To Claudia Tenney –
Lake Ontario contributes millions of dollars to your shoreline district’s economy through recreation. A major contributor to that sum is the trophy fishery for salmon and trout. The Lake Ontario Biological Station
in Oswego operated by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) provides data on the condition of the lake’s salmon and bait fish populations. It along with the rest of the USGS biological program is slated for shutdown
in Oswego as its lease is not being renewed. Without good local information, NY DEC fisheries staff will be challenged to manage the stocking and harvest rates for salmon.
Other major proposed budget cuts for FY2026 include chopping NOAA’s Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) entirely.This program supports the Great Lakes Observation System that protects communities and residents by reducing the risk of weather and lake-caused damage and loss of life. It is the Great Lakes’ leading source for real-time data and is essential to accurate weather forecasts for anglers, boaters and other users of our waters. This one is personal. My hobby of recreational boating depends on accurate marine weather forecasts for my safety on the open lake.
Another program important to the sport fishery is also threatened by federal budget cuts as of late April. Construction of an barrier plus lock and dam in Illinois designed to protect Lake Michigan from the arrival of the invasive silver carp that has destroyed native fish populations in the Mississippi is on hold after federal funding was frozen. Why should Lake Ontario anglers care? The silver carp is a plankton feeder. It inhabits inshore areas and large rivers like the Genesee and Oswego. If it establishes here, it will compete directly with the alewife, the major support of our trophy salmon fishery. Unlike alewives, silver carp can rapidly grow to 60 pounds, far too large for the salmon to feed on.
These are just three programs that will have a direct negative impact on tourism revenue in our region. Cuts in USDA programs designed to reduce erosion and fertilizer runoff from farm fields have real potential to increase the frequency of toxic algae blooms in our inshore waters and finger lakes. This could potentially damage human health and or the taxable values of waterfront real estate. Other USDA staff cuts may speed the spread of invasive rooted water weeds that can also damage water quality and recreational access.
These attacks on science are not good fiscal policy. Human health and welfare are totally dependent on the health of our ecosystem. Suppressing scientific data won’t benefit us. You can not manage a fishery or protect water quality with opinions, cover ups and lies. Only facts are useful.
Sent to Claudia Tenney on May 12, 2025, with copy to Lakeshore News (local paper in northern Wayne/Cayuga county)
Susan P Gateley