It is recognized that, in general, dams and other anthropogenic barriers are detrimental to riverine ecosystems; they fragment habitat and may block seasonal migrations of Great Lakes fishes and other aquatic organisms which rely on tributaries for spawning or other components of their life history.  It is also recognized that there is increasing interest from governments (federal, provincial/state, municipal), non-government organizations and private individuals to decommission dams, particularly those at or beyond their anticipated life expectancy.  In the future, it is expected that agencies will be required to review an increasing number of proposals to remove or modify barriers, some of which are crucial in the control of sea lamprey, protection of threatened, endangered, and native species, and prevention of pathogen and contaminant spread. These proposals may originate either from within agencies, or through stakeholder interests.  A science and management community discussion of fish passage issues hosted by the American Fisheries Society, taken as a first step, will help frame the data and product needs to then drive development of a suite of fish passage principles, tools, protocols, and policies with the objective of voluntary implementation by agencies and jurisdictions first within the Great Lakes basin and then throughout North America.