What was supposed to be a fresh beginning to the challenges surrounding the Lake Mille Lacs walleye fishery has degraded into feuding over the same old issues of American Indian treaty rights and mistrust toward state and tribal biologists.

The tensions were thrust to the fore this week with the resignation of the only American Indian tribal member from a state advisory panel, saying it had “devolved into an anti-science, anti-treaty rights forum subsidized by the state.”

The words are those of Jamie Edwards, director of government affairs for the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe, in his Sept. 23 resignation letter from the Mille Lacs Fisheries Advisory Committee, which was formed a year ago by the Department of Natural Resources at the behest of Gov. Mark Dayton.

Dayton wanted the panel, which replaced a previous advisory group, to provide an open forum where biologists and state stakeholders, tribes with treaty rights to the lake and leaders from the area’s fishing-based tourist economy could chart a path forward while grappling with the central Minnesota lake’s legendary walleye population, which has been in long-term decline.

According to Edwards, the majority of panel members were primarily interested in an agenda that seeks to blame tribal netting for depleting the walleye population.

Read Edwards’ resignation letter

Scientists from Minnesota, the tribes and a blue-ribbon panel of North American walleye experts have concluded that tribal netting, which is allowed under court-upheld treaty law, is not the cause of the walleye’s decline. Rather, a combination of factors relating to improved water quality and clarity are the most likely drivers of the phenomenon, which scientists admit they don’t fully understand.

Nonetheless, the practice of tribal netting during the spring walleye spawning period remains the flashpoint for nontribal members, many of whom remain convinced it’s the cause.

Edwards’ sentiments drew a lengthy response from 15 of the 16 the remaining committee members, who on Monday penned a letter that both disputed Edwards’ accusation and clung to criticism of tribal netting.

“Our members welcomed Mr. Edwards to the Committee and looked forward to his participation in group discussions,” reads the letter, which, like Edwards’ letter, was sent to DNR Commissioner Tom Landwehr and Dayton. “We were looking forward to getting the Bands’ perspectives and priorities on a variety of subjects. No one failed to respect the sovereign status of American Indian tribes. We were all aware of the Courts’ decisions that the rights to hunt and fish remain with the Bands.”

However, the letter also defended the idea that tribal netting during the spawn is “culturally offensive” to nontribal members.

“The culture of Minnesota sportsmen, and in particular, Mille Lacs fishermen, has been to protect game fish during their spawning activities,” the letter reads. “This custom has gone on for over 100 years and has been supported by DNR regulations for decades. It is thought that the fish are more vulnerable during that time because they are concentrated in certain areas. It is also believed that disturbing fish at that time limits reproduction and will harm the lake’s future. Whether you agree with those beliefs or not, no one can disagree that they are a part of Minnesota sportsmen’s culture and that many find the Bands’ activities during that time offensive.”

Read the response from the advisory committee

In fact, while protecting natural reproduction is a general philosophy of wildlife management, it’s hardly a universal practice across the continent, including Minnesota. In any given year, in various parts of the state — depending on how the spring has progressed — walleye are often still in some stage of spawning when targeted by anglers during opening weekend in May. The same can be said for bass, perch, crappie, sunfish and potentially northern pike, depending on water temperatures.

Wild turkey are hunted during the spring mating season, and whitetail deer, the state’s most popular game animal, is hunted before, during and after its fall mating season.

Edwards isn’t the first to walk away from the panel with similar accusations against the majority of its members, who include guides, resort owners and local political and civic leaders.

In May, Paul Venturelli, a walleye expert and faculty member at the University of Minnesota, resigned, saying “the fishery needs a people expert more than it needs a fisheries expert.”

Venturelli suggested a conflict-resolution process with a sociologist would be more helpful than his scientific insight, which included coordinating the blue ribbon panel that examined decades of DNR data on the lake and reached the same overall conclusions as the agency.

“The majority opinions of the committee show a community that is frustrated and struggling to adjust to a changing system,” Venturelli wrote in a letter to the committee. “The malignment of the tribal fishery is particularly alarming because it is inconsistent with the evidence and should not be tolerated.”

Read Venturelli’s resignation letter

With Venturelli’s departure, the committee was left without an academic. That role has since been filled by Donn Branstrator , an associate professor at the University of Minnesota-Duluth. With Edwards’ departure, it’s left without tribal representation.

The advisory committee’s letter says remaining committee members would welcome a new tribal representative.