came into the lakes from ballast water. I think that's the likely vector, given the way the virus has skipped around the lakes," Whelan said. 

Over the past 50 years, ocean freighters have imported many of the 180 exotic species now living in the Great Lakes, including the zebra and quagga mussels. 

Under a 1993 federal law, ocean ships must exchange ballast water in the Atlantic Ocean before entering the Great Lakes system. Open-water exchange of ballast water is supposed to kill any organisms living in the ballast tanks of freighters. 

But most ocean freighters enter the Great Lakes loaded with cargo and no ballast water, which is used to stabilize empty ships. A recent study found that ships entering the lakes with empty ballast tanks still carry millions of live organisms, including deadly bacteria and other pathogens, that could accidentally be discharged into the Great Lakes. 

Ray Petering, the head of fisheries management for the Ohio Division of Wildlife, said federal officials have done little to halt the introduction of exotic species into the Great Lakes. 

"The Great Lakes states have been crying for 15 years about the ballast water of ocean freighters introducing invasive species to the Great Lakes. As of today, APHIS has done nothing," Petering told the Cleveland Plain Dealer. "Then VHS shows up for a couple of months, and wham, we get a federal order and can't move live fish within the Great Lakes states."


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## Hamilton Reef

Great Lakes fish hauling stopped to combat virus

The transport ban covers live fish of 37 species, but the agency said it reserves the right to add any other species that test positive for the disease. The agency said it is not known how the disease got into the Great Lakes or how long it has been present.

Jim Rogers, an agency spokesman, said the transport ban was issued "just to hold this until we can go through rule-making." 

He added that "a lot can be decided next week, and a lot can be modified in the order even before rule-making." However, the spokesman stressed, "whenever you see a federal order you can assume a sense of urgency."

Mr. Tyson also said the order affects the state's muskellunge-rearing program. "A lot of the shiners we use in the hatching program for grow-up are from Minnesota."

http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061027/NEWS06/610270345/-1/NEWS


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## Hamilton Reef

Fish farms face crippling federal ban on shipping

http://www.mlive.com/news/grpress/index.ssf?/base/news-32/116238871811560.xml&coll=6

Wednesday, November 01, 2006 By Rob Kirkbride
The Grand Rapids Press [email protected]

When Dan Vogler was asked to attend a meeting in Washington, D.C., aimed at stopping the spread of a fish-killing virus, he didn't know it was his business that could go belly-up. 

"Last week, we were moving ahead and having meetings and discussing what we could bring to the table," said Vogler, whose Harrietta Hills Trout Farm west of Cadillac hatches more than 400,000 fish a year. 

"We woke up to find out that there was an interstate ban on our fish."

Last week's emergency federal order forbids shipping live fish from Michigan and seven other Great Lakes states. This week's meeting was scheduled to discuss ways to stop the spread of viral hemorrhagic septicemia in fish. 

The ban is hurting Michigan's aquaculture industry. 

Although small and fragmented, fish farming is a growing business. Aquaculture sales in Michigan increased from $2.03 million in 1998 to $2.4 million in 2005, an 18 percent increase, according to the National Agricultural Statistics Service. 

The ban also could hurt Michigan anglers. Bait minnows, many of which are shipped from out of state, could be in short supply. 

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service -- the same government agency that monitors the country for bird flu -- issued the order last week banning the interstate movement of 37 fish species. 

The ban includes rainbow trout, grown on Vogler's farm. It also covers perch and bass. 

The virus appears to have spread to the Great Lakes through ballast water brought in by freighters. It is believed to have caused a large die-off in the St. Clair River, Lake St. Clair and the Detroit River last spring. The fear is lakes Huron and Michigan also could see large fish kills.

The virus does not affect humans and cannot be contracted by eating fish. 

Fish farmers aren't the only ones surprised by the federal ban. Michigan Department of Natural Resources officials were not consulted, spokeswoman Ann Wilson said. 

"This caught everybody involved off guard," said Wilson, adding the DNR is reviewing the order's legality.

Dave Yonkman, spokesman for U.S. Rep. Pete Hoekstra, said no one has contacted the congressman seeking intervention against the ban. 

Jim Rogers, spokesman for the agency that issued the ban, said the government reacted quickly when it found the virus could spread to a larger number of fish species than previously thought. 

"It's not our goal to close markets," he said. "It is our goal to protect markets." 

That's little solace to Vogler, who said he has to decide "whether my family can buy a gallon of milk for the table this week." 

Harrietta Hills Trout Farm grows fish used to stock ponds and rivers and trout that will end up on the dinner plate. Last year it shipped 125,000 pounds of fish. 

"We ship 70 percent of our production outside the state. You do the math," said Vogler, adding he can't understand why fish farms are being targeted when none has been found with the virus. 

"As of last Tuesday, we're out of business, so we need a solution," Vogler said, adding he would like to contribute to the discussion. "But they've got to take the tourniquet off my neck before I can talk."

Stoney Creek Fisheries in Grant lucked out. 

It received a shipment of black crappie from out of state the day before the ban took effect, said Sam Plottel, general manager of fisheries. 

Most of Stoney Creek's fish are used to stock ponds with perch, bluegills, catfish, bass and trout. The company also sells pond supplies, such as pumps, filters and liners.

"Man, talk about getting in under the wire," he said. "Many others were not as fortunate as we were. We hope they come up with a plan that makes everybody happy." 

It is unclear how long the ban will hold. Environmentalists support the effort, but hope for a better solution soon. 

"This is a reasonable first step," said Hugh McDiarmid Jr., communications director at the Michigan Environmental Council. "But we would hate to see the bait dealers and fish factories stuck this way for a long time." 

Fish farmers say the clock already is ticking. 

"If this drags on into a matter of months, we're dead (as an industry)," Vogler said. "It's a total disaster and it's totally unnecessary."


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## Hamilton Reef

Caught, but not released
VHS outbreak leads to a ban on regional shipping

BROOKLYN, Mich. -- When a new disease called viral hemorrhagic septicemia apparently was brought into the Great Lakes from the oceans and killed a couple of thousand muskellunge in Lake St. Clair last spring, fisheries biologists hoped it was a transitory event that would blow over.

"We're holding the (bait dealers) meeting here to try to get some answers, do some planning and figure out what our options are," said Tom Knutson, a partner in Knutson's Recreational Sales in Brooklyn, a major retailer and wholesaler of live baitfish in Michigan and surrounding states.

"So far, we're OK for the short term, because they haven't included fathead minnows in the ban, and we can supply bait for the ice fishing season. But that might be only because they haven't done the testing on (fatheads) yet. We don't know how many species this thing might eventually affect."

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061102/SPORTS10/611020333/1058


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## Hamilton Reef

Note that this Leaflet 83 was last modified: February 26, 2004. The recent outbreaks in the Great Lakes will require some modifications to the Geographical Distribution section and very possibly other sections. 

VHS - Fish Disease Leaflet 83 
http://www.lsc.usgs.gov/fhb/leaflets/83.asp


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## Hamilton Reef

Another reason to close Great Lakes

A federal agency has banned transporting 27 species of live fish out of eight Great Lakes states or importing them from two Canadian provinces in an effort to stop the spread of a disease called viral hemorrhagic septicemia.
But the ban makes little sense.

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061109/SPORTS10/611090385/1058


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## Hamilton Reef

Live-fish shipping ban controversial

In another development, it remains unclear how the federal order may affect fishing tournaments, such as those for bass or walleye in which fish are kept alive in boat livewells and later released after weighing and measuring. Competitors often cross state or provincial lines - moving, say, among Ohio, Michigan, or Ontario in western Lake Erie, the Detroit River, or Lake St. Clair in some events. 

Petering's view is that any movement under the order is a violation, so tournaments would be affected.

http://toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061110/COLUMNIST22/611100382/-1/NEWS06


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## Hamilton Reef

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 13, 2006

Contact:
Gary Whelan 517-373-1280
Ann Wilson 517-335-3014

Natural Resources Commission Approves Resolution
on Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia Control 

The Michigan Natural Resources Commission (NRC), at its November meeting last Thursday, issued a resolution that calls for the reversal of a recent decision by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA-APHIS) that significantly restricts the interstate movement of fish within eight states bordering the Great Lakes, including Michigan.

The emergency federal order issued Oct. 24 by USDA-APHIS prohibits the movement of 37 fish species between the eight Great Lakes states and also prohibits the importation of those species into the U.S. fish from Ontario and Quebec. Intrastate movement of fish is permitted, along with the importation of fish into the Great Lakes region from areas outside the regulated zone. The order was issued to protect aquaculture facilities from the fish disease, viral hemorrhagic septicemia (VHS). This new disease in the Great Lakes has caused widespread fish kills in sensitive fish species but it is not harmful to humans.

Although we are very concerned about VHS and its potential spread throughout the Great Lakes region, the federal order will significantly and unnecessarily disrupt fisheries management actions and commerce in Michigan and throughout the Great Lakes Basin, said Dr. Kelley Smith, DNR Fisheries chief.

The NRC resolution requests the USDA-APHIS to 1) immediately amend the emergency order to allow a) the interstate movement of fish to slaughter facilities in any other state in the U.S. for subsequent human consumption only, so long as such facilities have appropriate waste treatment; b) the interstate movement of fish within the eight prohibited states based on the regulations of the receiving state; c) the interstate movement of fish to any other state in the U.S. provided that the state competent authority for aquatic animal health has certified the originating facility and that the testing program meets the requirements of the receiving state; and d) the movement of fish to research/diagnostic laboratories if the state competent authority for aquatic animal health approves of the movement and approves the facility into which the fish will be moved; and 2) immediately issue a second emergency order that bans the uptake of ballast water in any area of the Great Lakes where VHS has been found.

The resolution further requests the USDA-APHIS to work collaboratively and transparently with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and the Michigan Department of Agriculture in the immediate development of an interim rule to replace the emergency order by March 1, 2007.

These requests are of critical importance for ensuring that the interim rule is appropriately developed, and to eliminate a significant vector for the rapid transport of VHS throughout the Great Lakes Basin via ballast water Smith said.

The DNR is committed to the conservation, protection, management, use and enjoyment of the states natural resources for current and future generations.


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## Hamilton Reef

Government modifies Great Lakes fish shipment restrictions

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/M/MI_BANNED_FISH_MIOL-?SITE=MITRA&SECTION=HOME

11/16/06 By JOHN FLESHER AP Environmental Writer

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) -- Responding to industry complaints, the government has modified restrictions on shipments of some live Great Lakes fish aimed at preventing the spread of a deadly aquatic virus.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service this week revised an emergency order it issued Oct. 24. The order had banned interstate transport of 37 species of live fish from the eight states adjacent to the Great Lakes. Importing those species from the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec also was prohibited.

The revised order allows some fish to be taken across state lines with proper documentation, under conditions that vary depending on how they will be used.

Fish meant for slaughter or research must be sent to approved facilities that properly dispose of waste fluids and carcasses. Those with other purposes must have been tested and found not to carry the virus.

The order targets viral hemorrhagic septicemia, which poses no risk to humans but causes internal bleeding in fish. VHS was discovered in the region last year and is blamed for fish kills in lakes Erie, Ontario and St. Clair and the St. Lawrence River.

Among species susceptible to the virus are popular sport fish such as chinook and coho salmon, rainbow trout, walleye and yellow perch.

"The revised federal order ultimately still protects against spread of the disease but provides more opportunities for the affected industries and producers to move fish," APHIS spokeswoman Hallie Pickhardt said Thursday.

It will remain in effect while the agency learns more about the disease and writes more comprehensive regulations, Pickhardt said.

No deadline has been set for adopting the rules, but "it's a priority for the agency and we'll be moving forward quickly," she said.

Critics said the original order said it could harm commercial fish farms, bait fish vendors and programs that support the region's $4.5 billion fishery. State natural resource agencies routinely swap sport fish for breeding and stocking.

APHIS agreed to changes after a recent meeting at its headquarters in Riverdale, Md., that included representatives of federal and state agencies and the fishing industry.

"Things are definitely going in the right direction," said Chris Weeks, president of the Michigan Aquaculture Association. "Before this modification came out, even fish that were certified VHS-free were restricted, and that was a big problem."

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources praised the revisions.

"The amended order addresses some of the concerns that Illinois' aquaculture industry had in regard to shipping fish that were destined for human consumption by allowing movement of fish to slaughter," acting director Sam Flood said.

State fishery managers believe VHS came to the Great Lakes from Europe aboard ballast tanks of oceangoing cargo ships, considered a leading source of ecologically damaging invasive species.


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## Hamilton Reef

Fish virus could limit shipping 
Michigan seeks ban on ballast from eastern Great Lakes

The shipping industry has been blamed in recent years for introducing many of the invasive species that are ravaging what's left of the Great Lakes native fish populations, but the fight to stop the spread of the latest microscopic invader might just threaten the monstrous freighters themselves.

"Wow. Ships can't operate if they can't take on and discharge ballast," said Glen Nekvasil, spokesman for the Lake Carriers' Association, which represents U.S. shippers operating inside the Great Lakes, a group that moves about 125 million tons of cargo annually. "A ban on ballast uptakes would bring shipping to a halt."

So the equation is pretty simple: Gobies can be transported by ballast tanks, and gobies themselves can carry the virus.

http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=532633


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## Hamilton Reef

Fish shipping ban not eased enough

http://toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061121/COLUMNIST22/611210363/-1/NEWS01

11/21/06 Steve Pollick [email protected] 

A federal ban on the shipment of 37 species of live fish among the Great Lakes states, issued last month to counter spread of a deadly fish disease, has been eased to allow some shipments under certain specifications.

But the amended order, written by the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), goes only part way in meeting state concerns, according to Ray Petering, executive administrator of fish management and research for the Ohio Division of Wildlife. 

"What we wanted was to return movement of fish to the purview of the [Great Lakes] states on a case by case basis. We will continue to push for that," Petering said. He added, however, that lakes agencies appear to have exhausted their technical pleas and now must rely on pressure from elected officials - governors, senators, congressmen - to obtain further relief. 

The amendments APHIS granted, Petering said, were "no-brainers" that should have been included initially. Still to be considered is a more permanent "interim rule," which is expected next March. 

But that may not be done in time for the spring sport fishing seasons, the administrator said. "I don't know if the bait industry is going to be able to gear up quickly enough come spring." 

The Michigan Natural Resources Commission and American Sportfishing Association, an industry lobby group, among others, joined efforts by Ohio authorities in seeking a reversal of the APHIS order and a return to management of the VHS threat by the cooperative efforts of the Great Lakes states. 

The federal action initially was taken because of the apparent rapid spread of a mutated form of viral hemorrhagic disease, or VHS, among Great Lakes fish. VHS is not harmful to people but can be deadly to fish. The disease has been blamed for several large dieoffs of fish since 2005 in the lakes, including freshwater drum and some yellow perch in Lake Erie last summer. 

The importation of susceptible fish species from Ontario and Quebec remains banned except for the salmonid family, which includes such species as steelhead trout and chinook salmon. APHIS said that an interim order will further address fish shipments from Canada and the lakes states. 

Under the amended order for VHS-susceptible fish to be moved interstate for slaughter, the fish must be intended for human consumption. Such fish must be accompanied by U.S. Department of Agriculture documentation for moving restricted animals if the fish have not been tested. 

Shipments also can go only to a state inspected slaughter facility that is tied to a municipal sewage system that includes waste water treatment. Or, the facility may discharge into settling ponds that disinfect water according to state and federal rules. Carcass wastes must be rendered or composted. 

For fish to be moved to research and diagnostic laboratories, the fish must be accompanied by USDA documentation and sent only to approved labs. Those labs must also meet handling and disposal health rules. 

All other VHS-susceptible fish, such as baitfish, must be transported with federal, state, or tribal documentation certifying that the fish have tested negative for the disease. The restrictions do not apply to fish originating from non-restricted states, APHIS said.


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## joeyramone

For the last few years all the Musky raised in Michigan at the Wolk Lake hatchery have tested positive for VHS. The DNR has treated the fish with Cloramine-T and released them. This is why the DNR is keeping so quiet about this. The DNR is constantly releasing sick fish from its hatcheries. All of the Chinook salmon released in the spring of 2005 tested positive for Bacterial Kidney disease, and were recommended to destroy the fish by Dr. Fiesal out of MSU. Rather than suffer the embarrassment of making this public, Fisheries decided to hush it up and release the fish anyway.Don't be suprised by an "enexpected" outbreak of BKD in the next year or 2.Everytime the DNR screws something up they do their best to keep it from reaching the public, so you won't realize your money is funding incompidunce.


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## Hamilton Reef

Proposed ballast ban makes waves 
Idea alarms Great Lakes shippers, thrills fisheries

Now that the State of Michigan has floated what has previously been the unthinkable - a ban on Great Lakes freighters using ballast water on many of their traditional shipping routes to prevent the spread of dangerous invasive species - the debate is picking up steam across the region.

But one shipping industry representative says the toll such a ban would take on the region's economy would be catastrophic.

Caught somewhere in the middle is the Great Lakes Commission, a bi-national agency created by the Great Lakes states and provinces to promote both the economic development and conservation of Great Lakes resources.

http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=535181


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## Hamilton Reef

Disease looms as next big fish threat 

http://www.mlive.com/outdoors/grpress/index.ssf?/base/sports-0/116558552717540.xml&coll=6

12/08/06 By Howard Meyerson The Grand Rapids Press [email protected]

State fish experts say it is just a matter of time before viral hemorrhagic septicemia moves into Lake Huron and Lake Michigan. 

The state plans to do everything it can to slow the spread of the fish disease that killed muskies in the Detroit River last spring and has been found in northern pike, yellow perch, bluegill, black crappie, walleye and white bass. 

Affected waters include lakes Ontario and Erie, and the St. Clair and Detroit rivers.

Officials say anglers will need to do their part, too. Managing VHS will be akin to managing other invasive species such as zebra mussels which now infest 227 inland lakes, according to Michigan Sea Grant. 

You know and I know that those mussels didn't just fly into those lakes. They were inadvertently spread by anglers and boaters who didn't follow the recommended precautions which include: 

Clean out boats, trailers 


Cleaning boats and trailers before moving them to another water. 


Assuring that bilge water, bait bucket and live-well water taken from one lake are not introduced into another. 

Unlike the nuisance that zebra mussels pose, VHS is deadly. Not to humans, who are unaffected by the disease, but to fish and those they contact. VHS is readily spread from fish to fish. 

"The worst-case scenario is that it gets into inland water and we start having fish kills everywhere," Gary Whelen, fish production manager for the Department of Natural Resources, said.

Whelen met this week with members of the bait and aquaculture industries and Department of Agriculture. He does not expect the worst case to come to fruition. Their meeting began hammering out the many ways they will deal with VHS, such as hatchery-disinfecting techniques, disease monitoring and testing along with learning the extent to which commercial hatchery fish and bait move in and out of the state. 

Thirty-nine recommendations have been made to the Great Lakes Fishery Commission's Council of Lakes Committee. 

Likely to spread

Even with all this work, Whelen said VHS likely will move into Lake Huron and then into Lake Michigan, carried by infected, migrating fish. There is no cure for the virus, which causes hemorrhaging, and has been called "the Ebola of fisheries." 

The disease, thought to have been introduced via ballast water from an ocean-going ship, will be something "we need to manage around," Whelen said. 

"It will be fish moving from Lake Huron into Lake Michigan that will be the vector for the disease," he said, adding that experts who know the disease never have seen such large-scale die-offs on freshwater before. 

"That's why people are pretty nervous about it. It kills pretty quickly. We don't want to see it in inland waters or where we have sensitive fish populations. 

"It's not in Lake Michigan now but we are guessing it will be two to four years before it shows up." 

Roughly 80 percent of the bait sold in Michigan comes from out of state, according to Whelen. In the future it will be tested to assure it is free from this disease. It will have to be certified as such and that's likely to bump the cost up a bit. 

Bait, Whelen said, typically has come in from four sources. Much of it used to come from Ontario, the Niagara River specifically. But that trade slowed considerably because of the border-crossing complications that grew out of 911.

Minnesota is the main source today. Wisconsin and Arkansas also provide bait. The federal Department of Agriculture's November decision to ban interstate transfer of live fish in the Great Lakes region has since been modified to allow it under certain circumstances, provided the fish are tested for the disease. 

"We're going to try to minimize the effect on anglers, to provide the most protection at the lowest cost," Whelen said. "We want to make sure the bait supply is not VHS positive. Currently it is not tested. This is something we will see go into effect next spring." 

Whelen said anglers will play an essential role in slowing down the spread of the disease.

"If they are fishing in a fish-kill zone and have a livewell full of water, they should discharge it there. They shouldn't take fish from any infected area to another. And people who are stocking ponds should make sure they buy from authorized dealers or VHS-free hatcheries. 
Many, he added, buy or acquire fish for their ponds from someone they know. You know -- a buddy down the road -- who has his own source or likes to fish. 

"We have lots of folks who do that and it's not a good idea," Whelen said. 

The guy who cuts corners could very well put you and your fish pond at risk. And if your pond spills into another body of water, in flood conditions or otherwise, it is just a matter of time before the problem grows much much bigger.


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## Hamilton Reef

MINUTES  NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION NOVEMBER 9 PAGE 6 
Commissioner Garner made a motion, supported by Commissioner Madigan, to adopt the following resolution: 

VIRAL HEMORRHAGIC SEPTICEMIA (VHS) RESOLUTION 

WHEREAS, Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia (VHS) has been found in the Great Lakes Basin resulting in significant mortalities of a wide range of fish species, including muskellunge in Lake St. Clair and yellow perch in Lake Erie; and 

WHEREAS, VHS could have profound impacts on many game fish species in the Great Lakes Basin that support a multi-billion dollar sport fishery; and 

WHEREAS, VHS could have profound impacts on many fish species collected and/or reared by the baitfish industry and those reared at private aquaculture facilities in Michigan, resulting in significant economic impacts to those businesses throughout the State; and 

WHEREAS, the Great Lakes Fish Health Committee under the aegis of the Great Lakes Fishery Commission has developed over 40 provisions to control the spread of VHS in the Great Lakes that were adopted by the eight Great Lakes States, the Tribes, and the Province of Ontario on October 18, 2006; and 

WHEREAS, Michigan has been testing for VHS in the States fish hatchery system for the past thirteen years and has yet to detect the virus in any State hatchery; and 

WHEREAS, Michigan has been requiring testing for VHS in private aquaculture facilities for the past seven years and has yet to detect the virus in any private aquaculture facility that stocks fish into Michigans waters; and 

WHEREAS, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA-APHIS), has unilaterally issued a blanket, emergency Federal Order preventing the interstate movement of 37 fish species between the eight Great Lakes States and importation into the United States from the Provinces of Ontario and Quebec; and 

WHEREAS, the Federal Order unnecessarily prohibits ongoing management activities in the Great Lakes conducted by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, given the provisions to control the spread of VHS that have been adopted by all of the fisheries agencies with jurisdiction for management of aquatic resources in the Great Lakes Basin; and 

WHEREAS, the Federal Order unnecessarily inhibits ongoing operations of private baitfish dealers and aquaculture facilities in Michigan that are regulated by the Michigan Departments of Natural Resources and Agriculture, given the provisions to control the spread of VHS that have been adopted by all of the fisheries agencies with jurisdiction for management of aquatic resources in the Great Lakes Basin; and 

WHEREAS, the likely vector of transport for VHS into the Great Lakes was via discharge of ballast water circa 2002; and 

WHEREAS, the most significant human-induced avenue for spread of VHS throughout the Great Lakes Basin is the transport and subsequent discharge of ballast water at ports throughout the Great Lakes. 

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Michigan Natural Resources Commission requests the USDA-APHIS to 1) immediately amend the emergency Federal Order to allow a) the interstate movement of fish to slaughter facilities in any other State in the U.S. for subsequent human consumption only, so long as such facilities have appropriate waste treatment; b) the interstate movement of fish within the eight prohibited States based on the regulations of the receiving state; c) the interstate movement of fish to any other State in the U.S. provided that the State competent authority for aquatic animal health has certified the originating facility and that the testing program meets the requirements of the receiving State; and d) the movement of fish to research/diagnostic laboratories if the State competent authority for aquatic animal health approves of the movement and approves the facility into which the fish will be moved; and 2) immediately issue a second emergency Federal Order that bans the uptake of ballast water in any area of the Great Lakes where VHS has been found. 

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Michigan Natural Resources Commission requests the USDA-APHIS to work collaboratively and transparently with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and the Michigan Department of Agriculture in the immediate development of an interim rule to replace the emergency Order by March 1, 2007; and A copy of this resolution will be submitted to USDA-APHIS, the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, the Great Lakes Fishery Commission, the Michigan Department of Agriculture, and other partners as determined by the Director of the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. 

Motion to adopt the resolution unanimously carried.


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## Hamilton Reef

New regulations shouldn't affect anglers

If you are involved in tournament fishing on Michigan's Great Lakes or inland waters, there are probably some rule changes affecting this sport in the immediate future.

Still wondering how the emergency regulations would affect tournaments, I asked Dr. Kurt Newman of the Michigan DNR Fisheries Division.
"The bottom line in Michigan for the tourney anglers is that they will not be allowed to transport fish from infected waters into those not known to be infected already." 

To my thinking, this is sort of a "status quo" for tournament anglers.

http://www.ilecamera.com/stories/011207/spo_20070112010.shtml


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## Hamilton Reef

Ontario - New bait fish rules gut area industry

Ontario's $20-million live bait industry has been left reeling by provincial restrictions on harvesting and transporting bait fish in a bid to stop the spread of a deadly new fish virus.

"It's terrible. It is just devastating to the tourism industry, outfitters and people involved in commercial bait harvesting. This is huge," said Dennis Shaw, owner of the Bass Haven outfitting business at Mitchell's Bay.

http://lfpress.ca/newsstand/CityandRegion/2007/01/12/3320190-sun.html


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## Hamilton Reef

Bait shop owners worry spread of VHS disease could decimate minnow sales

Testing will raise prices some, but the real crunch will come in the spring and summer, because the testing takes several weeks and the emerald shiner minnows most anglers want can be kept alive for only a few days once the water starts to warm.

One of the country's biggest suppliers of emerald shiners and other minnows predicts that bootleg bait will show up in tackle shop tanks if smaller stores are unable to get the legal kind readily and economically.

APHIS held meetings recently in Michigan and other states to hear comments on proposed new rules for shipping baitfish. It's a surprisingly large business, with tens of millions of minnows moving across the country every day to supply anglers, aquaculture and ornamental fish farms and even sport fish-rearing operations. A Michigan Department of Natural Resources hatchery spends about $50,000 on minnows every year to feed baby muskellunge.

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070118/SPORTS10/701180375/1058


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