Cormorants actually are a problem

Several stories, blogs and letters have addressed the issue of cormorants on Lake Waconia in recent days.

The simple truth is that cormorants are a problem.

The economic, environmental and wildlife impact of these birds is staggering, and to say otherwise is to deny reality. Each bird eats a pound or more of fish each day.

Simple math says that 1,000 birds would destroy in excess of 100,000 pounds of fish over a typical summer.

How could removing so many fish from a lake not impact the fish populations? But don't let facts or logic get in the way of a story.

Lake Waconia is not alone. Pigeon Lake, a few miles away in Meeker County, is currently home to the largest cormorant flock in the state.

Leech Lake fought cormorants for years, and finally had to have 100 million walleye stocked by the state Department of Natural Resources in order to save its fishery.

Other lakes and communities around the country are experiencing the same cormorant problems -- especially southern states that depend on fish farms and similar business.

The threat to these communities is obvious, and unfortunately, there are many similar stories from Ohio, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, the Dakotas, Arkansas, Alabama -- every state along their flyways.

Look them up for yourself: Oneida Lake in New York; Beaver Island in Lake Michigan; Lake St. Claire in Washington; Thunder Bay; Green Bay; Brevort Lake in Michigan. The list of affected lakes stretches to Germany, Finland and the British Isles, and goes on and on.

As a resident and City Council member in Waconia, I have seen firsthand the damage that large populations of these birds can do to the fishery and to vegetation when they colonize an area. It's not just about saving the fishery.

Imagine tens of thousands of pounds of bird poop being deposited into your neighborhood in a hot summer month. I daresay you would want your elected officials to do something about it.

One of the problems we have had with management of the local flock is that shooting permits and other control methods are generally limited to a specific geographic area.

If the birds move to a neighboring lake or county, the approval process has to start over from the beginning, while the birds continue to multiply and cause damage in the new area.

Yes, there were fewer cormorants on Lake Waconia this year, but I suspect they may have moved over to Pigeon Lake, and that doesn't really solve the problem.

A proposed change in federal law would grant more flexibility and local control over the problem.

If you read the bill, you will see it streamlines the management process for these birds, allowing states to better control their own flocks and colonies without the significant delays sometimes caused by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and/or the Department of Agriculture and the state DNR.

It does not create an open season on cormorants; it cuts through miles of needless red tape and bureaucracy.

To demonize the anglers ("Walleye anglers are building a case for killing protected cormorants" screamed the Nov. 4 headline) is to miss the point completely. They have merely been some of the first to recognize the problem and to call for action.

None of the opponents who have appeared on the Star Tribune's pages have stopped to think how similar local control measures might be used to combat other problem species like zebra mussels or Asian carp.

No one has considered how helpful this same legislation would be in protecting the cormorant flock if populations got too low. This is simply about restoring the balance and effectively managing our natural resources.

Waconia is a great place. You really should come and see for yourself. We don't hate birds, and we don't want to shoot all cormorants on sight.

We just want the freedom to manage our beautiful Lake Waconia for all species -- fish, fowl and human.

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Jim Sanborn is a member of the Waconia City Council.