Because the construction of a new fish ladder was postponed earlier in the Summer, and then postponed again, a team of volunteers has been recruited to catch and lift the fish over the dam so they can make their way up into the Bowmanville watershed. The BT team was there today because they have reached the 5,000 fish mark, but they have been able to identify and count other species as well as salmon.
The irony is that now tens, perhaps hundreds of thousands of people across the GTA are aware of this fish ladder project. I had the folk from Valleys 2000 bring their display to Oshawa Presbytery when it was at Trinity UC in the Spring. This reaches a much wider audience. The guy from BT was astounded at the activity in the pond, as so many are. We really are disconnected from the natural world and its processes, the everyday miracles of changing seasons, migration, procreation. As we continue through Creation Time we have a right-on-the-doorstep example and we can watch it live and in person, not just on television.
At least one member, Laura, was there this morning. Are there others who have gone down to watch in recent days?
We walk Avery by the creek almost daily and so have been watching from the start. It's always fun to watch the kids (and and the dogs) watch the fish.
ReplyDeleteI really hadn't realized it was still going on. Forgive my ignorance, but what makes this year so unique? When was the last time the salmon returned to spawn or did something change with the dam in the last few years?
ReplyDeleteIt is heartening to see the variety of humans and their companions taking in this unusual spectacle.
ReplyDeleteThe plan was to begin the new fish ladder in July. The old one simply can't accommodate the larger salmon and they were dying below the dam. Funding issues continue to delay the project, so "air-lifting" them over has become Plan B. Ironically, this glitch has drawn a huge amount of attention to this annual migration, and that is a good thing.
Thanks to both of you!