A message from Retired Henry Drews ~ Behind the doors @ the MN DNR 2021

I will say I haven’t checked into this however, I know Henry Drews pretty well. I among hundreds of other fishermen will miss him at the Northwest Region Fisheries office.

My only comment at this time is like everyone in business, we need to look at cost savings. However, I was under the impression that this was taken into account several years ago with the fishing license fees being raised. Last year, we (the DNR) had the pleasure of seeing record license sales. So why the cut backs?

Here’s Henry’s story.

A Reflection on 35 Years with MN DNR Fisheries

Growing up on the east coast I would read every fishing magazine I could get my
hands on: In-Fisherman, Fishing Facts, Field and Stream just to name a few. I was
particularly drawn to those articles about the “Land of 10,000 Lakes”. My mom
was my inspiration, sharing her love of fishing with me from an early age. I wasn’t
sure where Minnesota was in relationship to other states, but it just had to be good
with all the stories about walleye, trophy muskie, northern pike and bass. Little did
I know that one day I would land in this place of endless fishing opportunities.

After graduating from Virginia Tech I headed west to pursue a graduate program in
Fisheries at South Dakota State University. Weekend trips to Minnesota confirmed
the words and stories I read as a kid. Minnesota was a special place. After some
temporary fisheries work in Oklahoma and Montana I finally landed a job with the
Minnesota DNR, arriving on the front end of a blizzard in January 1986.

For the past 23 years, I was the Regional Fisheries Manager for Northwest
Minnesota. Previous positions with the DNR included Research Biologist,
Assistant Regional Manager, and Fisheries Program Consultant for a total of 35
years of state service. I have truly enjoyed every step in this journey and have
always taken pride in serving the anglers of this great state. During my tenure in
Minnesota I have had the pleasure of working on some of the State’s greatest
conservation successes: the restoration of the walleye fisheries in the Red Lakes,
the reintroduction and management of lake sturgeon, the implementation of
progressive regulations to improve northern pike and sunfish population size
structure, and the restoration of hundreds of miles of streams and rivers through the
removal and modification of dozens of fish barriers. Other work that was going on,
through colleagues and partners included restoring native lake trout in Lake
Superior and developing an absolutely incredible brown trout fishery in SE
Minnesota.

Minnesota’s lake and stream survey program, including the Large Lake
Assessment Program, is the envy of every state in the country. Our large walleye
lakes (e.g. Lake of the Woods, Leech, Upper Red and Cass) continue to offer some
of the best walleye fishing in the country despite heavy angling pressure. We have
implemented a citizen-participation process (aka Fisheries Input Groups) on many
of our large lakes. These processes enabled us to implement an adaptive ​
management program that is more responsive to population trends and angler
concerns. In recent years we evaluated walleye fry and fingerling stocking
practices and adjusted stocking plans to use these fish in lakes where they have the
greatest potential of putting fish on the end of the line.

In addition to great walleye fishing Minnesota arguably boasts the best muskie
fishing in the country. More and more anglers are also recognizing the amazing
largemouth and smallmouth bass fishing we have to offer. New efforts to address
northern pike and sunfish size structure using innovative regulations approaches
show much promise for expanding quality angling opportunities for these species
as well. In addition these marquis species fisheries management efforts have also
been directed at protecting and expanding trophy fishing opportunities for channel
catfish, flathead catfish, and lake sturgeon. I can say without hesitation that sport
fishing in Minnesota is alive and well!

Of course there are areas of concern looking forward. These include aquatic
invasive species and climate change. Together invasive species and the warming of
our lakes brought on by climate change will have profound effects on many of our
waters. General trends will include clearer water, more plant growth, expanding
bass and sunfish populations and declines in coldwater species like lake whitefish,
cisco (tullibee) and burbot (eelpout). There are no easy solutions to these
problems. We as fisheries professionals will have to adapt management programs
and anglers will have to adjust how they fish and perhaps, what they fish for.
Healthy watersheds, protection of native fish communities and their habitats, and
science based fisheries management are key in adapting to these changes.

Fisheries is a field-based operation. Quite simply, that’s where the work gets done.
It’s vitally important that St. Paul leadership recognizes this and continues to
support our Area and Regional offices. Minnesota hunters and anglers want and
expect the DNR to hire the very best personnel and provide field offices with the
resources they need to get the work done. Recent and planned closures/mergers of
wildlife offices in Bemidji, International Falls, Glenwood, Crookston and Baudette
in the absence of public engagement or disclosure is a particularly troubling trend.
Division of Fish and Wildlife leadership is also considering merging fisheries and
wildlife manager positions in the regions and the central office (Habitat, Research
and Operations). These “ideas” as they have been referred to, will result in
diminished services to hunters and anglers, and blur the lines of management and
funding accountability. Particularly troubling is the absence of staff and constituent
participation in these discussions. I encourage conservation organizations to get
involved.

In closing, I would like to acknowledge all of the great organizations I have had the
privilege of working with over the years; MN Bass Nation, MN Bass Federation,
Muskies Inc, MN Muskie Alliance, Northern Waters Land Trust, Trust for Public
Land, Minnesota Conservation Federation, The Nature Conservancy, Trout
Unlimited and many others. Active conservation organizations like these, along
with lake associations and sportsman’s clubs, play a vital role in the delivery of
land and water conservation. And lastly, thank you to Outdoor News for keeping
hunters and anglers informed about issues of critical importance! Keep up the
great work!

Best regards,

Henry G. Drewes
Northwest Region Fisheries Manager – Retired

Just a little more of how you can help if you chose to do so.

Fisheries Conservation Leaders

Re: Concerns about Division of Fish and Wildlife Reorganization

First off, I would like to wish you all the very best and thank you for all of the time you have given as a member of a conservation organization, a member of a DNR citizen advisory committee, budget oversight committee or as an active participant in the MN DNR Round Table. This week I retired from the MN DNR after 35 years. I can truly say it has been an honor and a privilege to have worked for the State of Minnesota and its nearly 1.4 million anglers. I have had the opportunity to meet most of you at DNR Round Tables or other venues at some point over the over the past 35 years. I leave feeling pretty good about the state of our fisheries resources.

I have a great deal of pride for having worked for the Section of Fisheries for the past 35 years and am very proud of the relationships that we have built with each of you. It is for this reason that I feel compelled to share with you some concerns about the future direction of the Division of Fish and Wildlife. Attached please find a commentary that I recently penned for Outdoor News. In the latter part of the article I reference some “ideas” that are being considered by Division leadership that include merging Fisheries and Wildlife managerial positions in the regions and in the central office. The following positions have been discussed as possible mergers:

Regional Fisheries Manager + Regional Wildlife Manager
Fisheries Habitat Manager + Wildlife Habitat Manager
Fisheries Research Unit Supervisor + Wildlife Research Unit Supervisor
Fisheries Operations Manager + Wildlife Operations Manager
Fisheries Chief + Wildlife Chief

The purpose for these mergers has not been clearly defined and there has been little staff participation. I along with a number of other senior managers have expressed our concerns (see attached memorandum regarding the proposed merger of regional manager positions) but the train keeps rolling down the track. Equally troubling, there has been zero communication or discussion with our constituent groups. Very clearly, these “ideas” as they have been referred to, will result in diminished services to hunters and anglers, and blur the lines of management and funding accountability. There is a reason all of the states around us have sustained organizational structures that retain a bifurcated structure from the field level up to the Section Chief level – efficiency and accountability.

Our Division Director, Dave Olfelt, has recently indicated that decisions will be made by this October regarding potential organizational changes. If you have perspectives regarding these potential changes I encourage you to contact Dave ([email protected]) or DNR Commissioner Sarah Strommen ([email protected]).

Best regards,
Henry G. Drewes
Northwest Region Fisheries Manager – Retired

Congrats to Mr Drewes and enjoy retirement!

A response from Dave Olfelt Director | Division of Fish and Wildlife

“Dear conservation partners-

About a week ago you each received an email expressing concerns about work we are doing in the DNR Division of Fish and Wildlife to take a look at how our organization is structured. I’d like to offer some of the perspectives I am bringing to this important effort. I welcome your thoughts as well.

I think it is the responsibility of every organization to periodically take a look at itself and to ask questions about how it’s delivering on its mission. Our mission is to serve Minnesotans by protecting and managing habitat, ensuring healthy populations of fish and wildlife, and providing outstanding hunting, fishing, and other nature-based recreational opportunities. This look at our organization is intended to ensure we continue to deliver on that mission in an efficient, effective way.

The Division of Fish and Wildlife is a strong organization with a proud history and a long list of accomplishments made in partnership with people like you. Examining our structure is not an indictment or dismissal of that history or the way things are done now. Rather it is a chance for us to make sure we are doing our best and are poised to meet present and emerging challenges—challenges like changing climate, CWD, invasive species, degraded habitats and changes in outdoor participation—just to name a few.

We started this work well over a year ago but put it on pause because of the demands of the pandemic response. We are just now picking it back up and intend to have recommendations for potential changes by late fall or early winter. We will be looking at the whole organization, but there are no predetermined outcomes and I am not interested in change for the sake of change.

I welcome hearing from you. We will be providing opportunities for engagement, discussion and information sharing in the coming weeks and months and I hope you will take advantage of them as they arise.

Thanks for all you do for conservation,
Dave

P.S. For a little additional perspective I’ve attached an email I sent to a number of conservation organizations earlier this week.

Dave Olfelt

Director | Division of Fish and Wildlife
Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
500 Lafayette Road
St. Paul, MN 55155-4020
Phone: 651-259-5180
Cell: 612-358-3688
Email: [email protected]”

And the attachment he mentions.

“Dear partners in conservation,
I want to make you aware of some important work the Division of Fish and Wildlife is doing to
look at our organization’s structure. This effort is intended to ensure we continue to deliver the
conservation services Minnesotans expect and deserve. We initiated this critically important
work over a year ago, but it has been on hold during the pandemic.
It’s fair to ask “why do this work, and why do it now?” In a nutshell, we need to look at how we
are organized so that we:
 can adapt to a rapidly changing natural and social environment;
 find opportunities to work in a more holistic, less silo-ed way;
 find efficiencies and eliminate redundancies;
 are more flexible and responsive to changes in funding.
We need to do this work now:
 because we have large number of vacancies and have the opportunity to improve our
structure while minimizing impacts to current employees ;
 because DNR’s approach to returning to the workplace is causing us to think differently
about how we work and where we work;
 because of the undeniable changes in demographics and license sales that affect our
funding.
I’ve asked the team working on this project to provide recommendations to me by late fall or
early winter. The recommendations won’t be a comprehensive roadmap, rather they will
provide some alternate directions that, once one is selected, allow us to get moving. We will
provide opportunities for engagement, discussion, and information sharing with you over the
next weeks and months to help us develop the recommendations.
While I don’t know the specific outcomes of this process, the intentions are to make the division
a stronger, healthier, more adaptable organization. We are a strong, accomplished organization
with an important mission. We are embarking on this path to set us up for continued success in
all we do for Minnesotans.
I’m privileged to work alongside you,
Dave ​
Dear partners in conservation,
I want to make you aware of some important work the Division of Fish and Wildlife is doing to
look at our organization’s structure. This effort is intended to ensure we continue to deliver the
conservation services Minnesotans expect and deserve. We initiated this critically important
work over a year ago, but it has been on hold during the pandemic.
It’s fair to ask “why do this work, and why do it now?” In a nutshell, we need to look at how we
are organized so that we:
 can adapt to a rapidly changing natural and social environment;
 find opportunities to work in a more holistic, less silo-ed way;
 find efficiencies and eliminate redundancies;
 are more flexible and responsive to changes in funding.
We need to do this work now:
 because we have large number of vacancies and have the opportunity to improve our
structure while minimizing impacts to current employees ;
 because DNR’s approach to returning to the workplace is causing us to think differently
about how we work and where we work;
 because of the undeniable changes in demographics and license sales that affect our
funding.
I’ve asked the team working on this project to provide recommendations to me by late fall or
early winter. The recommendations won’t be a comprehensive roadmap, rather they will
provide some alternate directions that, once one is selected, allow us to get moving. We will
provide opportunities for engagement, discussion, and information sharing with you over the
next weeks and months to help us develop the recommendations.
While I don’t know the specific outcomes of this process, the intentions are to make the division
a stronger, healthier, more adaptable organization. We are a strong, accomplished organization
with an important mission. We are embarking on this path to set us up for continued success in
all we do for Minnesotans.
I’m privileged to work alongside you,
Dave”

My comments are mine solely and are being sent to the Director for clarification.

There’s a large number of vacancies. That means the DNR is coming in at the end of the year, under budget.

A few years ago we had a license increase. One of the selling points was the funds were needed because with the present services of the time, the DNR would be over budget at the end of the year.

With last years spike (scratch that, JUMP) in license sales, one would think funding, would not be involved in this conversation?

I just saw this now. Thanks for sharing, Brian.

I would like to get involved more and give back, as our natural resources have provided a large majority of the best moments and memories of my life.

I went to Vermilion Community College and studied fisheries/wildlife MGMT but quit too soon. I wish I would have stuck it out. But I do know there are still plenty of ways to give back.

Thanks again. Keep this type of content comings!

Good Deal Lab!

In looking at the whole picture, I’m concerned there aren’t many new (younger) people getting involved with our DNR.

The old guard is literally dying off and we need fresh, new, and younger folks taking their places. Working with the DNR is frustrating, yet very rewarding. Everyone I’ve met that has a MN DNR patch on their arm has been focused on one thing, making MN a better place to fish (and I assume to hunt). They’ve been honest and up front. Even if they don’t agree with me, I would still call them a friend at the end of the day. I’m sure there are days they wonder about me though.

I became involved with the DNR sometime around 15 years ago. My daughter was complaining that the speed limits should be raised and after a few days of listening to her complain, told her instead of complaining about it to us, get off your butt and talk to the people that can make a change. She left without a smile on her face.
About a week later Dirk W was telling me about a verbal warning he received for having a few bullheads 1/4″ over the 7″ law when he was reported for taking over 100 bullheads (which is the state limit unless they are 7″ or less, then they are considered minnows and each licensed angler can have, at the time 12 doz or 144)

So I was telling the FW this story when my daughter walked in. After listening for a very short time, she interrupted and told me with all the snot she could muster… “Instead of sitting here complaining, get off your butt and talk to someone that can do something about it!”

About a month later, Dirk and I were sitting at the St Paul DNR office talking the the heads of all the fishing departments.

About 6 years later the law was changed to allow the 144 bh plus upto 100 bh’s between 7″ – 10″ per licensed anger to be used and transported as bait (not North of Hwy 210).

Because of that meeting, the DNR Catfish Work Group was formed. That group was responsible for
*Bullheads over 7″ being allowed.
*Allowing a sucker to be caught and then cut up for bait.
*The closed winter Flathead Season (to stop harvest when they are the most vulnerable whether by snagging or spearing)
*Allowing cast nets to be used to harvest gizzard shad.
*Limit laws changed to include a “one over” to limit the number of trophies taken, yet allowing a trophy to be taken.

Becoming active and talking with the DNR pays off. A person just needs to put in the time. BTW the excuse of “not having enough time” is BS. In the past I put in 40 hours a week and guided at least 2 nights on the weekend.
Darren Troseth was putting in 40+ hours per week, obtained his USCG Captains license 3 Rivers Guide ServicePLUS fishing, guiding, and running contests most evenings.

If it’s important enough, the time is found.
Ok /rant over but I’ll say it again… Today I’m more concerned with people not wanting to get involved then I ever have.

Thanks again Lab! Telling someone your going fishing is the first step in pulling away from the dock.

BK can you spell out how you were able to become more involved, and actually get a seat at the table? I’ve applied for numerous committee’s, emailed the Commissioner and other DNR bureaucrats (meaning the ones in St. Paul, not the field, the field employees are almost unanimously great) and have gotten no where. I attempted to get a seat at the old boys MN Fish table to try and have some say from a large public group, but again got no where. At this point the bureaucracy seems insurmountable, and even if able to have some input very little chance of anything productive going anywhere. I’ve seen some of the things you and Darren have done and tried to do, and seems as if it takes years and years of effort for the smallest of incremental change.

At this point the bureaucracy seems insurmountable, and even if able to have some input very little chance of anything productive going anywhere.

I have felt your pain!

Start at your regional headquarters and talk directly to the region chief. Tell him/her what you want to be a part of and why. Then tell him you’ll be going to the St. Paul Office and ask the region chief who you should talk to in St Paul. Then make an appointment with them. Sometimes a person has to be a pita to move things along and even then it’s not fast.

Here’s a bunny trail that will give you a flavor.

I spoke with CF1. Waited a year because of covid, emailed CF1 and didn’t get a response. (I will say I wasn’t high on his priority list and understandably so). Sent an email to Commissioner Sarah. No response. Turns out I used a form email that was lost. The Commissioner reached out to me and asked me to use another email address if I needed anything from her. Turns out CF1 still didn’t contact me. Once CF1 was invited the the on line meeting with the Commissioner, CF1 called. Darrin, I, CF1, CF2, DC1, and CR-1 all had a zoom call. Next week Darrin and I will be talking to the Gov’s policy chief to ensure all the wheels know what’s coming.

Now this was a worse case scenario. Again, the conversation started at the regional level and moved up from there.

Taking a long time for changes? Well, that could be changed too. But I, along with others really don’t feel that’s best in most cases just to be safe. Can you imagine what would’ve happened if the DNR started changing laws when they started using eDNA? Just to find out that bird poop can contain the dna of Asian Carp? Remember the half baked AIS trailer sticker. The stickers were printed but the law didn’t go into effect. (I think that was spawned out of the legislature though)

I will say it took too long for the length law to pass. The sucker law was pretty much the wordsmiths oversight and was relatively easy. The cast net law was tested extensively by the DNR with hours and hours of work with retired Steve DeMars. Even after all of the testing, it was set to sunset in two years in case it was harmful to MN’s game fish. It wasn’t and as long as we follow the rules, I don’t ever see it going away.

Hard, pointed questions face to face with a DNR manager has always been welcomed in my experience.

Best I can say is don’t give up. They are looking for the best and people with the most passion that will be around for a few years.

I haven’t noticed the Minnesota DNR doing much for largemouth and smallmouth bass fishing. Can’t complain about what’s been done for walleye other than what’s happened with Mille Lacs. As for bass a lot of states drop artificial structure or cribs which improves bass fishing. A share lunker program like Texas has for keeping big fish genetics in the gene pool and increasing the size of bass would be nice too. Just some suggestions.