Lake Michigan Biodiversity: Central Basin East Green Bay Approximate demarcation of Central Basin East and Central Basin West. NapefvUle ' Joliet The Lake Michigan Lakewide Action and Management Plan (LAMP) is a collaborative, adaptive management program where federal, state, tribal and local governments along with other partners work together to protect and restore Lake Michigan. The LAMP shares responsibility for implementing many aspects of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA), which seeks to "restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the Waters of the Great Lakes." One commitment under the GLWQA is to develop and implement lakewide habitat and species protection and restoration strategies. The Central Basin East is the area between the Northern Basin and the Mid- Lake Plateau that spans the Michigan shoreline. It includes the Two Rivers Ridge, Door-Leelanau Ridge and Chippewa Basin. This area borders portions of Mason, Manistee. Benzie, and Leelanau Counties in Michigan. Unique ^drowned river mouths" are significant coastal wetland features that provide habitat protected from waves and storms. Dune formations along the coast dominate the landscape and offer unique biodiversity habitats. Central Basin East is also home to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, an important natural resource consisting of miles of beach, dimes, bluffs, inland lakes, northern hardwood forests, and unique flora and fauna. Nearshore waters provide traditional spawning habitat for whitefish and other fish species. Offshore waters of Central Basin East support populations of native fish and invertebrates that support important fisheries. Located at the northern end of Central Basin East is half of one of Lake Michigan's two Lake Trout Refuges (the other half of located in the Northern Basin). The refuges are underwater, ancient habitat areas that are currently used to stock native Lake Trout and encourage natural spawning in an effort to create a self-sustaining population in Lake Michigan. Collaboration among partners in the Central Basin East region is needed to implement key actions that will maintain and increase the viability of biodiversity and abate identified threats to biodiversity. Threats to Biodiversity In an assessment of threats to biodiversity, numerous experts rated the current viability status of an array of targets using recognized Key Ecological Attributes and indicators of viability (Table 1). Critical threats to biodiversity in the entire Central Basin region include aquatic and terrestrial invasive species; climate change; and housing and urban development. Invasive species can alter ecosystem attributes, such as water clarity and nutrient levels, and present serious threats to native species. Invasive sea lamprey prey on native fish, resulting in high fish mortality in northern Lake Michigan. Climate changes may contribute to low water levels and the potential for invasive species to dominate emergent shorelines. Coastal development and shoreline alterations have negatively impacted coastal wetland and terrestrial systems, resulting in altered migration patterns for birds and fish. Table 1. Viability Assessment Summary for Central Basin TARGET CATEGORY ASSESSMENT THREAT STATUS Nearshore Zone Fair High Aerial Migrants Fair High Coastal Terrestrial Systems Fair High Coastal Wetlands Good Very High Islands Good Medium Native Migratory Fish Fair High Offshore Zone Fair Medium Source: Lake Michigan Biodiversity Conservation Strategy, 2013. Lake Michigan from Empire Bluff, Sleeping National Lakeshore, Ml. Photo: National Park Service Bear Dunes Lake Michigan Central Basin East Biodiversity Revised September 2014 ------- Strategies Needed to Conserve Biodiversity A number of actions can be taken by agencies, tribes, municipalities, planning commissions, and other partners concerned with biodiversity in the Central Basin East area. The following strategies are recommended. For additional details, see Chapter 6 of the Lake Michigan Biodiversity Conservation Strategy. Strategies for Very High Threat Targets: • Align projects among Lake Michigan states to implement common policies, risk assessments, and funding that will minimize invasive species. • Support efforts to inventory and control aquatic and terrestrial invasive species. • Use coordinated land use planning to align future development in coastal areas with biodiversity conservation and ecological processes. Strategies for High Threat Targets: • Improve land use practices to minimize water run-off contributing to nutrient saturation resulting in hypoxic conditions and oxygen depletion in the nearshore. • Increase habitat connectivity by removing dams (after assessing the risk of sea lamprey access to new spawning grounds) and restoring rivers to their natural state. • Broaden constituency for sea lamprey control, and continue lamprey management. The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (www.glri.us/) has supported habitat and species protection and restoration efforts and will continue to serve as an important mechanism for implementing biodiversity conservation strategies in Central Basin East. Key Next Steps • Identify opportunities to expand piping plover habitat and protection. • Continue efforts to control sea lamprey by conducting surveys of larval and adult lampreys. • Control invasive vegetation in emergent shorelines. • Continue and expand streamside rearing of Lake Sturgeon. • Continue to identify and implement strategies to control nutrient runoff. • Implement adaptation actions to address climate changes, including research on how reduced ice cover has impacted spawning cycles and conditions favorable for spawning habitat. • Continue and expand efforts to train and certify green practices for marinas and ports (www.miseagrant.umich.edu/greenmarina). • Work collaboratively to preserve and restore wetlands from the invasive common reed Phragmites (www, greatlakesphra gmites.net provides an interactive forum for stakeholders working on control of this wetland problem). • Protect and enhance nearshore spawning habitat, wetlands, and shoreline. Support the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service mass marking initiative and Lake Trout. Support current and future efforts on Cisco (Lake Herring) restoration. Promote widespread adoption of The Urban Conservation Treaty for Migratory Birds and continual implementation of the North American Waterfowl Management Plan, in light of the added stress of climate change on species and habitats. Determine roles and responsibilities in the Central Basin East area for education, surveillance and standardization of procedures to aid in meeting the GLWQA Annex 6 Aquatic Invasive Species Goal of development and implementation of an early detection and rapid response initiative by 2015. Platte River flowing into Lake Michigan from Platte Point, Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, Ml. Photo: National Park Service For More Information www.epa.gov/greatlakes/lake-michigan LAMP Partners Chippewa Ottawa Resource Authority (CORA) // Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians Little Traverse Bay Band of Odawa Indians Michigan Dept. of Environmental Quality The Nature Conservancy / www.1836cora.org www.gtbindians.org K www.ltbbodawa-nsn.gov Mwww.michiaan.gov/deg www.nature.org U.S. EPA, Great Lakes National Program Office Elizabeth Hinchey Malloy Lake Michigan Manager Phone: (312) 886-3451 hinchey.elizabeth@epa.gov Lake Michigan Central Basin East Biodiversity Revised September 2014 ------- |