Retired state fisheries biologists Greg Burr and Matt Scott have sounded the alarm: If state and federal agencies, as well as some non-governmental organizations such as Trout Unlimited, get their way, sea-run alewives and a host of invasive species will get unfettered passage into Green Lake.
It is a complicated scenario involving a domino effect with monumental social, economic and biological consequences.
Next year the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission will rule on the licensing of a private hydro dam at the outlet of Green Lake. According to Burr, the likely scenario is that the commission will require the installation of fish ways in the dam, the cost of which would force the closure of the hydro facility and the eventual removal of the dam.
The consequences of this are significant and impact a number of stakeholders, not the least of which are lake camp owners, the excellent freshwater sport fishery and the federal fish hatchery.
Maine’s Department of Marine Resources, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have long been advocates of giving sea-run alewives unfettered passage to Maine lakes for freshwater spawning. In Maine, there have been a number of conflicts over the years between the alewife advocates and other stakeholders with different priorities.
Green Lake is one of only 14 Maine waters that hold native arctic charr, which the state has pledged to protect at all costs. How does this jibe with DMR’s alewife priority?
The history of alewife runs notwithstanding, there remains the nagging question of how many modern day sacrifices are we willing to make to grant alewives historic free passage to freshwater spawning.
Scott, whose credentials in fisheries science are solid, argues that historically, alewives probably never made it into Green Lake due to the topography. He writes:
“If the outlet is close to what we call ephemeral (temporary stream) then it is a natural condition. This indicates to me that the lake never had or contributed to annual runs of anadromous fish migrants. As for the outlet dam, I foresee a problem. Most Maine lakes have low-head dams that were constructed many decades ago for water power. Saw mills, grist mills, shingle mills and later for electric power and Green Lake water was a hydro power source. In the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission process they could require a fish way for migrant species. Water levels would then change and any significant draw down would impact the water quality of the lake. Perhaps the most significant change would be shoreline erosion with change in the stability of the lake’s water quality. Protecting the existing water quality should be the decision breaker.”
The alewife is a blue herring. Conventional wisdom holds that alewives do not eat other fish, but a 1990 University of Maine study showed that alewives in fresh water are predators — hunters that actively seek prey, including fish.
Burr, in a recent article in the August Northwoods Sporting Journal, cut to the chase:
“If the extremists get their way in forcing fish passage through this small dam in the current relicensing process, the owners will abandon the structure and it will ultimately have to be taken out. Decommissioning this structure will lower the lake level and leave lakefront camp and homeowners with a muddy rock-strewn waterfront that will be unusable to most and unsightly for all. This would be unfortunate and does not need to happen. We, as humans, are intelligent beings. The solution to the problem is always a need for everyone to recognize the complex needs of nature and humans, and put our heads together to come up with a coordinated, balanced plan to move us into the future.”
V. Paul Reynolds is editor of the Northwoods Sporting Journal. He is also a Maine Guide and host of a weekly radio program “Maine Outdoors” heard Sundays at 7 p.m. on The Voice of Maine News-Talk Network.
