Minnesota is preparing to do battle with deadly fish virus

A deadly fish virus that is spreading through the Great Lakes and already has infected Wisconsin inland waters hasn't arrived in Minnesota -- yet.

But state officials are preparing for that day.

Tests of fish carried out last fall at 30 fish rearing ponds and lakes -- including Lake Mille Lacs and Lake Superior -- turned up no sign of viral hemorrhagic septicemia (VHS). Sixty more Minnesota waters will be checked this year for the disease, which causes fish to hemorrhage, killing them.

VHS has caused large fish kills in the eastern Great Lakes -- including Michigan and Wisconsin -- and Minnesota officials fear if it shows up here in Lake Superior or the Mississippi River, it could spread to inland lakes with devastating consequences.

To reduce chances of that nightmare, legislation pushed by the Department of Natural Resources is moving forward at the state Capitol to tighten laws restricting the transportation and stocking of fish. Under legislation, some bait fish and game fish used to stock lakes would have to be tested for the fatal fish virus.

"It will require that all fish moved around the state and stocked be VHS-free, including the fish we stock,'' said Roy Johannes, Department of Natural Resources commercial fisheries program consultant.

"The goal is to prevent VHS from getting established in Minnesota,'' said Rep. Rick Hansen, DFL-South St. Paul, chief sponsor in the House.

The bill adds VHS-susceptible fish -- including walleyes, northerns, muskies, bass, bluegills, perch and crappies and some minnows -- to existing statutes restricting transportation of live fish.

The most popular baitfish -- fathead minnows, golden shiners and white suckers -- are not on the federal government's list of VHS-susceptible species, and wouldn't be affected by the law, unless they are added to the list later.

The testing costs about $500 to $1,100 and will increase costs for the state's 160 commercial fish and bait producers. The DNR received a federal grant to pay for some of its tests.

More testing required

The DNR has 400 to 500 rearing ponds, and there are another 2,000 private ponds used by commercial aquaculture businesses. Those that raise VHS-susceptible fish would have to be tested.

One concern is whether the testing capacity exists to handle that influx. The University of Minnesota recently began doing tests. The DNR also is doing tests, and a lab in Maine also tests for VHS.

For a pond or lake, 170 fish are tested to provide an accurate sampling. The fish must be killed to be tested.

Minnesota fish producers already are testing fish that are shipped to other states. Federal officials require that VHS-susceptible fish in the eight Great Lakes states be tested before they can be moved among those states.

"Testing is problematic,'' agreed Bob Meier, DNR legislative director. "But what's more problematic, testing the fish or not having any fish to test?''

Said Meier: "The bottom line is without these procedures in place, when VHS is detected, it would shut down the aquaculture industry and the movement of fish and even the stocking of walleyes. We're trying to get ahead of the curve, so that when VHS happens, we're in a position to deal with it.''

Is VHS coming?

Many believe it's just a matter of time before VHS spreads to Minnesota, and the DNR says there is a "high likelihood'' it will be found here in coming years.

"I'd be surprised if we don't get VHS, considering how fast it's moved,'' Hansen said. Last year it was found in inland waters in Wisconsin for the first time.

The legislation also would give the DNR authority to react more quickly to VHS when and if it shows up, Johannes said.

"We could stop movement of live fish or water out of those bodies where VHS is found,'' he said. "Livewells and bait buckets would have to be drained [when anglers leave lakes] because the virus can live outside the host for eight days.''

Under current law, it would take the DNR 30 days to impose such emergency rules.

So concerned are state officials about VHS that the bill removes a provision in the law allowing youths 16 and under to catch game fish and transport them alive for use in a home aquarium.

"That exception was put in statute about 10 years ago,'' said Hansen. "I've gotten some e-mails about it.''

But he said youths still could buy game fish from a VHS-free aquaculture operation to stock a home aquarium.

Avoiding a nightmare

Both private producers and the DNR are concerned that if VHS were to arrive in Minnesota, it could wipe out entire fish-production facilities.

"It's potentially a bad situation,'' said Rob Jost, who runs Muskie Farms Inc. near Alexandria, Minn.

He would like to see some state subsidies to help pay for testing. Still, Jost said the bill is a start, but the state needs to do more to protect its fisheries.

"It probably will be spread by boaters; that's how everything else has been spread,'' he said.

The DNR is aware that water from livewells and bait buckets likely have helped spread two other invasive species, zebra mussles and spiny water fleas -- both originally found in Lake Superior -- to Minnesota's inland waters. So the agency has produced a color VHS brochure explaining the disease and urging anglers to drain livewells and bait containers when they leave any lake, and to power-wash boat hulls.

The DNR will distribute the brochures at the Northwest Sportshow, which runs April 2-6 at the Minneapolis Convention Center.

"Our best bet is to try keep VHS out of here as long as we can,'' Johannes said. "And if it does show up, try to stop it from spreading to a lot of lakes.''