Alberta Fish Rescue-A First Impression

TUC’s Alberta Fish Rescue Engages All Ages

Alberta Fish Rescue-A First Impression By Brian Chow

Irrigation canals are an important piece of infrastructure in Southern Alberta, without them, much of the agricultural activity the region is known for would not be possible. An unintended side effect of these diversions is that many fish are swept into these canals, often with many barriers that make it impossible to return to their home waters. Trout Unlimited Canada, in conjunction with Alberta Environment and Parks, organizes an annual volunteer effort to rescue these trapped fish in order to return them to their home waters. The project, known as Fish Rescue has been taking place since 1998 and nearly 900,000 fish have been rescued to date.

This year’s season was a great success, with 17,096 fish being rescued from five irrigation canals across Southern Alberta. Sportfish species represented almost 30% of the total catch this year including several large individuals. The largest fish caught during this year’s Fish Rescue was a 677 mm Brown Trout, captured from the Waterton Belly Diversion; another notable example from this canal was a Northern Pike measuring in at 670 mm. The largest Rainbow Trout caught this season was rescued from the Lethbridge Northern Headworks Canal near Fort Macleod and measured 580 mm. Perhaps the most exciting find was three large Bull Trout, the largest of which measured 620 mm. Bull Trout are Alberta’s provincial fish and a species-at-risk so returning these large adults to the Oldman River was very important and rewarding. The most numerous species of all the fish caught were Longnose dace, with 4,364 individuals being caught, this accounted for more than a quarter of the total catch.

A large Brown Trout is returned home

This year’s Fish Rescue was made possible through the support of some amazing and dedicated volunteers, some of whom have been supporters of this cause for many years. Volunteers come from all walks of life including retirees, students, Junior Forest Wardens, Scouts, environmental professionals, and families. We also had nearly two dozen volunteers from TransCanada help out at the Western Headworks Canal in Calgary. TUC would also like to extend special thanks to Lassonde Western Canada and Tim Hortons for their generous contribution of juice boxes, coffee and hot chocolate to keep the Fish Rescue volunteers well hydrated and energized.

As a new volunteer with Trout Unlimited Canada, I was afforded the opportunity to see all of the work that goes into the Fish Rescue project. It was my pleasure to meet the volunteers that have been doing this for many years and it was quite the treat to see how passionate they are about ensuring there is a healthy fish population for future generations. This season has been a very fulfilling and educational experience and one that I will not soon forget. I look forward to perhaps joining this effort in future seasons. I, for one, am hooked!

Brian Chow-Second from Right

Brian Chow completing an internship at TUC as part of his practicum for the Ecotourism and Outdoor Leadership Program at Mount Royal University. This was Brian’s first experience with Fish Rescue.