A History of Multi-Jurisdictional Management of the Shared Great Lakes Fishery: Transcending Conflict and Diffuse Political Authority

Jurisdictional authority over Great Lakes fishery management rests with independent, non-federal governments—the Province of Ontario, the eight Great Lakes states, and U.S. tribes.  This independence undermined repeated attempts by the jurisdictions from at least the mid-1800s to the 1940s to coordinate their disparate fishery management activities.  Cooperation began to emerge after the sea lamprey invasion reached crisis stage by the 1940s and thus forced collective action, after the non-regulatory Great Lakes Fishery Commission was formed in the 1950s and served as a focal point for discussions, and after the commission created lake committees in the 1960s.  The threat of federal intrusion into non-federal management, the commission’s continuing leadership, and the spirit of an era of environmentalism in the 1970s prompted the jurisdictions to formalize their interactions by developing A Joint Strategic Plan for Management of Great Lakes Fisheries in 1981. 

With a history of parochialism as a backdrop, this presentation discusses how and why a cooperative regime emerged and argues that today’s fishery management process is rooted in political fragmentation, sovereignty, sentiments of independence, and jealously guarded authorities.  Cooperation was prompted by crisis and leadership and the structure and goals of the Joint Strategic Plan reflect the history of Great Lakes fishery management.  This presentation concludes with a discussion of current Great Lakes fishery governance through the Joint Strategic Plan.