Mille Lacs community conversations

Help build a vision for the lake

Photo from the shore of Mille Lacs Lake showing blue water underneath a clear blue sky and green trees on the shoreline You're invited to help DNR determine values and goals that will be part of a new Mille Lacs Lake fisheries management plan.

You can choose to attend one of three meetings or spend a few minutes with our online questionnaire.

You'll be asked what's important to you about Mille Lacs Lake, its fish, the activities that take you to the lake and the area's communities.

DNR will use your feedback to help determine the goals and values that will be part of a new lake management plan that will be developed.

Meetings

All meetings are from 6-8 p.m. There will be activities for all ages, a presentation by Mille Lacs area fisheries staff and time for discussion. These meetings are designed to collect your thoughts, ideas and information.

Can't make a meeting?

Spend a few minutes with our online questionnaire to share your vision for the lake.

What's in a management plan?

DNR is conducting these meetings and the online input opportunity to determine how to proceed and what the plan will include.

The plan you'll be helping DNR develop impacts only the state portion of the fishery. Tribes that have fishing rights on Mille Lacs manage their own part of the fishery.

Examples of goals in a new management plan may include but are not limited to:

  • Improving the regulation-setting process so that we can best reflect angler values while managing the fishery sustainably;
  • Recognizing and acknowledging that biological changes in the lake will continue to impact and change the water, fishing and fish – sometimes in ways that may not be predictable; and
  • Finding ways to adequately and fairly balance the varying interests that different angling and stakeholder groups have in Mille Lacs Lake with important natural resource considerations to preserve and improve the Mille Lacs Lake fishery.