A press conference was held on March 26 officially announcing the formation of the Fisheries Management Division (FMD), as well as a partnership with Berkley Labs. During the press conference, FMD directors Steven Bardin and Gary Klein outlined two habitat projects to be completed during the 2022 Bass Pro Tour Season: MossBack Fish Habitat and Mercury Marine will support one of these projects while Berkley Labs will support the other.

“Without healthy fisheries, there is no fishing so we are proud to put the cutting edge resources of Berkley Labs to work with Major League Fishing’s Fisheries Management Division to protect and preserve waterways and fish habitats around the country,” said Berkley Senior VP of Marketing Jon Schlosser. “With decades of research and the most experienced and capable team of experts in studying fish behavior and product development, we are proud to work as part of the team committed to ensuring this passion we all share is around for generations to come.”

“This has been in the works for a very long time and we are so excited to be rolling out a full slate of conservation projects in 2022,” said Gary Klein. “With the support of our amazing lineup of industry partners we know these events are going to be extremely beneficial for the local communities and fisheries that we visit.”

Costa Sunglasses also joined the MLF-FMD with the announcement of the Costa Clean Water Matters campaign. This campaign will work to clean up trash dumped in fisheries all over the country. SeaArk Boats will support Costa’s efforts by providing their revolutionary trash clean-up boat for use by MLF professionals during four events this season.

2022 MLF-FMD Schedule of Events:

April 30-May 1    FMD Costa Clean Water Matters Program supported by SeaArk at Lake of the Ozarks

May 11                 FMD Habitat Restoration Project supported by Mercury Marine and MossBack at Lake Guntersville

June 4                   FMD Habitat Restoration Project supported by Berkley Labs and MossBack at Watts Bar Lake

June 15                FMD Costa Clean Water Matters Program supported by SeaArk at the James River

July 28                  FMD Costa Clean Water Matters Program supported by SeaArk at Lake Champlain

Aug. 6-7               FMD Costa Clean Water Matters Program supported by SeaArk at Cayuga Lake

Outside of the press event, the FMD used the REDCREST expo to provide the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation (ODWC) with more than 150 artificial structures. Incorporating a habitat build directly into the Expo was a first for the industry. At the Ferguson Habitat Build booth, volunteers from the Union Sportsmen’s Alliance used PVC materials donated by Ferguson to construct 100 4x4x4-foot Georgia Cubes, as well as assemble a MossBack Fish Habitat. The Mossback structures were donated by MossBack, the Kevin VanDam Foundation and via fan donations at the expo.

“Habitat for many of our reservoirs is being lost due to the aging process. Much of the natural fish habitat once found in a reservoir has been either buried by siltation or slowly degraded over time as it decomposes. This habitat loss must be addressed if we plan to continue to support healthy fish populations. This is why a project like the Ferguson Habitat build and partnerships with USA, MossBack Fish Habitat, the KVD Foundation and Berkley Labs is so important to MLF Fisheries Management division,” said Steven Bardin, Fisheries Biologist for the MLF-FMD.

On March 28 – less than 24 hours after Bobby Lane claimed the REDCREST trophy – the first step in the deployment of these fish structures took place with six Georgia Cubes and seven MossBack trophy trees placed by the ODWC in Bixhoma Lake. The Union Sportsmen’s Alliance volunteers, MossBack Fish Habitat owner David King, MLF co-founder Gary Klein and FMD biologist Steven Bardin assisted with the Bixhoma Lake habitat deployment.

Proud partners of the MLF Fisheries Management Division include: Berkley Labs, Costa Sunglasses, SeaArk, Mercury Marine, Ferguson and MossBack Fish Habitat.

For complete details and updated information on Major League Fishing and the MLF Fisheries Management Division, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com/fisheries-management. For regular updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF’s social media outlets at Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and  YouTube.