Managing Lake Simcoe Fisheries

The fisheries of Lake Simcoe are managed by MNR's Aurora and Midhurst District Offices. Managers from both District Offices receive advice from two important committees in order to manage, conserve and enhance this valuable natural resource.

The Lake Simcoe Fisheries Management Committee is an inter-governmental committee led by MNR. The committee is made up of fisheries and water quality experts, as well as those with research, monitoring and policy expertise from MNR and the Ministry of Environment. The primary mandate of the Committee is to provide science, policy and operational advice to managers to help ensure the long term sustainability of the fisheries resources of Lake Simcoe.

The Lake Simcoe Fisheries Stakeholder Committee (LSFSC) is an external committee of stakeholder representatives.  These range from individual ice hut operators to local environmental organizations. The LSFSC provides input into management decisions by providing advice to managers on the social, cultural, environmental and economic values of the fishery resources of Lake Simcoe, Lake Couchiching and their watersheds.

The LSFSC has been very active in involving anglers and the general public. It has initiated, in collaboration with MNR, an angler diary program to engage anglers and obtain information about angler success and fish community changes. It has also educated anglers on the identifying features of lake herring (cisco) and lake whitefish (PDF, 300 kb) given that there is no open season for lake herring (cisco) in this SDW.