In a strong veto statement, Thompson requested the DNR to "immediately implement the authority to establish by rule an alewife harvest limit, but requested the rule be designed to prevent additional loss of the important forage base"

"The Department will immediately begin drafting alewife harvest limits and related rule changes, and set public comment hearing dates", said Mike Staggs, WI Fish Chief.

"The Governor's decision is confusing and has only caused more work for everyone", said Conservation Congress president, Jim Butterbrodt." One of the problems with the language "alewife harvest quota" is although the limit may be set low at the present time, in the future we can expect an aggressive attempt by commercial fishermen to ask for an increase resulting in a continued costly running battle between commercial and sportfishing interests on Lake Michigan and Green Bay."

The National Biological Service will start their Fall acoustical biomass assessment on smelt and alewife, Wisconsin anglers will be looking at those numbers carefully.

41 lb Salmon Wins Fall LOC

Two trout conservation groups have demanded the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources establish new regulations to protect trophy brown trout in southeastern Minnesota.

After several months of discussions, Trout Unlimited and the Minnesota Trout Association, outlined their proposal for new trout regulations in a formal letter to the department earlier this month.

The groups have proposed an earlier opening to the the trout season , beginning April 1, and allow catch-and-release fishing only until April 15 and then beginning again from September 16 to September 30.

The daily bag limit would remain at five, but want all trout more than 12 inches long released during the harvest season of April 16 to Sept. 15. Their proposal allows anglers to keep one trophy trout larger than 16 inches.

TU and MTA want the new regulations to apply to all trout streams in southeastern Minnesota, except those with special regulations or opened to winter fishing.

MN DNR officials are skeptical of the proposal, and feel it would only have an impact on 25 percent of Minnesota trout streams, regional DNR fisheries said "most streams don't have a suitable habitat to grow larger trout, so the regulations would have little impact."

ALthough the DNR is expected to meet an Oct. 20 deadline for submitting the proposals for entry into the state register ,more discussions and public hearings would have to be held before it would get state approval.

A questionnaire was sent to nearly 700 trout anglers soliciting their thoughts on a new trophy regulation. The pool of anglers for the survey was gathered during the DNR's creel surveys conducted in the past year. The results are due in December.

By submitting the proposals for publication in the state register, the DNR ensures the regulations could go into effect next spring -- but only if the agency ultimately signs off on the proposal.

State agencies will share $301.8 million