This Week's Articles
* Ice fishing season begins as northern lakes start to freeze up
* Make sure ice is safe before venturing out fishing
* Tips to help turn your white Christmas green
* 2008 state park admission stickers on sale
* December Wisconsin Natural Resources magazine features bald eagle recovery
* Onshore treatment of ship ballast water feasible, study concludes
* Waste Reduction and Demonstration Grants awarded
Ice fishing season begins as northern lakes start to freeze up
MADISON – Flag up!
Ice fishing season has started for many northern Wisconsin anglers and is spurring their southern counterparts to ensure their tip-ups are in tip-top condition.
Ice fishing forecasts and weekly reports, ice fishing tips, and information on how ice anglers can prevent spreading a fish disease to new waters can be found on a Ice Fishing in Wisconsin featured page on the DNR Web site.
Hard water fishing is a tradition for some and an obsession for others in a state with 1.4 million licensed anglers. About 11.4 percent of Wisconsinites 16 and older -- an estimated 474,000 people -- gladly trade their comfortable recliners for an overturned bucket or the relative luxury of an ice shanty, eagerly awaiting that ever-so-slight bob of the rod tip or the thrill of seeing a red tip-up flag fly.
“There's something really special about watching a tip-up flag go up and the anticipation of what's on the line as you walk up to tend the flag -- especially when you see the spindle of the tip-up doing a slow, steady turn, which is a sure sign of a BIG walleye,” says Skip Sommerfeldt, a DNR fisheries biologist who fished 79 out of a possible 91 days last winter.
“And then there's the sight of an 8-pound walleye being slid out of a 8-inch ice hole -- you wonder how it made it through and it becomes an image that's burned into your mind for the rest of your life.”
Sommerfeldt fished only Butternut Lake last year, mainly for walleye, and always with tip-ups, in part, because it’s more entertaining for his three daughters, frequent fishing companions. “The winter of 2006-07 was my best ice fishing season on Butternut Lake in ten years,” he says. “I had good consistent action throughout the winter, caught good numbers of walleye, and the average size was up about 2 inches from the previous bunch of years.”
Sommerfeldt’s detailed diary from last winter are available on the featured Web page.
Statewide, fewer fish are caught during the winter than other times, but more of those fish are kept, according to results from a 2000-2001 mail survey of Wisconsin license holders, the latest figures available. Across the entire year, anglers caught 69,445,957 fish and kept 31,303,049 of them. While only 18 percent of the total catch came during winter months, those months accounted for 23 percent of the total harvest.
Northern pike, bluegills and yellow perch are the best bets for winter fishing, based on the proportion of the total annual catch hauled in during the winter, according to the survey.
Scot Stewart, DNR’s regional fisheries supervisor for south central Wisconsin and an avid ice angler himself, says there are many good reasons to ice fish beyond it being a good way to enjoy the outdoors in winter and the social aspects of fishing with friends and family.
“Panfish taste better because there is less algae in the winter,” he says. “And I know I can really target large pike. Winter pike are a lot prettier and heavier.”
Jeff Roth, a fisheries biologist in Mercer who’s already been out ice fishing, enjoys the solitude the pasttime offers. “You can always find a place to get away from the crowds and enjoy the quietness of winter. A few fresh walleyes are the icing-on-the-cake.”
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Mike Staggs (608) 267-0796; or your local fish biologist.
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Make sure ice is safe before venturing out fishing
SPOONER, Wis. – As ice thickens on Wisconsin waterways, anglers are preparing to venture out and take part in one of Wisconsin’s most participated winter activities – ice fishing. Knowing when it is safe to venture out onto the ice, how to travel on ice, and what to do should the ice break are as important as the rudiments of fishing itself.
“Most law enforcement personnel will tell you that because it can be tricky, there is no such thing as safe ice,” says DNR Law Enforcement Safety Specialist Chris Wunrow, “and although a lake or river is frozen that does not mean it can be safely traveled.”
Wunrow offers these tips to anglers and others who plan to venture onto the ice this winter:
* Clear, solid ice at least two inches thick is usually sufficient to hold a single person walking on foot. For safety’s sake, wait until the ice is at least three inches thick and go with a friend. Keep at least 50 feet of distance between each other. Ice fishing with several friends and gear requires at least 4 inches of ice, and snowmobiles and ATVs require a minimum of 5 inches.
* Ice will generally be thicker near shore and get thinner the farther one ventures out. Check ice thickness with an ice spud or auger starting from a few feet from shore and every 10 to 20 feet as one goes towards the middle of the waterway.
* Lake ice is generally stronger than river ice. Springs, lake inlets and outlets, and channels can alter ice thickness.
* Before heading out onto early or newly formed ice, check with a local bait shop, resort owner, or outdoors store regarding ice thickness or known thin spots.
* Whether alone or with a friend on early ice, always carry a couple of large sharpened nails and a length of rope in an easily accessible pocket. The nails or commercially bought ice grabbers can help a person pull themselves out of the water an on to more solid ice. The rope can be thrown to another person for rescue.
* If you are alone and go through the ice, take a few seconds to get over the “cold shock.” Regain your breathing, kick hard and try to swim up onto the ice. If successful, crawl on your hands and knees or roll to more solid ice. Get to the nearest warm place quickly. If your attempts to swim onto the ice area unsuccessful, get as much of your body out of the water and yell for help. Studies show you will have about 30 minutes or more before the body is incapacitated by hypothermia.
* Proper clothing can increase chances of survival should a person break through the ice. A snowmobile type suit if it is zipped can and will trap air and slow the body’s heat loss. Once filled with water, however, insulated suits become heavy and will hinder rescue. Newer model snowmobile suits have flotation material built in and anyone traversing ice should consider purchasing one of these suits. On early ice it is advised to wear a personal flotation device.
* Refrain from driving on ice whenever possible. Traveling in a vehicle -- especially early or late in the season -- is an accident waiting to happen.
* When driving on ice, be prepared to leave the vehicle in a hurry. Unbuckle the seatbelt and have a simple plan of action in case of ice break through. Anglers may want to leave a window open for an easy exit.
* Often vehicles will establish roads from shore to the current fishing hotspots. Repeated vehicle use may cause the ice to weaken. The ice roads may not always be the safest routes.
* When using a gas or liquid heater to warm an ice shack or tent make sure it is properly ventilated with at least two openings, one at the top and one at the bottom of the structure. Any flame eats oxygen so proper ventilation is required.
DNR conservation wardens and fisheries staff are also alerting anglers and other outdoor enthusiasts that a number of lakes in northern Wisconsin will have aeration systems operating this winter. The aeration systems are operated by governmental units or lake groups and cause areas of the lakes to remain ice-free. The systems bubble oxygenated air into the water helping to prevent fish die offs known as winterkill. Lakes with aeration systems will have notices of the systems posted at public accesses.
Snowmobilers, anglers, and other lake users should use extra caution on these lakes because of open water. The open water areas should be surrounded by a fence consisting of uprights connected by a rope with reflective tape or reflectors.
DNR wants people to be safe in Wisconsin’s outdoors, Wunrow notes.
“Common sense is the greatest ally in preventing ice related accidents,” he says, “and that includes checking ice conditions and preparing oneself before venturing out.” Five minutes of checking ice from shore, and systematic checks while going out on the ice, he notes, can make the difference between an enjoyable winter experience and a tragedy.
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Chris Wunrow (715) 635-4112
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Tips to help turn your white Christmas green
MADISON – People looking for ideas on how they can help the environment and save some money this holiday season can find tips on reducing holiday waste, including an innovative way to reuse colorful wrapping paper, on the Department of Natural Resources Web site.
“From using less packaging, to buying environmentally friendly gifts, to creative reuse of materials in decorations, the holiday season offers many opportunities to help the environment by reducing waste while saving money,” says Cynthia Moore, DNR recycling program coordinator.
Every Wisconsin resident each year generates an average of 1,628 pounds of municipal solid waste, or nearly four-and-a-half pounds per day, which includes both household waste and an individual’s share of commercial waste. During the holidays, waste can increase with extra packaging, gift wrap, disposable dishes, leftover food and more.
The DNR’s holiday waste reduction tips can be found on the DNR’s EEK! Environmental Education for Kids Web site. The suggestions include:
* Buy and use decorations that can be used more than once.
* Use reusable plates, cups, silverware and napkins instead of disposables.
* Don't waste food! Divide up holiday leftovers in reusable containers between guests so that the leftovers are eaten and not wasted.
* Buy items made with recycled materials.
* Buy a "live" holiday tree that can be planted in the yard in the spring, or place your “used” cut holiday tree in the yard to provide cover for rabbits and birds during heavy snowfall, cover it with strands of popcorn and cranberries, and place pine cone feeders on it to feed the birds. In the spring, chip the tree and use it for mulch.
* Wrap gifts in Sunday comics, old maps, or your own artwork drawn on the back of scrap paper.
* Reuse ribbons, bows, gift bags and decorative wrappings from the gifts you receive.
* Don’t take a new store bag if there’s room in one you’re already carrying.
* Save cardboard boxes for other purposes or include with your recyclables.
* Make the wrapping part of the gift. For example, wrap a kitchen gift in a colorful holiday hand towel or place a set of earrings in a new pair of gloves
* When buying electronic toys and other portable items that are used regularly, purchase rechargeable batteries to go with them.
* Look for energy-efficient LED lights for holiday decorations.
A Holiday Recycling “feature” button on the DNR Web site links to a video highlighting one option for reusing wrapping paper—shredding it to use as colorful filler in gift boxes and bags.
“Reusing gift wrap is an easy way to reduce your environmental footprint and save money at the same time,” according to Moore. “This is another good option for those who like to save wrapping paper, but have a hard time reusing it because of the size of scraps, tears and tape marks.”
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Cynthia Moore - (608) 267-7550
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2008 state park admission stickers on sale
Admission stickers are holiday gifts that give all year long
Winning Design by Ali Clark
MADISON – People doing holiday shopping for family or friends who enjoy camping, swimming, hiking, biking, skiing, or wildlife watching can give them access to an entire year of some of Wisconsin’s best recreational opportunities with the gift of a Wisconsin State Parks and Forests admission sticker.
“With thousands of miles of trails, hundreds of nature hike opportunities, and dozens of beaches, Wisconsin’s outdoors is the perfect gift for fun, social gatherings, healthy experiences, or for just absorbing simple solitude,” says Kimberly Currie of the DNR Bureau of Parks and Recreation.
The 2008 admission sticker to Wisconsin State Parks and Forests is available now at park and forest offices and Department of Natural Resources service centers. The 2008 sticker features people at play silhouetted by a setting sun. It was submitted to the Department of Natural Resources annual sticker design contest by Ali Clark, a senior from Waukesha West High School in Waukesha.
The sticker provides vehicle admission to 60 state parks and forests across Wisconsin. The cost is $25 for Wisconsin residents or $35 for nonresidents. A family with more than one vehicle registered to the same household may purchase additional state park stickers at half price. A senior citizen annual sticker for $10 is available for Wisconsin residents 65 years of age and older. The stickers are valid from the date of sale through Dec. 31, 2008.
In addition to park and forest offices and DNR Service Centers, stickers may be purchased by phone (608) 266-2181 between 7:45 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday using a MasterCard or Visa, or by sending a check or money order (payable to Wisconsin DNR) to DNR Parks and Recreation, PO Box 7921, Madison WI 53707-7921. People ordering by phone or mail should allow seven to nine days for the order to be processed and delivered.
In addition to the 2008 admission sticker to Wisconsin State Parks and Forests, there are also nature-oriented holiday gifts available through the DNR Web site and at some state parks. Nature field guides and books, wildlife posters, wildlife T-shirts, many new styles of sweatshirts, and other items are offered for sale.
Another great holiday gift idea is a paid annual or lifetime membership to an individual state park friends group, or to the statewide Friends of Wisconsin State Parks [www.fwsp.org] (exit DNR). Proceeds from all sales and membership dues benefit the friends groups, non-profit organizations that helps support the education programs at parks.
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Wisconsin State Parks - (608) 266-2181
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December Wisconsin Natural Resources magazine features bald eagle recovery
Gift subscription makes a present that delivers all year long
MADISON -- The December issue of Wisconsin Natural Resources magazine is arriving in mailboxes this week – the first holiday present of the season that delivers all year long. The December issue includes articles like:
“Bald and Beautiful” – a celebration of bald eagle recovery and the business opportunity that watchable wildlife/ecotourism bring to communities, visitors and locals alike.
“The nature of art and science” – where artists and musicians got together with scientists to explore invasive species and climate change.
“The view we prize from land and water” – showing how landowners can explore options for restoring their shorelines with native vegetation that is very attractive, adds value to their property helps provide habitat and better protects the shore.
“The hell of high water” – where we showed how help from many public services is mustered to help communities recover from natural disasters.
And the “Creature Comforts” and “Wisconsin Traveler” columns encourage readers to explore fun events and new places in all seasons.
Wisconsin Natural Resources magazine is an easy gift to give. Just call 1-800-678-9472 to order as many gift subscriptions as you’d like for just $8.97 a year for six colorful issues delivered every two months all year long. You can also make your gift purchases online at [www.wnrmag.com]. Click on “subscriptions,” or write WNR, PO Box 7921, Madison, WI 53707.
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: David L. Sperling - (608) 266-1510
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Onshore treatment of ship ballast water feasible, study concludes
Encouraging results for efforts to prevent arrival of new invasive species
MADISON – Onshore treatment of ballast water discharged from international ships arriving in Great Lakes ports is an economically and environmentally feasible option to eliminate the pathway by which dozens of invasive species have arrived in the Great Lakes, according to a recently released study.
The Department of Natural Resources-funded study concludes that a barge pulled alongside a ship to collect, store and treat the ballast water appears to be feasible and potentially the most cost effective option. The water then would be treated using filtering screens and ultraviolet light disinfection to eliminate organisms, according to study authors, the Milwaukee Office of Brown and Caldwell, a national environmental engineering consulting firm.
While the study focused on the Port of Milwaukee, its authors conclude that such an approach could work in other Great Lakes ports. Brown and Caldwell estimated that installing the system at a Great Lakes port would cost $1 to $2 million.
“This is good news in the fight against invasive species,” says DNR Secretary Matthew Frank. “Further study and a pilot project still need to be done, but these study results take us one step closer to finding a way to turn off the spigot of invasive species arriving in the Great Lakes via ballast water discharge.”
Ballast water has been the primary way by which more than 180 invasive species, including zebra mussels and round gobies, have arrived in the Great Lakes in the last century.
Brown and Caldwell researchers concluded that onshore treatment would have the ability to address a wide range of aquatic invasive species, from large, visible fish species down to microscopic viruses and pathogens, like viral hemorrhagic septicemia, or VHS for short. VHS is the fish disease that has caused large fish kills in the lower Great Lakes and was found in May 2007 in the Lake Michigan and Lake Winnebago systems.
The feasibility study assumed that the onshore treatment would be done on overseas vessels, not domestic ships, and from that smaller group, those that discharge ballast water. The Port of Milwaukee alone handles 322 commercial vessels carrying nearly 4 million tons of commodities, including 82 overseas vessels. Coal, salt, grain and cement are the top four commodities handled, according to Eric Reinelt, with the Port of Milwaukee.
Frank says the study complements the Great Ships Initiative, a multi-state, multi-agency effort underway to explore options for more cost effective treatment of ballast water. “On-shore treatment offers a less expensive route that can address the smaller ships that may find on-board treatment prohibitive,” he says. “Together, they represent an important, locally-based solution to this problem.”
The impetus for the study came through Gov. Jim Doyle’s Conserve Wisconsin initiative, which identified controlling the introduction of invasive species as a priority. DNR staff met with representatives of environmental organizations, the U.S. Coast Guard, shipping interests and port authorities in June 2006. A consensus developed at the meeting that there should be a study to investigate whether treatment could be done on ballast water and whether or not shore based treatment was feasible.
The department received funding for the study through the Great Lakes Protection Fund [www.glpf.org] (exit DNR), a private, nonprofit corporation formed in 1989 by the Governors of the Great Lakes States as a permanent environmental endowment to support collaborative actions to improve the health of the Great Lakes ecosystem.
Wisconsin and other states continue to urge Congress to address invasive species comprehensively, including tackling ballast water discharges. “Unfortunately, the federal government has been slow to act, prompting consideration of state legislation and other measures such as shore-based treatment, to address the problem,” Frank says.
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Roger Larson, DNR (608) 266-2666; Julie McMullin, Brown and Caldwell (414) 203-2904; Eric Reinelt, Port of Milwaukee (414) 286-8130
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Waste Reduction and Demonstration Grants awarded
MADISON –Three businesses, a county solid waste department and a nonprofit agency will get grants totaling $500,000 to conduct pilot projects in waste reduction, reuse and recycling, Department of Natural Resources Secretary Matt Frank has announced.
“The projects receiving these grants demonstrate new and innovative ideas for waste reduction, reuse or recycling and demonstrate ways to reduce the amount of solid waste that must be treated or ends up in Wisconsin’s landfills,” Frank said.
The grant program, administered by the Department of Natural Resources, provides a maximum of $500,000 each year in cost-sharing grants for innovative waste reduction, reuse and recycling efforts in Wisconsin. The grants cover up to 50 percent of total eligible costs. Recipients have included Wisconsin counties, municipalities, schools, public entities, non-profit organizations and businesses. Since the inception of the program in 1991, the DNR has supplied more than $13 million to help fund 192 projects.
Projects selected to receive funding for 2008 include:
* Doshi & Associates, Inc., Appleton – This business plans to use its $63,775 grant demonstrate and test the applicability of an innovative method of measuring the concentration of self-adhesive note paper, or “stickies,” to better evaluate the impact of synthetic adhesives and coating chemicals in the paper recycling process.
* Bayland, LLC, DePere – This project will apply the grant of $110,525 to demonstrate the viability of recovering large amounts of marketable cellulose fiber from paper mill solid waste and redirecting the resulting fiber to cellulose insulation manufacturers for use as feedstock.
* Lucid Glass Industries, Milwaukee – The grant of $113,050 helps fund this proposal that involves the testing of a time and energy efficient continuous manufacturing process for glass tile containing 75 percent or more post consumer recycled glass.
* Oneida County Solid Waste Department, Rhinelander – The county’s “Second Story” project will use its $102,600 grant to establish a broad reuse program with reclaimed demolition materials, appliances, and other discarded materials to improve waste diversion in the greater Oneida County area.
* Barron County Habitat for Humanity, Inc., Rice Lake – The $110,050 grant will be used to help establish a Habitat for Humanity ReStore. Project activities are designed to meet the need for an outlet for the collection and resale of usable Construction and Demolition (C & D) materials.
Although Demonstration grants for calendar year 2008 have been awarded, now is the time to consider projects for the 2009 grant cycle. Applications are due August 1, 2008. More information on the Demonstration Grant Program, including examples of past projects, is available on the DNR Web site.
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Sandy Chancellor, (608) 264-9207
Edited by Paul Holtan
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
PO Box 7921
Madison WI 53707
(608) 267-7517
Fax: (608) 264-6293
E-mail address: paul.holtan@wisconsin.gov
