+------------+-----------+--------------------------+-----------------+
| **STANDARD |           |                          | **NO. MGMT #1** |
| OPERATING  |           |                          |                 |
| P          |           |                          |                 |
| ROCEDURE** |           |                          |                 |
+------------+-----------+--------------------------+-----------------+
| **D        |           |                          | **EFFECTIVE     |
| IVISION:** |           |                          | DATE**:         |
|            |           |                          |                 |
| Management |           |                          | April 22, 2008  |
+------------+-----------+--------------------------+-----------------+
| **         |           | **SUPPLEMENTS:**         | **INDEX:**      |
| MANAGEMENT |           |                          |                 |
| C          |           | Superintendent's         |                 |
| ATEGORY:** |           | Compendium (Orders),     |                 |
|            |           | September 18, 2007       |                 |
| Title 36,  |           |                          |                 |
| CFR,       |           |                          |                 |
| Chapter 1  |           |                          |                 |
+------------+-----------+--------------------------+-----------------+
| **TITLE    |           | **RESCINDS:**            | **REFERENCE:**  |
| SUBJECT:** |           |                          |                 |
|            |           | None                     | A5639           |
| Compendium |           |                          |                 |
| for Isle   |           |                          | xW42/W6         |
| Royale     |           |                          |                 |
| National   |           |                          |                 |
| Park       |           |                          |                 |
+------------+-----------+--------------------------+-----------------+
| **SUB-A    |           | **ATTACHMENTS:**         | **              |
| CTIVITY:** |           |                          | DISTRIBUTION:** |
|            |           | Compendium Emergency     |                 |
| None       |           | Restriction for Isle     | All Employees   |
|            |           | Royale                   |                 |
|            |           |                          | SOP Books       |
|            |           | National Park            |                 |
+------------+-----------+--------------------------+-----------------+
| **A        | /S/       |                          | April 22, 2008  |
| PPROVED:** | Phyllis   |                          |                 |
|            | A. Green  |                          |                 |
+------------+-----------+--------------------------+-----------------+
|            | **SUPERIN |                          | **DATE**        |
|            | TENDENT** |                          |                 |
+------------+-----------+--------------------------+-----------------+

![](media/image1.png){width="1.4236111111111112in"
height="1.4395833333333334in"}

COMPENDIUM

Amendment Emergency Restriction to the May 19, 1994, Compendium and May
15, 2000 Additions and Amendments to the Park Compendium

FOR

ISLE ROYALE NATIONAL PARK

April 2008

Pursuant to Title 16, United States Code (U.S.C.), Section 3, and Title
36, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Chapter 1, Parts 1-7, the
following additions and amendments to the Compendium (Superintendent's
Orders) are established for the management, protection, and public use
of Isle Royale National Park. The specific delegated authority for the
promulgation of Superintendent's Orders is found in Sections 1.5, 1.6,
and 1.7 of Title 36 CFR.

Superintendent's Orders complement or clarify general park regulations
found in Title 36 of the CFR. These Orders are established in addition
to the regulations contained in Parts 1-7 of Title 36 CFR. Provisions of
the revised Compendium become effective on Oct. 1, 2007. Until that
date, the Compendium dated May 23, 1994, and additions and amendments
dated May 15, 2000 remain in effect.

+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
| **Recommended    | /S/Jean Battle                                    |
| by:**            |                                                   |
|                  | 04/22/08                                          |
+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
|                  | **Chief Division of Natural Resources             |
|                  | Management**                                      |
+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
| **Reviewed by:** | /S/Larry A. Kangas 04/22/08                       |
+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
|                  | **Chief Ranger, Division of Law Enforcement and   |
|                  | Emergency Services**                              |
+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
| **Approved by:** | /S/ Phyllis A. Green 04/22/08                     |
+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+
|                  | **Superintendent**                                |
+------------------+---------------------------------------------------+

## This amendment is specifically pursuant to 36 CFR 1.5(a) -- Closures and Public Use Limits

(a) Consistent with applicable legislation and Federal administrative
    policies, and based upon a determination that such action is
    necessary for the maintenance of public health and safety,
    protection of environmental or scenic values, protection of natural
    or cultural resources, aid to scientific research, implementation of
    management responsibilities, equitable allocation and use of
    facilities, or the avoidance of conflict among visitor use
    activities, the Superintendent may:

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(1) Establish, for all or a portion of a park area, a reasonable
    schedule of visiting hours, impose public use limits, or close all
    or a portion of a park area to all public use or to a specific use
    or activity.

(2) Designate areas for a specific use or activity, or impose conditions
    or restrictions on a use or activity.

The following **[Emergency Restriction and conditions]{.underline}** are
added to the Superintendent's Compendium:

*1. The possession or use as bait for fishing within the Lake Superior
waters of the park is limited to:*

*a. Only those fish and or the fish parts taken from fish that are
caught within Isle* *Royale National Park waters, where the fish or fish
parts used for bait are taken* *by lawful fishing methods, OR*

> *b. Fish or fish parts obtained by the park and distributed to anglers
> as bait* *that is clear of* *viruses* *or* *diseases.*
>
> *c.* *Transporting fish or fish parts for use as bait to the park is
> prohibited. Any fish or their fish parts used for bait within the Lake
> Superior waters of the park is valid only for the duration of each
> trip.*

2.  *All boats transported to the park via the Ranger III must be
    decontaminated prior to being loaded at the Houghton dock.*
    *"Decontamination" can be accomplished by either:*

    a.  *cleaning and drying the watercraft and/or all associated gear
        and equipment so that they are dry and free of any vegetation,
        animals and mud and that the bilges, live wells and other
        compartments are also clean, dry and free of all organic
        material.* *A minimum of 5 days of drying before loading is
        required.*

    b.  *Wash your boat, including bilge and equipment with hot
        (\>104º F) and/or high pressure water, or,*

    c.  **Disinfecting** with either 200 ppm (0.5 oz per gallon or 1
        Tablespoon liquid chlorine bleach per gallon water) for
        10-minute contact time, or disinfectant compounds registered
        with the EPA that target viral pathogens, that are approved for
        public use, and are used as directed, such as Virkon Aquatic.
        1:100 solution (38 grams per gallon) of Virkon Aquatic for 20-
        to 30-minute contact time. Disinfection should occur 100 feet
        away from any waterbody; disinfectant should not be allowed to
        drain directly to waterbody or storm sewer. Note: Virkon is not
        registered to kill zebra mussel veligers nor invertebrates like
        spiny water flea. Therefore this disinfectant should be used in
        conjunction with a hot water (\>104º F) application.

**Effective Date of the 2008 Compendium Emergency Closure**

The 2008 Superintendent\'s Compendium Emergency Restriction for Isle
Royale National Park will become effective on April 22, 2008, and remain
in effect until superseded.

**Availability of the Compendium**

Copies of the Compendium are available at park Headquarters, Isle Royale
National Park, 800 East Lakeshore Drive, Houghton, MI 49931. Copies may
also be obtained from the Rock Harbor or Windigo Visitor Centers on the
main island of Isle Royale during the operating season.

**Reason for the Emergency Restriction**

The purpose of this emergency restriction is to avoid severe damage to
park resources and catastrophic loss of recreational opportunities that
would occur from the introduction and spread of Viral Hemorrhagic
Septicemia (VHS) into Isle Royale National Park via the use of infected
bait fish or parts of infected fish by recreational anglers, either
directly via bait fishing, or through transport via water, mud, etc on
recreational boats transported to the park via the Ranger III.

**Background**

The VHS virus, an exotic fish pathogen, was diagnosed for the first time
ever in the Great Lakes in 2005 though it is now known to have been
present since 2003 through diagnosis of archived fish samples. It has
been responsible for causing extensive fish kills in Lake Huron, Lake
St. Clair, Lake Erie, Lake Ontario, the St. Lawrence and Detroit Rivers,
and inland lakes in Wisconsin, lower Michigan, New York, and Ontario, in
2005 and 2006. The virus is classified as Type I -- IV with unique
strains or isolates occurring within each type. The virus found in the
Great Lakes is classified as Type IV-b and appears to have mutated from
the marine isolate known previously from the Atlantic coast of North
America. In addition to the North American Atlantic Coast and Great
Lakes isolate, other isolates occur on the North American Pacific Coast
and in Europe and Asia. European isolates have caused massive
mortalities in rainbow trout production facilities and in wild
populations of brown trout. Several other species have also been
affected in Europe. VHS is not known to have been transported into the
Lake Superior Basin yet.

VHS has the potential to be more devastating environmentally and
ecologically than the sea lamprey, which caused the extirpation of lake
trout in all Great Lakes except Lake Superior and a few locations in
Lake Huron. The damage from sea lamprey has cost hundreds of millions of
dollars in losses to fisheries throughout the Great Lakes. The Great
Lakes Fishery Commission and sea lamprey control offices invest
approximately \$18 million annually to control populations of this
species. Other invasive species such as zebra and quagga mussels have
been responsible for massive ecological change in the basin and damage
to community infrastructure such as clogging water intake pipes, water
filtration and electric plants. The associated control costs from this
damage have been estimated at \$100 million per year by New York Sea
Grant (Pimentel et al 2000). Estimated costs to control all aquatic
non-indigenous species in the United States are approximately \$2.5
billion per year (Pimentel et al 2000).

Most significant about this virus's invasion of the Great Lakes is that
it has impacted species of fish across several taxonomic families,
including some that were not known to be affected by other variants of
the virus. Because newly impacted species continue to be found, it is
still not known how many families of fish could ultimately be affected.
However, the VHS virus is known to affect nearly fifty species of fish
including trout and other salmonids and it has been suspected of causing
outbreaks in lake trout. The Great Lakes variant has caused die offs in
at least 12 species of fish in the Great Lakes including commercially
and recreationally important species such as northern pike, walleye,
smallmouth bass, and yellow perch. Other species that have been affected
by the virus include freshwater drum, white bass, black crappie,
muskellunge and bluegill (USDA 2006). Species that are known to be
carriers of the virus in the Great Lakes include Chinook salmon, rock
bass, silver and shorthead redhorse, northern pike, burbot, spottail
shiners and emerald shiners (Wisconsin Sea Grant fact sheet). Species
such as lake trout and brook trout have been shown to be experimentally
susceptible to VHS, (Skall et al 2005) and whitefish (Coregonus sp.) in
Europe have been infected and show signs of infection such as
septicaemic hemorrhages (Meier et al 1986). Preliminary investigations
of the Great Lakes variety of VHS show that it does cause moderate
mortality in salmonids, including lake trout, Chinook salmon and
steelhead (rainbow trout) (USDA 2006).

This is the first time that a virus has affected so many different fish
species from so many fish families in the Great Lakes, and because
European variants impact many species of salmonids (the family which
includes trout, salmon, whitefish and char), the potential for the Great
Lakes strain to have impacts on lake trout and several other species is
very high.

The VHS virus is readily transmissible to fish of all ages, and
survivors of infection can become lifelong carriers that shed virus with
urine and sex products. Fish of any age are susceptible to infection,
and epizootic losses occur at temperatures of 3° to 12°C (37-54 °F)
(mortality is greatest at 3° to 5°C (37-41°F). The optimum temperature
for virus replication is 14-15°C; virus yield is reduced at 6°C, and
little replication occurs above 20°C. ([Fish Disease Leaflet 83, USGS
Leetown Science Center]{.underline}) Because the virus replicates and is
particularly virulent at cooler temperatures, Lake Superior could
provide an ideal environment for large scale replication and many
species found in the lake could be susceptible.

Because of the susceptibility of lake trout, the documented infections
of whitefish and the cooler water temperatures of Lake Superior,
potential impacts to Lake Superior species, and in particular Isle
Royale populations, could be catastrophic.

Isle Royale is a unique refuge for Lake Trout with approximately 12
morphological variants across 3 genetically distinct phenotypes found
around the island. Lake trout is the most common sport fish sought at
Isle Royale, and a limited assessment fishery using commercial fishing
techniques is still supported by populations at and around the island.
Nearly 10,000 lake trout were harvested by sport anglers at Isle Royale
during a survey conducted in 1998. Lake Superior is the only Great Lake
where lake trout populations are considered to be rehabilitated
following population crashes in the mid 20^th^ century due to sea
lamprey invasions. Isle Royale is considered as one of only a few
locations where lake trout stocks still maintain a high level of their
original genetic composition. Any loss of stocks from the island would
be a loss of genetic material and valuable information that would
compromise ongoing efforts to restore lake trout populations in the
other Great Lakes.

The potential impact to lake trout and the need for additional
protection from potential disease transmission via the use of fish and
fish parts for recreational bait fishing could be catastrophic for Isle
Royale populations. Isle Royale has an extensive network of reefs across
its waters, and lake trout utilize these to congregate for spawning and
feeding. Lake trout begin spawning in late August, and spawning
continues into October and November. Congregating for feeding or because
of other stimuli has also been observed in other seasons, but it is not
as well understood at the island. When lake trout spawn at Isle Royale,
fish move from a more dispersed state into dense congregations at
spawning reefs around the island. Infection of one or a few fish that
move into spawning congregations could potentially spread the virus to
an entire stock of fish in a short amount of time. After spawning, fish
tend to re-disperse around the island and will often mix with fish of
other stocks. This re-dispersal could quickly spread the virus to all
stocks around the island.

Introduction and spread of VHS also would cause catastrophic loss of
recreational fishing opportunities at Isle Royale National Park by
decimating other important recreation and commercial fish stocks. In
addition to lake trout, species such as coaster brook trout, lake
whitefish, round whitefish (menominee), cisco (lake herring) including
the rare shortjaw cisco and other coregonids could be impacted. These
are all either commercially or recreationally important species
throughout Lake Superior. In addition to their commercial importance,
the coregonids are a primary and important food base for lake trout,
brook trout and other predator species and loss of these species would
affect not only Isle Royale but the entire Lake Superior food web.

The coaster brook trout populations from Isle Royale are two of only a
few populations in the Great Lakes that are considered to be
self-sustaining. Fish from these populations have been used to create
brood stocks to aid in restoration efforts in other parts of the lake.
Additionally, coaster brook trout were recently petitioned for listing
under the Federal Endangered Species Act. Because it provides a
federally-owned haven for the survival of the species, Isle Royale would
likely be designated as Critical Habitat for species protection and
recovery by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service should coaster brook
trout be federally-listed as threatened or endangered. Catch and release
only restrictions have already been enacted at all of Isle Royale to
protect this species. Any impact to the Isle Royale populations could
severely compromise the long term sustainability of these populations
and lakewide restoration efforts.

**Current Protective Measures**

The use of fish, fish parts, or roe (fish eggs) for recreational bait
fishing is a means by which the disease can be transmitted to new
populations of fish. Michigan, Wisconsin, and Ontario have all
established regulations to reduce the risk of VHS transmission via bait
(New York has voluntary rules.) The USDA Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service has placed restrictions on movement of fish
(including bait species) throughout the Great Lakes States.

The State of Michigan has enacted new regulations for sale, collection,
and use of bait fish in its waters due to the presence of VHS in some
waters and the threat of its occurrence in currently uncontaminated
waters. The State of Michigan's Department of Natural Resources (MDNR)
regulates sport and commercial fishing within Isle Royale's Lake
Superior waters. The MDNR has divided its waters into 3 Management
Areas: VHS-Positive; VHS Surveillance; or VHS-Free. It uses these zones,
plus the Prohibited Species list (a list of species which have been
shown to be susceptible to VHS) as the foundation for its new
regulations. For prohibited species, the new regulations require that
bait dealers either certify that their bait is virus-free, or provide a
receipt to buyers indicating in which Management Area(s) the bait can be
used. Receipts must be kept by anglers and presented upon request during
the fishing trip and are valid for 7 days. Uncertified bait cannot be
used in a Management Area that is less contaminated than that in which
it was collected or reared. The same restrictions apply for personal
collection of wild bait which is on the Prohibited Species List. For
those species not on the list, there are no VHS restrictions.

"Clean boat" initiatives have been established by state resource
agencies in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota, in an effort to reduce
the spread of aquatic invasive species (AIS), including VHS. Inadvertent
transport via mud, weeds, and water on recreational boats moving among
waterbodies has been suspected in several instances of new outbreaks of
exotic species. Boats transported on the Ranger III also have the
potential to carry AIS to the park.

The park has already enacted emergency regulations to protect its waters
from the potential release of VHS via commercial vessel ballast water.
Ballast water, the use of bait fish, and recreational boats containing
water or sediments from contaminated waters are all considered
potentially high risk vectors in the NPS and Grand Portage Band of Lake
Superior Chippewa's 2008 Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia Prevention and
Response Plan (Plan).

**Why Current Restrictive Measures Will Not Suffice**

1\. The MDNR's 2008 bait fish regulations will not provide adequate
protection from the potential spread of VHS for the following reasons:

-   The regulations rely on accurate species identification of fish
    parts and roe.

-   There is no effective way to prevent anglers from combining bait
    from different sources after purchase or detect when it has
    occurred.

-   Management Area boundaries include natural barriers to fish passage
    on specific tributaries that may not be readily known by anglers or
    bait dealers trying to define which areas they collected bait fish
    and which management area(s) those fish can be used.

-   There is no effective way to enforce wild bait collection
    restriction except in those cases where a given bait species is
    known not to occur within a specific Management Area (minority of
    cases.)

-   The State of Michigan's Management Areas do not extend to other
    Great Lake states or Canada, and bait use is being regulated
    differently in different jurisdictions.

-   In addition to the above, an Isle Royale limitation is that many
    anglers come directly to Isle Royale from MN, WI, and Canada.
    Purchase of certified bait or bait from a Michigan-licensed dealer
    is not possible/feasible. Also, some angler trips are longer than 7
    days, making their bait supply unusable and no ready source for
    buying new bait.

-   The potential VHS-positive water sources for bait fish and fish
    parts increase because Isle Royale's visitor base is from several
    states and Canada.

2\. Staff knowledge indicates that a minimum of 20% of Lake Superior
anglers at Isle Royale may use real fish bait. In addition, preliminary
results of an informal poll in 2008 by the Isle Royale Boaters
Association of its members show that as many as 43% of its members may
use real bait for a portion of their Isle Royale fishing trips. A 1998
survey of Lake Superior boat anglers at Isle Royale determined that
19,340 hours (+/- 5,356) of fishing effort by non-charter boat anglers
occurred from June through August (Lockwood et al, 2001.) Fishing at
Isle Royale is a primary attraction for visitors; many come to Isle
Royale primarily to fish for lake trout.

3\. The potential impacts of a VHS outbreak could be catastrophic for
Isle Royale's genetically distinct nearshore populations of coaster
brook trout and its populations of genetically diverse lake trout. The
park's vulnerability may be increased because lake trout congregate to
spawn at reefs within park waters, thereby creating an atmosphere where
the disease could be rapidly transmitted to many fish that will then
disperse (as well as to eggs during fertilization.) See Background
section above for details.

4\. The State of Michigan's current VHS regulations require that boaters
drain all water from live wells and bilges upon leaving any body of
water. While this addresses standing water in boats, it does not address
the potential for sediments, fish remains, etc that may still be in a
boat between fishing trips. VHS transported via sediments on
recreational boats (anchors, etc) is identified as a moderate vector
risk in the Plan. Therefore, the park is requiring that recreational
boats are decontaminated prior to loading onto the Ranger III.
Decontamination options are hot water wash, extended drying on land, or
the use of disinfectant. Disinfectants that are effective against VHS
currently include a chlorine solution, 200 ppm (0.5 oz per gallon or 1
Tablespoon per gallon) Chlorine for 10-minute contact time; or Virkon
Aquatic, 1:100 solution (38 grams per gallon) for 20- to 30-minute
contact time. Any compound that has been registered with EPA, is
approved for use by the public to kill VHS on boats, and is used
according to Material Safety Data Sheet requirements will be acceptable.
All disinfection activities using chemicals or hot-water washes should
be conducted where the runoff cannot enter surface water. No washing,
rinsing or disinfection will be allowed at the park headquarters.

5\. Restrictive, park-specific measures to prevent the introduction of
VHS by human-associated vectors may prove effective because the park is
isolated from non-park user groups that do not fall under NPS
jurisdiction. The park shares no adjacent shorelines and is not located
near heavily-used state or provincial sites. Therefore, the most likely
transmission sources to the park are those that specifically travel to
or through the park, and therefore can be effectively regulated to
reduce risk of VHS contamination.

6\. The park is considering the option to provide a frozen bait supply
for anglers. If feasible, the park could obtain Lake Superior
basin-caught bait from species not on the Prohibited List and would
complete the certification process for it (as an extra measure of
protection; this is not required for non-Prohibited List species), and
would give limited amounts to anglers to use as starter bait as a way to
reduce the need to bring in bait from outside the park. This provides an
extra measure of protection while providing for the additional
inconvenience due to the new regulations.