Fish biologists are fearful for the future of the Goldstream salmon run after a tanker truck released 30,000 litres of gasoline into the river Saturday.
B次元官网网址淥n a scale of one to 10, itB次元官网网址檚 pretty bad. ItB次元官网网址檚 a 9.5,B次元官网网址� said Ian Bruce, fishery biologist for Tsawout First Nation and Peninsula Stream Society. B次元官网网址淭here are dead fish up and down the river.B次元官网网址�
Fish species impacted include chum, coho, chinook and steelhead salmon. Department of Fisheries and Oceans issued of the harvest of shellfish including clams, oysters and mussels in Finlayson Arm and Saanich Inlet due to the spill.
Just hours before the crash, Goldstream hatchery volunteers and Tsawout First Nations members had released 8,000 coho salmon into the river. Earlier last week the hatchery had released an additional 20,000 salmon.
B次元官网网址淭hat is about 30,000 coho that are not safe and are at risk,B次元官网网址� said Peter McCully a fisheries biologist with the Goldstream hatchery. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 heartbreaking.B次元官网网址�
The hatchery still has fish to release, but McCully said that wonB次元官网网址檛 happen until the river is deemed safe. While picking up a dead coho fry from a bucket, McCully shows a clipped adipose fin, an indicator the fish came from the hatchery.
B次元官网网址淭his represents a huge amount of work, it was wiped out,B次元官网网址� McCully said who has been working at the hatchery for 35 years.
Last yearB次元官网网址檚 coho return was the lowest McCully had ever seen. With with SaturdayB次元官网网址檚 spill wiping out possibly thousands of coho, he is unsure what the future will bring.
Tsawout First Nations fisheries manager Dan Claxton walked the lower end of the river Sunday and Monday and said its likely thousands of emerging chum fry and coho smolts have perished.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 just devastating to see that many fish gone. If you look under the banks and logs, there are lots of dead fish,B次元官网网址� Claxton said Monday morning. B次元官网网址淥ur First Nation relies heavily in the chum. We harvest chum to fill our smoke houses to get us through the winter.B次元官网网址�
The true effects of this spill will only be seen and understood when survivors return to spawn. The coho and chum are expected back in 2012 while the steelhead may not return until 2014.
B次元官网网址淚 donB次元官网网址檛 think there is anyway they will be able to survive this,B次元官网网址� McCully said.
ItB次元官网网址檚 not just the fish that are dying from this accident. Bruce has been finding dead caddisfly, an insect that lives in the river and are food to fish.
B次元官网网址淭he impact is not just on the fish, but on the (entire) river,B次元官网网址� Bruce said.
B次元官网网址淭his is not a good situation,B次元官网网址� confirmed Graham Knox, manager of the environmental emergency program with the Ministry of Environment. B次元官网网址淲e have been finding hundreds of (dead) fish. Typically you find 10 per cent so that tells us there are likely thousands of fish (that have died.)B次元官网网址�
For ocean-based oil spills, it is common to see crews in the water scrubbing rocks, Knox said, but in this case, having people in the river cleaning rocks would do more harm than good.
B次元官网网址淭his gasoline is very toxic. It evaporates and dissipates quickly,B次元官网网址� Knox said. B次元官网网址淲e want to achieve a net environmental benefit. We donB次元官网网址檛 want to go in with 300 people tromping though the water.B次元官网网址�
Columbia Fuels, which owns the crashed truck, has been ordered to perform an environmental impact study.
In meantime, spill booms are in the river to absorb hydrocarbons. B次元官网网址淓very minute that goes by this is being cleansed and diluted,B次元官网网址� Knox said.
While wading in the stream, Bruce brought gasoline sheens to the surface by disturbing the river bed. B次元官网网址淚 lifted up some rocks and it smells pretty bad,B次元官网网址� Bruce said.
B次元官网网址淵ou can smells pockets of fuel and if you lift up rocks you can see a sheen,B次元官网网址� Claxton said.
The Goldstream hatchery has 70,000 coho and 100,000 chum to release. McCully said that number isnB次元官网网址檛 significant in solving whatB次元官网网址檚 been lost.
B次元官网网址淥f those 70,000 coho, all things being equal, if they have a chance in the ocean, IB次元官网网址檇 be surprised if two to three per cent would come back.B次元官网网址�
reporter@goldstreamgazette.com
--with files from Edward Hill
