LANSING – State Representative Gary McDowell (D-Rudyard) today announced that the House has passed a package of bills designed to control the troublesome cormorant population in the Upper Peninsula and northern Michigan. The bill will now to go Gov. Jennifer M. Granholm to be signed into law.
"This is not a problem that we can ignore," McDowell said. "Thanks in part to U.S. Rep. Bart Stupak, some progress has been made with the use of federal funds. But we must do more. These birds are having a devastating effect on our communities, and the cormorant population is continuing to grow."
The package of bills creates a "cormorant control fund" within the State Treasury that could receive money or assets from any source. The bills also would require the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to administer a program dedicated to controlling the birds and reducing the damage they cause. The DNR also would be required to take part in a regional effort to reduce cormorant damage, and to seek funding from the Great Lakes Protection Fund to be earmarked for the cormorant control fund.
Cormorants' voracious appetites have caused declining fish populations in the Upper Peninsula and northern Michigan, which could severely hamper the tourism industry throughout the area. Anglers have been complaining for years that a rapidly growing cormorant population on the Great Lakes is destroying fish stocks, including alewives, trout, perch and salmon. The sport and commercial fishing industry has been calling for measures to reduce the cormorant populations.
"Our lakes, streams and rivers are part of a precious ecosystem that is invaluable to our economy and our special way of life," McDowell said. "We must protect our fisheries so future generations can enjoy and appreciate them."