A relocation operation spawned by an email to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) has been a success, thanks to the quick response from all involved.
Jaeger Mah, a South Surrey resident and salmon habitat activist, has been monitoring a portion of the Little Campbell River for a few years now, so when a stretch of the waterway near 200 Street and 27 Avenue dried out earlier than usual, his first thought was rescuing the potentially thousands of juvenile salmon trapped in the remaining five or six pools.
鈥淚 thought, 鈥業鈥檓 just going to get these salmon out myself,鈥欌�� said Mah on Sunday (June 18). 鈥淭hen I started thinking about the process, like where do I release them? Downstream? Upstream? Will they have enough oxygen in the transportation process? Will they survive?鈥�
He thought it would be best to consult with the professionals, and emailed the DFO on Sunday (June 11).
鈥淚 didn鈥檛 want to just be a renegade environmentalist who might, in trying to help, start doing even worse,鈥� said Mah.
Within a 24-hour period, his email made its way to a DFO field technician, who called him on Monday (June 12).
The next day 鈥� Tuesday, June 13 鈥� a DFO representative was on site to help with all the tools for recovery and relocation.
鈥淭he DFO reacted and had a field technician on site and all the equipment needed, within 48 hours,鈥� Mah said, noting the speed and efficiency was impressive.
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He says the federal agency also asked for help from him and A Rocha Canada 鈥� a South Surrey-based non-profit Christian organization that promotes environmental education and conservation 鈥� as A Rocha had also contacted the DFO about the same dry portion of Little Campbell River.
Within three to four hours, they had recovered and relocated five teeming buckets full of juvenile coho salmon 鈥� more than 2,000 and likely even more than 2,500 鈥� less than half a kilometre down the river, just west of 198 Street.
鈥淐oho are a unique species 鈥� they spend the longest amount time in the stream, which means they鈥檙e most susceptible to predation and urban pollution鈥� they鈥檙e on one most at risk species in our area, aside from steelhead,鈥� said Mah.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e what鈥檚 known as a keystone species, so they help every single aspect of the environment and the food chain, from egg to adult. Their decaying bodies provide tremendous amounts of nutrients for our trees, yet we don鈥檛 really appreciate it.鈥�
The Little Campbell River watershed is experiencing tremendous pressures from urbanization in 91原创 and Surrey, Mah noted, and stressed the importance of wetlands 鈥� like the one discovered in relocating the salmon.
鈥淲e couldn鈥檛 figure out 鈥� how does a river just disappear? We found there鈥檚 a significant wetland, almost like a swamp, located around 198th (Street) called Horne Pit. It looks like this murky swamp with no value, but it鈥檚 what regenerates the lower portion of Little Campbell River,鈥� he said, noting the 70-acre parcel of land releases a consistent feed of fresh water into Little Campbell River throughout the year, preventing the lower portion from drying up.
鈥淚t鈥檚 important for city councils of any city to understand the importance of any wetland,鈥� Mah said, adding the Township of 91原创 owns the land where Horne Pit is located.
鈥淎lthough some might look like swamps of minimal value, they鈥檙e literally the things that are feeding our river systems.鈥�
tricia.weel@peacearchnews.com
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