Non-Recreational Fishing and Aquaculture: Businesses and AIS Prevention

Transport pathways are the means by which aquatic invasive species (AIS) have been introduced to and spread across Wisconsin. The number of pathways have continued to grow as new technologies allow for faster movement of goods and services than ever before in history.

Every month, we will be putting a spotlight on the different pathways aquatic invasive species can reach new waterways. The next installation of this monthly series focuses on the pathway of non-recreational fishing and the aquaculture industry.

When most of us think about fishing, we see boats on trailers being backed into the lake at our favorite launches. We might even see ourselves checking the trailers for plants before heading home for the day. Most people who fish are doing so for fun and recreation. In a previous article, the AIS pathway of this type of recreational fishing was discussed. A lot of educational resources have been applied to educated recreational anglers about AIS. What about about other forms of angling? Commercial anglers often have much larger boats and a lot of gear such as nets, buoys, cables, and lines. Fishing tournaments bring lots of boaters to lake systems all at once. In large lakes, some businesses raise fish like salmon for consumption in large net pens. Live bait has to be collected or raised somewhere to be brought to our favorite bait shops for anglers to use. All of these are examples of non-recreational fishing or aquaculture (a.k.a aquafarming). While these practices are diverse, they are considered a single pathway by which AIS can reach new areas and waterbodies.

Non-recreational fishing and the aquaculture industry often use equipment like nets or lines on multiple waterbodies in a short period of time which allows a pathway for AIS to reach new lakes and rivers. Live bait born and raised in a different lake can be contaminated with AIS when brought to local bait shops. Systems used for fish growth and maintenance such as flow-through tanks and net pens can expose surrounding aquatic ecosystems to pathogens such as Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia. In order to reduce the risk that this pathway will lead to the spread of AIS, efforts need to be focused on removing AIS before equipment is moved between waterways thus reducing the risk of fish and other products being contaminated with AIS. While regulation is important to help achieve the goal of not introducing AIS to new waters, education about the impacts of AIS on lakes and the chain affect on those businesses that depend on lakes is needed for lasting change.

All text from this article is from the Winnebago Waterways AIS Strategic Plan. Sources can be found in the AIS Strategic Plan document. For more information on what the state of Wisconsin is doing to prevent the spread of AIS, check out the Wisconsin AIS Management Plan.

Questions? Comments? Contact Chris Acy, the AIS Coordinator covering Brown, Outagamie, Fond du Lac, Calumet, and Winnebago Counties at (920) 460-3674 or chris@fwwa.org!

Follow the Fox Wolf Watershed Alliance’s Winnebago Waterways Program on our Winnebago Waterways Facebook page or @WinnWaterways on Twitter! You can also sign-up for email updates at WinnebagoWaterways.org.

Winnebago Waterways is a Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance program. The Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance is an independent nonprofit organization that identifies and advocates effective policies and actions that protect, restore, and sustain water resources in the Fox-Wolf River Basin.

Photo Credit: Korin Doering, WI AIS Management Plan