Great Lakes Fishery Commission

**Established by treaty to protect our fishery** Canada and the United States share the [Great Lakes fishery](https://www.glfc.org/the-fishery.php), a binational treasure worth more than $7 billion annually to the people of the two nations. The fishery attracts millions of anglers, supports valuable commercial and charter fishing, is a mainstay for native peoples, and is the very fabric of a healthy environment. The Great Lakes Fishery Commission, operating through the [1954 Convention on Great Lakes Fisheries](https://www.glfc.org/pubs/conv.pdf), today facilitates successful cross-border cooperation that ensures the two nations work together to improve and perpetuate this fishery. While the lakes fall under the jurisdictions of two nations, eight states, one province, and several tribes, the fishery resources do not observe political boundaries. Canada and the United States recognized decades ago that the best way to manage and sustain the fishery is through continuous, binational cooperation. Remarkably, a mechanism to collaborate across borders was not always present. Efforts to establish an international fishery commission for the Great Lakes failed repeatedly from the late 1800s to 1954 because of a poor understanding about how to work together and because the states and the province were unwilling to cede fishery management authority to a binational agency. The destructive power of [sea lampreys](https://www.glfc.org/sea-lamprey.php) compelled Canada and the United States to develop a successful collaborative relationship. Sea lampreys, which invaded the upper Great Lakes in the early 1920s had, by the 1950s, severely destroyed valuable stocks of Great Lakes fish, particularly whitefish and lake trout. Other factors, such as [habitat](https://www.glfc.org/fish-habitat.php) destruction, poor [water quality](https://www.glfc.org/water-quality.php), and overfishing, also contributed to the decimation of the fishery by mid-century. Something needed to be done at the highest level if the Great Lakes fishery was to be saved from complete devastation. **About the commission** The 1954 Convention on Great Lakes Fisheries, which created the Great Lakes Fishery Commission, was born from a strong need to work together across borders not only to combat sea lampreys but also to promote science and establish working relationships among the players. The commission consists of four Canadian commissioners appointed by the Privy Council and four U.S. commissioners (plus one alternate) appointed by the President. The commissioners are supported by a secretariat, located in Ann Arbor, Michigan.