DNR: Mille Lacs Walleye Season To End On Sept. 6

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The catch-and-release walleye season on Mille Lacs Lake will close on Sept. 6, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources said Tuesday.

Eight Chippewa bands had expressed concern about keeping the season open, the agency said.

Fisheries managers announced earlier this month that anglers have surpassed the walleye quota on Mille Lacs Lake but that the season would stay open at the direction of Gov. Mark Dayton, who said he worried about the impact a closure would have on the area's economy.

The catch-and-release regulations were imposed on the popular walleye lake in north-central Minnesota for the first time this season.

In a statement Tuesday, Dayton said closing the season after Labor Day will have less of an economic impact on local businesses.

"Closing the walleye fishing season on Mille Lacs earlier this month would have devastated area businesses and communities. Thanks to a strong 2013 class of young walleye, we were able to keep the walleye season open on Mille Lacs without negatively impacting the health and future of the walleye industry," Dayton said. He said he directed the DNR to close the season on Sept. 6, the day after Labor Day.

Mille Lacs' total walleye harvest was capped at 40,000 pounds for this season, with 28,600 pounds allotted for state-licensed anglers and 11,400 pounds for Chippewa bands with treaty rights on the big lake. While sport anglers can't keep any walleye this season, the estimated loss from hooking mortality — fish that die after being caught and released — must be counted against the state's quota. Warm water temperatures and high catch rates on Mille Lacs during July and August led to higher-than-expected hooking mortality rates, the DNR said.

The state's current estimated walleye harvest is 45,276 pounds, exceeding the original state quota by more than 16,000 pounds, the agency said Tuesday.

"Although the state's estimated overage does not pose a conservation risk to the lake's walleye population, we recognize the impact that continued fishing could have on our relationship with the bands," DNR Commissioner Tom Landwehr said in a statement.

Mille Lac's catch-and-release walleye season will close at 12:01 a.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 6. Fishing for other species remains open. The closure will remain in effect through Nov. 30.

Dayton and the DNR said Mille Lacs remains a premier lake for northern pike, muskie and small-mouth bass fishing.

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