The Chippewa Flowage benefits from a community working together to address the needs of various stakeholders and ensure a continued healthy habitat for the fish, wildlife and humans who share this unique habitat.

Common concerns about the well-being of the Chippewa Flowage have let to several cooperative initiatives between tribes, resort and property owners, and wildlife and fishery management agencies. The result has been an enhanced fishery and numerous efforts leading toward improved fishery habitat.

A premier example of cooperation has been the Wildlife Habitat, Youth Education and Skills Training Program which provided 25 cribs for the Chippewa Flowage and 25 duck nest boxes, all built and installed by youths employed by the Lac Courte Oreilles (LCO) Tribe.

Cost of materials for the cribs and nesting boxes is shared by resort owners and property owners while the cost of labor is funded through a grant from the Miller Brewing Company. All in all, it has become a true community project resulting in improved fishery habitat in the Flowage.

In addition to crib placement, the Youth Education program initiated a frog survey and performed water quality studies on the Flowage, both projects designed to establish information relevant to habitat health and changes.

The Fishing Has No Boundaries Program, involving the Lac Courte Oreilles Tribe, also resulted in the stocking of nearly a million walleye fingerlings into the Chippewa Flowage while promoting educational and recreational opportunities on the Flowage for youths.

In addition to cooperative projects, representatives from the LCO Tribe, resort and property owners and the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission (GLIFWC) meet periodically to discuss ideas and issues relating to a common interest in the Flowage and its community. This provides a positive forum to share information, concerns and problem solving.

The timing of declarations for tribal spring spearing quotas, for instance, have been discussed as adversely impacting the resorts. While the LCO Tribe must follow a court-established protocol in announcing declarations, the tribe and the Voigt Inter-Tribal Task Force, a standing committee of GLIFWC, agreed to pursue changing the protocol and are now seeking agreement from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

The LCO Tribe also released all but 638 of their unused walleye quota, making more walleyes available to state licensed anglers on the Flowage. Quotas declared in the spring provide an opportunity for tribal members to catch a certain number of fish. If these are not all taken, the tribe can opt to release those fish to the state-licensed fishery.

Other areas of common concern currently being addressed on a cooperative basis are the need for an aeration system for the Flowage to Prevent winter kill of fish; a possible permit system for island camping; and purple loosestrife eradication.

Keeping the Chippewa Flowage healthy requires a cooperative vision and effort. Successes, such as fish stocking and crib placement, have already been born from an open dialog between community members and recognition of shared goals.

The Flowage will continue to benefit in the coming years from similar cooperative initiatives as people identify common issues and goals rather than focus on their differences.