Michigan Trout Unlimited
MICHIGAN Trout
A Collaborative Method is the Best Method: Let Me Tell You Why
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by Kristin Thomas, Michigan TU Aquatic Ecologist
Spring 2021
I’ve written a couple of articles about the collaborative partnership which Michigan TU facilitates on the Upper Manistee River: an introduction to the method and an introduction to the first in-stream restoration project we have planned. Now I’d like to lay out my case for collaboration, convince you that this process leads to the selection of the best projects and that, in the end, it is the easiest method. That’s right, easiest overall; some hard work up-front helps lay the path for smooth sailing later. To layout my case, I need to start at the beginning and take you through the whole process. The Upper Manistee Collaborative Partnership was created to bring together Upper Manistee River stakeholders to improve fish habitat. A simple goal, not such a simple process – review data, identify opportunities to improve habitat, identify data gaps, identify priorities among partners, and develop plans to address high priority projects. The process began with a rough implementation plan, which laid out the steps we would take to identify the projects most needed to improve and preserve fish habitat in the Upper Manistee River. This plan was provided to all 19+ partners for review and comment. When all were relatively happy with a plan, we moved on to phase 1—identifying and summarizing existing Upper Manistee data. Data were identified and reviewed and then summarized into a report, “The Upper Manistee River Watershed: A summary of existing data.” In addition, all of the data points were put on an interactive map to allow stakeholders to visualize where and what type of data was available. The map can be viewed at https://arcg.is/18TO4L. We asked collaborative partners to review the data summary report to determine their organization’s priorities in the watershed. We then had a meeting of the minds to determine the direction of the collaborative group. How do you find some
consensus among over 19 partners, all with varying priorities and missions? I won’t claim to be a magician or an expert here, but I will tell you what has worked for us so far. Giving everyone a seat at the table. After a presentation and summary of the information, we gave each group a chance to voice their priorities. We wrote down those priorities and looked for commonality. In this case, one project stood out as a priority for most partners – the lack of habitat diversity between Yellow Trees Landing and CCC Bridge. As a group, we decided to focus in-stream work on the highest priority project to the highest number of partners while also collecting data to help solidify additional priorities. Our focus on the Yellow Trees to CCC Bridge area would first collect missing data to identify the problem better, and thus potential solutions, followed by project design and fundraising. Interns spent a summer collecting data in the target area. They surveyed the river’s shape, the amount and quality of woody habitat, the bottom substrate composition (sand, gravel, boulder), temperature, aquatic vegetation, and deep water. Data was collected from wide shallow areas with
