Restoring the Great Lakes: Success Stories from the 2015 Field Season

We hope our sixth edition of Restoring the Great Lakes finds you well. We’ve been busy since we last visited with you about the accomplishments of our staff and our partners. As always, we are proud to share our story of conservation with you.

The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative continues to transform the region and foster collaboration. Through our 2015 interagency agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service received more than $41 million to support new and ongoing Great Lakes projects. In total, we have received more than $271 million over the past six years.

As we move forward with the implementation of the second GLRI Action Plan, we are starting to see the tangible returns on our conservation investments. Lake trout, a central focus of our Great Lakes stocking efforts for decades, are making a resurgence. Lake sturgeon are finding their way back to historic breeding grounds thanks to time and energy spent on removing barriers to fish passage fish passage
Fish passage is the ability of fish or other aquatic species to move freely throughout their life to find food, reproduce, and complete their natural migration cycles. Millions of barriers to fish passage across the country are fragmenting habitat and leading to species declines. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's National Fish Passage Program is working to reconnect watersheds to benefit both wildlife and people.

Learn more about fish passage . We’re putting up roadblocks to invasive plants and animals, and finding better ways to curtail the movement of invasive animals that already have a foothold in our waters. Polluted areas are getting cleaned up. Everywhere you look great things are happening because of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative.

Whether you are a resident or visitor to the Great Lakes, it is easy to become captivated by the natural beauty of the area. We invite you out to our national wildlife refuges and national fish hatcheries to learn more about the work that we do and the people who make it happen. Our GLRI supported projects in the Great Lakes reflect the passion and hard work of our staff. Come witness it for yourself.