Michigan, native tribes reach new Great Lakes fishing deal

By JOHN FLESHER
AP Environmental Writer

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — Four Native American tribes in Michigan have agreed with the state and federal governments on a revised fishing policy for parts of the Great Lakes. The tentative deal covers sections of Lake Michigan, Lake Huron and Lake Superior included in an 1836 treaty that ceded tribal lands but provided continued hunting and fishing rights. It involves issues that have divided tribal commercial fishing operations and state-licensed sport anglers, such as tribal use of gill nets to catch prized species such as lake trout. The agreement would last 24 years and needs approval of a federal judge.