Rock slide in Fraser River, B.C., may hinder salmon passage

and it starts.....

"Currently, First Nations food, social and ceremonial (FSC) sockeye fisheries
are closed due a 4 week window closure to protect Early Stuart and the earlier
timed Early Summer run stocks. Very limited fishing opportunities directed at
Chinook salmon for ceremonial purposes have occurred to date. The start-up of
sockeye directed FSC fisheries is not anticipated before late July or early
August depending upon location and will be based on the identification of
sockeye TAC for Early Summers or Summers, in-season run-timing information, as
well as considerations as a result of the slide at Big Bar. FSC fishers in
marine approach areas as well as the Fraser River are requested to check for
the opening times and any restrictions in their local area. Commercial and
recreational fisheries are not anticipated to begin until the end of July or
August depending on the identification of commercial TAC. "
 
wildmanyeah said:
This is starting to feel like a nightmare
Click to expand...
Yup, big time serious. This is another nail (no, this is a spike) in the coffin for many upper Fraser chinook and sockeye stocks. Hells Gate really is a tough swim for sockeye and now meeting this next bottleneck will kick the crap out of Early Stuart and summer run stocks.
And, I don't think there is a damn thing we can do about it, in time, to make a difference.
 
We have F-18's in Comox. The rock on the right side of the river could make excellent missile practice. open things up a bit. A bit of ordnance could go a long ways. Yeah, the Whooosh salmon cannon looks great but it would have had to have been in place a month ago to help. It would take a month to get it in place now.
 
Well that's very comforting, the slide happens last Fall and nobody is aware of it until June this year?? During the Winter and early Spring when the water levels are low and something could have been done to alleviate the problem,nothing was done. Boy, I would like to know if DFO had a heads up on this and decided to do nothing hoping that the water levels would remain low and now we have the high runoff from all the rain in the interior and a major blockage. Just thinkin'....
 
Once again people should follow the updates from the province and the officials I mentioned before and avoid trying to point fingers and instead try to understand and take in the breath of the current situation. There are people, good people, doing their best right now trying to come up with the best option. I understand that previous dealings can make skeptics, but picture what a big, very fast and turbid river with logs might look like as well as active rock slides and how challenging that might be for those on the ground there right now. Remember this is the Fraser River - not some little creek. Would you feel safe riding a jet boat around there right now or last weekend? Likely not unless you have a death wish....so before you criticize about inaction just think whether rushing out and doing something would be the best thing for your health or the others out there now.

Monitoring the Fraser for that purpose sounds good, but depending on when you see something like this you could still be in the same situation weighing options or at the mercy of the weather and river conditions. In this day and age to do that could mean you take from something else that is important.

Hells Gate has and can be a bottleneck for salmon migrating in June and July. High water discharges at certain cms thresholds (can’t recall off hand here) can be significant hinderance for migration of Early Stuart Sockeye for instance. In addition, high water temperatures in that area are the other factor at that time of the year that can impact migration.

The canon is an idea, but like every option it has its pros and cons as a previous member indicated. I would like to add that in order for the canon to be successful you would have to get the fish to the entrance of the canon. Right now the Fraser is high and very turbid. On the weekend it was a floating forest at times. With the Chilcotin situation now that might not clear up very soon.
 
shuswap said:
Hells Gate has and can be a bottleneck for salmon migrating in June and July. High water discharges at certain cms thresholds (can’t recall off hand here) can be significant hinderance for migration of Early Stuart Sockeye for instance. In addition, high water temperatures in that area are the other factor at that time of the year that can impact migration.
Click to expand...

https://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/scien...ports-rapports/2019/2019-07-08/index-eng.html

Fraser River discharge at Hope
Critical Levels for Fish Passage through Fraser Canyon:

  • 7000 cms - Early signs of physiological stress evident
  • 8000 cms - Difficultly in migration delaying migration time.
  • 9000 cms - Barrier to migration through Hell's Gate.
upload_2019-7-11_8-48-2.png
 
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High Time said:
Well that's very comforting, the slide happens last Fall and nobody is aware of it until June this year?? During the Winter and early Spring when the water levels are low and something could have been done to alleviate the problem,nothing was done. Boy, I would like to know if DFO had a heads up on this and decided to do nothing hoping that the water levels would remain low and now we have the high runoff from all the rain in the interior and a major blockage. Just thinkin'....
Click to expand...
Sattelite images would have clearly identified this and the fact it is being leaked to have occured last Fall clearly indicate that it was known to have occured and a decision was made not to do anything and now its too late in the year so the migrating salmon get screwed. Death by a thousand cuts. No one held accountable. Does the buck stop at your desk Mr. Wilkenson? When was it known and who knew about it?
 
says they discovered it... "discovered between June 21 and 23, 2019 "

"In response to a significant landslide discovered between June 21 and 23, 2019 in a narrow portion of the Fraser River near Big Bar, just north of Lillooet, B.C., an integrated incident management team has been established."
 
terrin said:
So you are telling us they don;t monitor the Fraser River for Rock Slides? Does not explain why if it happened in October nothing mentioned until migrating endangered Chinook cannot pass the rock slide area.
Click to expand...

Yeah I admit it does seem fishy, and who reported the slide? was the slide reported after no fish showed up?
 
agentaqua said:
Update on the activities undertaken by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans and the Province of British Columbia regarding the Fraser Canyon Rock Slide

As promised, we are taking this opportunity to update you on work being done by DFO and the Province of BC since the issuance of a joint statement on June28th.

Background: DFO and the BC Government were advised on June 23rd that a significant rock slide occurred in a narrow portion of the Fraser River near Big Bar, northwest of Clinton. The natural movement of the water made it very challenging to visually see whether fish were passing through the slide area. The area is very remote, with steep canyon slopes, no accessibility by road, and limited access via helicopter. DFO and BC are actively working together to determine how to help salmon and other fish pass through this area, how to protect these important fish stocks, and how to ensure safe working conditions for all incident responders.

· Acoustic monitoring devices are now installed upstream of the obstruction on both sides of the River. Data is uploaded daily. The first day of monitoring found that 70-90 cm long fish were moving upstream. This means some large Chinook are passing the obstruction however smaller fish may not be able to pass. A second acoustic monitoring device will be deployed downstream of the obstruction.

· The Province of BC has initiated work to create road access to the obstruction site for technical experts and incident responders. Public access is not supported until we are certain of the slope stability and that the area does not pose any safety risks.

· Further investigations into safety for working at the site are being undertaken as well as further evaluations of plans to restore full fish access through the obstruction. Experts, such as geotechnical engineers, are continuing to evaluate the site this weekend and early next week. Investigations into trap and truck locations to capture fish and logistics are continuing in case a temporary solution is required while the slide area is addressed.

· A Unified Command structure is being set up which will include DFO and the Province of BC. First Nation representation in the Unified Command is desired by BC and DFO and we will work with First Nations next week to identify appropriate representatives.

· Telephone briefings for First Nations and other stakeholders occurred on Friday, June 28th. Follow up technical briefings are being scheduled for Wednesday, July 3rd.

In the meantime, we will continue to keep you updated as new information becomes available and will be sending you the call in information for the technical briefing as soon as possible.

Regards,
Bonnie Antcliffe
Jennifer Davis
Click to expand...
Who advised the DFO and BC Government on June 23rd? When did that party become aware of the slide?
 
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