Death of a Trout Stream Continued
As promised in the original posting “Death of a Trout Stream”, here is an update of what has or is supposed to happen.
1] The fisheries component of Sustainable Resource Development [SRD] will be doing a population assessment according to the Fish and Wildlife Manager, Dave Christensen the summer of 2013 on Stauffer Creek [ North Raven River]. Apparently the population assessment is a direct result of pressure by fishermen. What must be considered however, are two parallel issues. The population in this stream has declined from <>800 fish/km in 1985 > 450 in 1995 > 250/km in 2005 and nothing has been done to either identify the issue that caused the population decrease or any attempt to reverse the decline. A secondary issue is the length of time it takes to process the data. In the case of 2005 summer population run, it took till 2007 for the data to be made public. So from when the population decline was noted in 1995 by 2013 we have more data. Quickly counting on my fingers I get 28 years. The questions that we should ask “what is taking so long & why did it take pressure from anglers to get somebody moving”? And this is for data collection only. There still has to be some action taken.
2] I further learned that the Alberta Conservation Association [ACA] was approached to fund the population count in 2005 and for a variety of reasons; the project has not made it to ACA’s Priority List. Todd Zimmerling, President and CEO of the ACA says “ the ACA has no plans for any fish population monitoring on the North Raven River in 2013-14. However we will be continuing with the riparian leasing program in the area.”
What must be considered is how the ACA spends the money received from your fishing and hunting licenses. If My Zimmerling doesn’t see Stauffer Creek as an issue, perhaps the ACA has yet again displayed its inability to spend your Fishing /Hunting dollars wisely. The Stauffer Creek problem is nothing new. The ACA, SRD and the Alberta Fish and Game Association were all informed of my concerns several years ago. At that time, SRD responded by doing a 1 day population snapshot in one small area. The others responded “it’s not my problem”. A response that didn’t much surprise me.
3] As a direct result of communicating the Stauffer Creek story to a number of places, I was asked to lead a discussion regarding issues in Flowing Water at the Provincial Roundtable Meeting held April 13 in Red Deer. I accepted the invitation and looked forward to the event and an opportunity to challenge the attendees for Change. Life got in the way. I had a heart issue crop up in late January that has changed my life a lot. With a visit to my Doctor last Tuesday and a med. change, I thought it prudent to cancel my attendance until the increased meds take effect. I am now rescheduled for the fall Provincial Roundtable.
4] I have had an opportunity to speak to a group in Edmonton which resulted in the Edmonton TU Chapter taking the issue to Trout Unlimited Canada. The Edmonton Group felt that TU must do something as well. At this point, I have no idea how they might be involved. It should be noted that Jeff Suretees, Chief Executive Officer and Brian Meagher, Alberta Provincial Biologist were both informed of the issue several years ago and were updated with regards to the issue several months ago. Their response to this point has been a thundering silence.
In conclusion, Governments or non-Government Organizations have done little to deal with Stauffer Creek. It must be noted that Stauffer Creek is not alone. THIS IS NOT A ONE OFF SITUATION. Streams and rivers all over Alberta are dealing with similar issues. Stauffer Creek is the “Canary in the Mine”.
This saga continues at a later date.
Regards,
Don
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