An overview of concerns: Around Chicago outdoors

I usually dole out tickets to the Tinley Park Fishing and Outdoor Show based on outdoors trivia. This year I dispensed tickets from Rich Komar for the show on Feb. 11-12 by asking readers for “their greatest concern on something impacting them in the outdoors.’’

The responses fit the troubling times in conservation and the outdoors, locally to statewide to nationally.

Larry McGee emailed, “The concern I’d like to bring to your attention is the State’s decision to reduce many of the staff members who oversee and maintain our public fishing and wildlife parks. These parks have been long understaffed and these cuts will further compromise these wonderful places that I, and others, have enjoyed for many years.’’

Jerry Malinowski put that common concern succinctly, “My concern with the IDNR is the lack of funding.’’

On a related matter, Bob and Sandy Pettike emailed that one of their concerns is “that they use the money we pay for our fishing license be used for all things fishing, stocking the forest preserves etc.’’

Access was almost as common a response.

Ed Camplia’s concern was “the way Illinois has cut the people out of access to our lakefront, unlike our neighbors in Indiana who passed legislation to keep it open.’’

Kirby Bullard localized the concern, “I live and die by fishing at Mazonia. The times when its closed is the longest days of my life. Now they delayed the opening of the ice fishing season til the middle of February. . . . This state sorely under funds its outdoor facilities and I could see them closing sites like Mazonia due to a lack of funds. If the funds designated for the outdoors were actually used for the outdoors this would not be a problem.’’

Ron Floersch went big picture, “I guess I would have to say global warming. It affects so many aspects of the outdoors not the least of which is the bleaching of coral reefs in the ocean which has negative effects on the fish and crustaceans inhabiting them as well as the rising water temps killing off fish and eliminating their food sources (plankton, etc.)’’

On Lake Michigan, Andy Mikos noted, “I am very concerned that Wisconsin DNR has cut the brown trout stocking by 50 [percent] which includes all `German browns’ in an effort to keep their Chinook stocking up. A lot of those browns make it into Illinois waters and will be missed. In a changing Lake Michigan environment, browns are a very opportunistic feeder and don’t affect the alewives as much. They should have cut more lakers not browns. By the way, I am glad that they did not cut kings.’’

Steven Fiorio noted, “I have been impacted with the stocking (or lack of) the king salmon at what I feel is the worst time. You see I have just recently got into fishing these monster fish and have heard great stories back in the day of king salmon everywhere. . . . I’m told it’s because of there is a shortage of alewives. . . . Why is Wisconsin continuing with the stocking of king salmon up there? . . . I just wish I could have experienced it back in the old days.’’’’

Tim Baker went local and national, “My greatest concern locally is Asian Carp but nationally it’d be how the new Trump administration will affect our nation’s natural resources.’’

We end on a different note, a bit more hopeful, from Michael Wilbur, “The biggest impact to me in the outdoors was when my father took me with him upland game hunting back in 1969 when I was a child, I just walked with him for the first few years without a firearm until I was older and trust worthy to handle a shotgun. I’ve been hunting with the same bird hunting club since.’’