There91裸聊视频檚 a multi-pronged plan in place to save as many trapped salmon as possible from a landslide site on the Fraser River near Big Bar.
After weeks of considering options, the latest effort is to transport the fish by helicopter over the slide obstruction.
Federal Fisheries and Oceans and provincial government experts have been working to hammer out solutions with a First Nations panel and the Canadian Coast Guard, all co-ordinated by an management team based out of Lillooet, posting almost daily updates.
But the idea of physically moving the fish is just one of many ways they91裸聊视频檙e going at the problem.
91裸聊视频淲e91裸聊视频檙e not putting all our eggs in one basket,91裸聊视频� Ken Malloway said. As co-chair of the Lower Fraser Fisheries Alliance, he91裸聊视频檚 been taking part in conference calls on the advisory panel, also representing the Fraser River Aboriginal Fisheries Secretariat. 91裸聊视频淭he estimate of 80,000 fish to be flown over by helicopter may not seem like much when you consider a total of 3.7 million sockeye expected to return, but the idea is to help as many as possible to get by.91裸聊视频�
They are also looking closely at a hatchery option that would see eggs extracted in an effort to bolster some runs.
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In terms of some runs of salmon and other fish, it couldn91裸聊视频檛 be happening at a worse time of year as they attempt to migrate back to their natal streams.
91裸聊视频淎t least we know the larger chinook are at least getting by, and we hope some of the Chilko sockeye, which are larger and stronger than others, can make it as well,91裸聊视频� Malloway said.
Big boulders are being dropped from a high cliff to create calm pools for the fish they attempt to scale the mammoth waterfall churning at the site of the blockage.
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They don91裸聊视频檛 know how many fish are pooling behind the obstruction. It could be tens of thousand chinook and millions of sockeye ultimately, but coho salmon are also coming into the river system shortly.
The members of the Environmental Team are also beach seining and tagging fish above and below the site, to get a better idea of how many are getting past.
The swift-moving water is blocking most of the arriving fish from migrating any further upstream, but it has also been creating hazardous conditions for responding agencies at the remote site, which is not accessible by road.
They91裸聊视频檝e been conducting controlled blasting in the area as rockscalers remove dangerous rocks on the face of the landslide to make it safer for workers.
Efforts are being focused on preparing for the helicopter transfer of fish, according to the incident command post release because thousands of chinook, and millions of sockeye could be impacted.
91裸聊视频淎n off-channel holding pond is being constructed to assist in the process of transferring fish to a safe area upstream of the slide location,91裸聊视频� according to the ICP release.
91裸聊视频淥nce constructed, the fish will swim into the created channel, through a fish weir and into the holding pond dug into the sand bar.91裸聊视频�
From there, the fish will be transferred with nets into aluminum tanks. The tanks will be attached to tether lines for the helicopters to take them beyond the slide.
91裸聊视频淭his operation is intended to safely transfer the salmon beyond the partial blockage as quickly as possible. The holding tank is equipped with an oxygen diffuser in order to reduce stress on the fish while in transport.91裸聊视频�
Ongoing challenges includes the high canyon walls, churning water, the waterfall, the remote site, unstable water levels, heavy debris and silt.
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Dean Werk, president of the Fraser Valley Salmon Society, said he and the FVSS members have been awaiting word on the next steps, after likening the situation to an 91裸聊视频渆mergency.91裸聊视频�
91裸聊视频淲e are very happy to see that a decision was made to benefit our migrating wild salmon in this critical time on their journey home to their rivers of origin,91裸聊视频� said Werk. 91裸聊视频淚t is great to see the federal government, provincial agencies, First Nations, commercial and recreational all collaborating in the process.91裸聊视频�
More collaboration like this is needed when tackling tough challenges like this one.
91裸聊视频淲e are all very concerned about the future of wild salmon and we think this is another step in the right direction to ensure that there are fish for all sectors for many years to come,91裸聊视频� Werk added.
What they believe happened last fall was that a slab of rock sheared off the cliff and slid into a steep and narrow section of the river, creating a five-metre waterfall and the massive barrier to fish passage.
Several types of fish are being impacted based on the 91裸聊视频渕agnitude91裸聊视频� of the obstruction, including some of conservation concern, officials said. The fish stocks include: spring/summer chinook, early Stuart sockeye, early summer sockeye, summer run sockeye and Fraser pinks.
jfeinberg@theprogress.com
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