A 2014 report by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources on the status of fisheries in the Michigan waters of Lake Erie and Lake St. Clair indicated Lake St. Clair continued to be the "premier Michigan water for trophy muskellunge and smallmouth bass."
Fishing isn’t the only recreational sport for which the lake is valued.
The 2004 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers report also said that recreational boating in the lake contributed more than $200 million a year to the economy of southeastern Michigan.
Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties have nearly 189,000 of those registered boats, more than 20% of the overall boat registrations in the state.
The initiative has improved access to the Clinton River in several communities in the county, adding kayak and canoe launches, and is working on a paddleboat launch in Mt. It has improved coastal paddling access at Lake St. Clair Metropark and Burke Park in New Baltimore, said John Paul Rea, the county’s planning and economic development director.
Among its many efforts, the initiative is assisting with the development of a Waterfront Redevelopment Plan and the development of a corridor improvement district in Harrison Township, he said.
Macomb County alone has more than 70 active marinas and more than 16,000 boat slips, Rea said.