Ohio House GOP Leaders Fish or Cut Bait: Casting to Name Smallmouth Bass 'Official ' State Fish

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- This news may be hard for some to swallow on the shores of Lake Erie, where a billion dollar tourist industry flourishes as the walleye capital of the world. But some of the Republican lawmakers who joined forces last month in a plan to repeal Ohio's state income tax have now launched an effort to declare the smallmouth bass the official state fish. The bill was filed in the House by Minority Whip John Adams a former Navy Seal who ranks third in the GOP's leadership. Adams is from Sidney in western Ohio and owns furniture stores. A co-sponsor is Cheryl Grossman, No. 4 in the GOP House leadership. She was once the mayor of Grove City, a suburb of Columbus.

Ohio does not have an official state fish. It has a bird, the cardinal, and a rock song, Hang On Sloopy, and a fossil, the Trilobite. It has a tree, the Buckeye. Tennessee declared the smallmouth bass a state fish in 2005. Texas declared a cousin, the Guadalupe bass, its state fish in 1989. Oklahoma has the sand bass. The list of official state fish is available here. Most Ohioans would probably consider walleye as the most likely candidate to snare any movement to become Ohio's fish. It's already recognized widely as the most important gamefish in state waterways. Lake Erie fishermen have been known to catch them at the rate of eight per hour. The Ohio Historical Society notes:

"Without a doubt, walleye are one of the most prized game fish in Ohio. Ohio’s 2003 sport harvest of walleye totaled 2,771,697 pounds. They are the most important game fish in Lake Erie. The lake is often called the "Walleye Capital of the World." Walleye are no longer harvested commercially but there are a number of charter boats that will take walleye fishermen out on the lake for a day or more fishing. During the 1980s and 90s, over three million walleyes are harvested each year throughout Ohio."

The Drill And Drill Now Crowd: Do They Have Lake Erie In Their Sights?

COLUMBUS (TDB) -- Ohio's Republican-controlled legislature last year formally enacted a ban that forbids offshore drilling for oil and gas in Lake Erie. But now there's a push led by President Bush and GOP lawmakers in Washington -- including John Boehner, R-08 and Jean Schmidt, R-02 -- to lift restrictions that have closed coastal sites to drillers. The American Association of Petroleum Geologists has noted Canadians are already drilling on their side of Lake Erie, and that Ohio's portion has an estimated 1.1 trillion cubic feet of natural gas that are off-limits by law. There is no estimate available on the oil reserves offshore. Drilling has been forbidden in the lake because of environmental and commercial concern -- Lake Erie supplies fresh drinking water for millions and supports a billion dollar-plus tourism, recreation and sports fishing industry. Still, there are energy resources locked up beneath its surface. The 2001 geological material is available here, and says:

"The Ohio portion of Lake Erie's central basin [the area nearest Cleveland] could produce about 20 billion cubic feet of gas a day . . . which is about 20% of the gas currently produced by Ohio's onshore fields and about 2% of the state's annual consumption."

That's natural gas -- the fuel widely used to heat homes. State officials have long agreed that the gas isn't worth the environmental risks, and the formalized that consensus last year without a single dissenting vote. Gov. Ted Strickland signed the measure, which was in the 2007 budget bill. Inquiring minds are wondering: If Congress opens offshore lands to exploration, will Lake Erie eventually be tapped, and will the rigs and wells become a fact of life off America's North Coast?

Ohio Federal Judge Tells Oklahoma's Ottawa Indians: Sorry Folks, You Gave Away Lake Erie

TOLEDO (TDB) -- The Ottawa's were among the region's original residents before they were forced out of Ohio by federal agents in the 1830s. Now, The Daily Bellwether has learned U.S. District Judge Jack Zouhary has ruled their rights to fish and hunt in Ohio unfettered by state rules have been extinguished. The economic stakes were high: Lake Erie's sports and recreational fishing industry is a billion dollar annual business. The judge's decision was a victory for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, which claimed the tribe wanted access to commercial fishing rights on Lake Erie and inland waters without significant government oversight. The state feared the lake's stocks of walleye, perch and other gamefish would be devastated by the tribe's claim to public lands and waters.

There were suspicions outside the lawsuit that the Indians were actually angling for a casino -- that they would barter the Lake Erie fishing rights away for a gambling license.

Zahoury analyzed several treaties from the 1800s and said he found little evidence the Ottawa's preserved their hunting and fishing rights. The Indians were first sent to Kansas, then relocated to Oklahoma. They have lost and regained federal recognition and have not prospered:

"The hardship brought upon the Ottawa Tribe following their removal from Ohio was severe. Despite the tribe's identified hardships, the delay in asserting treaty rights to hunt and fish in Ohio is unreasonable. This delay is asserting hunting and inland fishing rights is also prejudicial to Defendant [Ohio], and as such bars recovery of these claims. Plaintiff has, however, established a dispute of material facts surrounding the prejudice to Defendant of asserting treaty rights to fish in Lake Erie, specifically the impact of commercial fishing on current conservation levels. Nevertheless, after examining all treaties identified by the parties, the Treaty of 1831 extinguished any treaty-based right for the Ottawa Tribe to fish in Lake Erie. Therefore, Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment is granted and this case is dismissed."

The case is Ottawa Tribe v. Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Case No. 3:05 CV 7272, Northern District of Ohio. The judge said he was not unmoved by the tribe's plight after it was ejected from its Midwestern homeland.

"Federal agents enforced the treaty by removing members of the Ottawa Tribe from Ohio. During the 700 mile journey to Kansas, nearly have of the roughly 300 Ottawas died from hunger and disease. Upon arriving in Kansas, the Ottawa tribe transitioned from hunting and fishing to farming. This lifestyle provided minimum subsistence, and the problems of disease and alcoholism that had originated before their removal, increased."

Ohio's Northern Border: Unblinking Eye In The Sky Will Be Spying On Lake Erie

COLUMBUS (TDB) -- State homeland security officials want the Controlling Board to approve a $130,000 no-bid contract to add encrypted signals to a turret-mounted spy camera system. The super sensitive device will be mounted on a state airpline and employ lasers, night-vision lenses and electronic sensors to monitor Lake Erie from the sky. The purchase is part of the Northern Border Initiative that is supposed to tighten the Canadian-U.S. border, which has long been porous because the two nations are both neighbors and friends. But the post-9/11 environment is leading to increased surveillance along the once wide open border.

The spy camera is made by L-3 Wescam, a Canadian subcontractor of the 6th largest U.S.-based defense contractor. The Ohio Department of Public Safety has the purchase on the Dec. 3 agenda and says L-3 Wescam is the only supplier it can buy from. It has asked for a waiver of competitive bidding.

"The Homeland Security Division is requesting the purchase of equipment in order to received the encrypted signal from the L-3 Communications Wescam Turret System recently installed on an Ohio State Highway Patrol aircraft (Grand Caravan). This equipment records audio and/or video evidence which is valuable to the Northern Border Initiative success by increasing the scope of reconnaissance and surveillance of the open waters of Lake Erie and the Northern Border.

"The equipment also provides an added element of safety as supporting personnel can observe activity of suspicious vessels and persons while NBI law enforcement personnel and vessels respond and interdict illegal and/or suspicious border crossings. The equipment will be received and maintained by the Northern Border Initiative Coordinator and housed at the OHS Office of Counterterrorism and Prevention. It will be available upon request for all Northern Border Initiative participants (Ashtabula, Cuyahoga, Lake, Lorain, Lucas, Ottawa, Sandusky and Wood counties) in the event of an incident."

Cleveland Hosts Walleye Tournament: A $150,000 Check At Stake This Weekend

CLEVELAND (TDB) -- Who knew that somebody had a chance to win a $150,000 first price in a walleye fishing contest this weekend in Cleveland? The event is sponsored by Wal-Mart and today is the final round for 10 pro fishermen.

Lake Erie: Shrinking This Summer, Down 8 Inches From Last August

CLEVELAND (TDB) -- Climate scientists have projected that Lake Erie could fall by more than three feet and lose about one-fifth its surface area over the next half century if the Earth heats up. Now there is word from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that the lake's depth is already running below statistical norms. Is it climate change? Nobody is speculating yet, but researchers tell The Daily Bellwether they are closely monitoring water levels.

The most recent Great Lakes Water Level Update issued by the Corps says Lake Erie is six inches under its long-term monthly water level average for August, and is eight inches lower than it was last year.

Can't blame drought -- precipitation in the Lake Erie basin in 2.06 inches more than average, or 106% of normally expected snow and rainfall. However, there was less precipitation to the north and the entire Great Lakes Basin is 2.36 inches short of average.

From the Corps' latest data (August 3):

"Currently, Lake Superior is 13 inches below its level of a year ago, while Lakes Michigan-Huron, St. Clair, Erie and Ontario are 6 to 9 inches lower than last year's levels, Lake Superior is predicted to rise 1 inch over the next 30 days. Lake Michigan-Huron is expected to decline two inches, while Lakes St. Clair, Erie and Ontario are expected to drop five inches over the next month. All of the lakes are forecasted to be below their water levels of a year ago during the next few months."

By December, Lake Erie could be some 15 to 20 inches below last year's water marks.

Check out data from the Corps HERE. Projections about the potential effects of climate change on Lake Erie, predicting that it could lost thousands of square miles of surface area, were made in an EPA report last year.

Happy Birthday Cleveland: 211 Candles Are On Your Cake Today

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- From down on the banks of the Ohio River, The Bellwether sends a happy birthday card to Cleveland, which was settled on July 22 1796 -- a date that nobody seems to have noticed or celebrated today. For shame.

[UPDATE: 6:40 am EDT 7/23/07 -- Another notable anniversary occurred in northeast Ohio place yesterday, and The Bellwether is proud to mention the milestone, even if belatedly. Jill Zimon is starting her third year today. Jill is one of the top bloggers in this section of the universe. Is it pure coincidence that WLST and Cleveland took form on the same day? Sounds to me like intelligent design was at work, and that the intelligent designer . . . ]

Here's the account from Wikipedia about the gestation and Cleveland's birth:

"The expedition then coasted along the shore of Lake Erie, and landed on July 4, 1796 at the mouth of Conneaut Creek, which they named Port Independence. The Indians were propitiated with gifts of beads and whiskey, and allowed the surveys to proceed. General Cleaveland, with a surveying party, coast along the shore and on July 22, 1796 landed at the mouth of the Cuyahoga River. He ascended to the bank, and, beholding a beautiful plain covered with a luxuriant forest-growth, divined that the spot where he stood, with the river on the west and Lake Erie on the north, was a favorable site for a city."

Cincinnati was founded eight years earlier, and had already become a thriving settlement in the Northwest Territory. Originally, the Lake Erie community was called Cleaveland. But in 1830, the story goes, a newspaper editor could not fit that word across the top of his broadsheet. So he dropped the "a" and called it Cleveland. The name stuck.

Strickland Draws Line In The Sandstone: Wants Lake Erie Oil And Gas Wells Banned By Law

COLUMBUS (TDB) -- Offshore oil and gas drilling in Lake Erie would be banned by law under an obscure 35-word clause tucked deep in Gov. Ted Strickland's budget bill. There are an estimated 1.1 trillion cubic feet of natural gas locked up in rocky formations beneath Ohio's portion of the lake. Strickland would declare it permanently off-limits like a Midwest version of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and put preservation of an environmentally sensitive area ahead of energy development.

[UPDATE: Buckeye State Blog has followed up with more on the the Lake Erie drilling ban. Says the guv's move is a win for state Demo Chair Chris Redfern and Ohio Environmental Council's Jack Shaner, who long have pushed for such a measure, and PIRG, too.]

State officials estimate the reserves under Lake Erie equal all the gas available to drillers onshore across Ohio. Ontario has approved about 550 gas wells in its portion of Lake Erie. In the late 1990s, Lake Erie accounted for about 70% of Ontario's total gas production. The Canadian province collects about $4 million in royalties each year, and the gas is worth more than $40 million on commercial markets when sold to heat homes and businesses.

Lake Erie is in the Appalachian Basin, an oil and gas field that is among the most productive in the world. There was a gas well drilled into the lake in 1913 from winter ice -- the first attempt to extract natural resources. Modern offshore wells went into production on the Canadian side in the 1960s. Ohioans, however, have feared that risks from spills and accidents outweigh the value of any energy supplies Mother Nature has hidden beneath the waves. Lake Erie provides drinking water for millions of Ohioans, and supports huge tourism and recreation industries that employ thousands. Any damage would be a monumental catastrophe.

An analysis of the budget bill by the Legislative Services Commission says:

Ban on taking or removal of oil or natural gas from and under Lake Erie
(R.C. 1505.07). Current law authorizes the Director of Natural Resources, with the approval of the Director of Environmental Protection, the Attorney General, and the Governor, and subject to certain requirements, to issue permits and make leases to parties applying for permission to take and remove sand, gravel, stone, and other minerals or substances from and under the bed of Lake Erie, either on a rental or royalty basis, as the Director of Natural Resources determines to be best for the state. The bill creates an exception to that authority by prohibiting the Director of Natural Resources from issuing any permit or making any lease to take or remove oil or natural gas from and under the bed of Lake Erie.

The actual language from the bill eliminates a 1950s measure that allowed drilling. It said state officials could "issue permits and make leases to parties making application for permission to take and remove sand, gravel, stone, and other minerals or substances from and under the bed of Lake Erie, either upon a royalty or rental basis, as he the director of natural resources determines to be best for the state. Permits shall be issued for terms of not less than one year nor more than ten years, and leases shall be for a term of years or until the economic extraction of the mineral or other substance covered thereby has been completed. Such taking and removal shall be within certain fixed boundaries that do not conflict with the rights of littoral owners. Upon request from the holder of a permit, it shall be canceled, but in the case of any permit or lease, any equipment or buildings owned by the permittee or lessee shall be held as security by the director of natural resources for payment of all rentals or royalties due the state at the time of cancellation."

But the ban says: "(B) The director of natural resources shall not issue any permit or make any lease under division (A) of this section to take or remove oil or natural gas from and under the bed of Lake Erie."

Pho's Akron Pages has links to the entire budget bill and the legislative analysis, and they are searchable by agency or key word. In 2001, former Republican Gov. Bob Taft issued an executive order that blocked any drilling. He acted after his Department of Natural Resources presented a study to the oil and gas industry predicting that Lake Erie could supply vast amounts of natural gas. The report suggested energy royalties would pump up the state's treasury with millions in new income. Taft's executive order expired when he left office in January.

A 2001 report by the American Association of Petroleum Geologists, who favored opening the lake to exploration, is HERE , and it contends the risks environmental risks are minimal. The geologists said there would be no offshore platforms or derricks blocking the scenery. Still, they were in a minority when it came to tapping Ohio's most precious natural resource.

Ohio DNR: New Sonar Pics Of Sunken Ships

COLUMBUS (TDB) -- Ohio officials have published some amazing images of sunken vessels on the bottom of Lake Erie. Appearing appropriately ghostly, the pictures were created by side-scan sonar sound waves during an expedition to inventory and accurately map shipwrecks in an area of the Great Lakes treacherous for mariners.

Two of the images can be VIEWED in this Ohio Department of Natural Resources document that summarizes the August 2003 archaeological search near Kelleys Island. In all, seven ships were mapped. Officials are not yet sure of all their names.

Of course, nobody has publicly solved the biggest secret of Lake Erie -- the December 1909 disappearance of the 338-foot long Marquette & Bessemer No. 2, which sailed from Conneaut, Ohio into oblivion. The ship was a train-car ferry headed to Port Stanley, Ontario. There were about railroad cars aboard, a crew of 36 men and perhaps some $60,000 in gold or cash in the safe. Rumors crop up that the metal ship has been found, but they never seem to be confirmed. The Marquette & Bessemer is considered the Holy Grail of Lake Erie shipwrecks.

Over the years, treasure hunters and wreck divers have looked for it in the lake's depths without luck, and scientists and the Canadian Navy reportedly tried side-scan sonar and magnetometers to sense its metal hull in the late 1980s and early 1990s. A 1986 report from the Conneaut News Herald in Ashtabula County says the ship went down in a storm. "Three days after the Bessemer disappeared, a lifeboat was found about 15 miles off Erie (Pa.) carrying a grim cargo of nine frozen bodies. Five of the bodies were frozen in a sitting position, while the other four were huddled over the body of a young man, as though they had attempted to keep him warm," the account by Catherine Ellsworth reported. She said there was not very much of value in the ship's safe.

Now, the ghost ship is part of the lore and legend Lake Erie. The Ellsworth article, with a picture of the Marquette & Bessemer, is online HERE. This LINK leads to an Internet chatroom where divers and others discussed the wreck a few years ago.