This massive destruction wiped out the habitat of countless waterbirds, nesting song birds, otter, mink, and a host of other life which depend on the environment created by beaver. With very little effort the DNR could have contacted the fisheries department in the Smoky Mountain National Park where a similar situation developed. When introduced steelheads were found to be destroying native brook trout, electro-fishing was employed to rid the streams of steelhead. This includes whitefish, perch, bass, herring and trout. These are what the locals want on the table.
Governments are very defensive of non-native species like salmon.
Marilyn Burton, Sault Ste. This has left the integrity of the forest ecosystem and the species that rely on them in jeopardy. Plans are now going forward that will significantly increase logging pressures on the Great Lakes ecosystem. The upper Midwest has been targeted by the forest products industry for a spate of deforestation. During the 1980s, because the removal of trees in Minnesota had gone from about 1.5 million cords to about 4 million cords per year, alarmed citizens asked the state of Minnesota to do an impact statement . . .