A River Never Sleeps

Force feeding trout to New Zealanders?

Canada wants to shove farmed trout down the throats of New Zealanders. The reason is simple enough: Canada has a surplus of fat, farm raised trout, with blunt tails, blunt noses and soft flesh - and New Zealand, which has banned the import of commercially raised trout, is a market waiting to be tapped.

The Canadian government’s Ministry of Agriculture, which is pushing New Zealand to remove the import ban, doesn’t care about the potential environmental impacts. Fish farmers see a market shelf that is blocked to them. Their government obediently protests, and tries to pry the market open.

In New Zealand there is understandable alarm among trout fishermen, who fear increased poaching of wild fish and the exposure of wild stock to diseases in domestic trout.

If you care about wild trout in New Zealand, read the commentary below, read the story in News Bytes in this issue. Copy the following e-mail addresses to your desk top - and use the power of the Internet to make your voice heard.

A brief e-mail to the politicians who are in a position to decide if New Zealanders should be force-fed farmed trout, might just save a wild fishery.....

Send copies to the following:

Helen Clarke - Prime Minister of New Zealand: pm@ministers.govt.nz

Jim Sutton - Minister of Agriculture and Trade: jsutton@ministers.govt.nz

Marian Hobbs - Minister for the Environment: mhobbs@ministers.govt.nz

Sandra Lee - Minister of Conservation: slee@ministers.govt.nz

And in Canada.....
Lyle Vanclief, Minister of Agriculture: Vanclief.D@parl.gc.ca

David Anderson, Minister of Environment: Anderson.D@parl.gc.ca

Jean Chretien, Prime Minister: Chretien.J@parl.gc.ca

A Plea For Help
From a New Zealand Trout Fisherman

To understand the depth of feeling here in New Zealand, you’ll need a little background. In the 1880’s we didn’t have any trout. So the old boys got together, probably over single malts and cigars, and hatched a plot. The government had neither the means nor inclination to support the introduction of fish, but they were willing to support any efforts legislatively.

Within each district of New Zealand, the old boys formed “Acclimatisation Societies”. For 10 shillings you got to be a member. This money was pooled and used to purchase eyed ova from the U.S. and Canada, which came over here packed on ice in sailing ships. A few shipments took, but it was a long, hard struggle.

For your 10 shillings, if the eggs lived, you got to vote on how the fish would be managed and you got the right to fish. This established the system that we have to this day.

The government has no say in any aspect of the fishery. We are entirely self-funded through license fees and self-regulating. What we have is the “Queens Chain”, the right of free access to the waters and the fish, and a law that says: trout shall not be bought, nor sold. The purpose of this is to ensure that trout shall not be owned by the Lord of the Manor, and that they be available to any common man for the purchase cost of a license.

Ted Turner can kick me off his Montana ranch, but down here’s he’s got to slum it with the plebes. I cannot buy a farm here and establish a pay per rod fishery. It would restrict access to those who could afford my fees.

New Zealand has a unique system, founded by the people and a world class but fragile fishery. The fish are few in number and large in size; they cannot withstand exploitation of any sort.

Canada has for some reason decided that, as a trade issue, they must be allowed to sell farmed trout in New Zealand. We have already had one commercial salmon packer here in New Zealand, fined heavily for poaching trout for export. Obviously he couldn’t sell the stolen fish in this country.

Should Canada succeed in forcing the sale of farmed trout, there are inherent risks of poaching and disease introductions. And the entire under pinning of our system would be gone - trout would be a commercial species. As such they could be bought, sold, owned and possessed. Private property. How long before Ted, or Bill, decides to buy the Makuri Valley, plant a few fish and then cut the Queens Chain access by declaring the fish to be privately owned?

We like our Paradise just the way it is. . .Any help, sympathy or understanding on this issue would be greatly appreciated.

Conrad Black
<conrad.forest@clear.net.nz>
(Eds Note: Mr. Black is not related to the Canadian Press Baron of the same nam.)

For more on this issue see newbytes here.

What do you think? Visit our online discussion area and post your views.

Letters can be sent via e-mail to: letters@ariverneversleeps.com

Letters Gif

Gentlemen:
A River Never Sleeps is a magazine that to my knowledge is the best on the Web. Every issue is a joy to read.
My wife says to me how I can spend hour's reading is beyond her, but she understands that a fisherman's life is not only fishing but learning as well. Over the 55 Years of fishing that’s under my belt, I say that you’re never too old to learn.
Keep them coming, you are doing a great job with your magazine.

Thank you,
Edward Chatcavage
Shenandoah, Pennsylvania
Ednhelen@webtv.net

The Editors:
Regarding the herring fishery discussed in the February issue. I agree that the allowable catch of herring is far too large. I also agree with the thought that herring have developed into separate distinct populations. I wonder what DNA testing shows? I think that there are other indicators of separate stocks such as do the same fish from different generations spawn in the same areas as their parents? Have any test such as tagging or coded wire implants been done?
With this in mind, I come to the heart of my letter. I have been conducting a one man attempt to develop an awareness in Victoria of the effects that the run-off from Budget Steel may be having on the herring that spawn in the Gorge Waterway.
This run is heavily preyed on by all the salmon stocks that return to the Strait of Juan de Fuca from the Pacific Ocean.
During the last weekend of January, a fire developed in the pile of waste wood that is stored on Budget Steel's property. This wood is from demolition waste and has been ground up in a tub grinder. When this company uses their hammer mill to pulverize old cars, the fluids from these cars - oil, gasoline, brake fluid, radiator coolant etc. go into a water filled tank. The scrap is taken from this tank of hydrocarbon soup and stored on the edge of the shoreline awaiting loading onto a scow. The fire department sprayed huge quantities of water on the pile as hoes dug through it exposing hot spots.
The water ran off into a storm drain and emptied into the Gorge. It was an incredible sight to see the water turning a filthy brown colour with a heavy hydrocarbon smell that was mixed with the smell of old wood.
If this fire had occurred three weeks later it would have been right at the time of the herring run up the Gorge. I shudder to think of the potential damage that this runoff would have done to this stock. This happens to a run that was not as large last year as in previous years. I am not seeing large gatherings of herring off the Ogden Point Breakwater, at the mouth of the Gorge, as I have seen in past years. Could this have something to do with the fact that Budget Steel has been processing wood waste for two to three years?
I have been studying a paper from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. This paper discusses the toxic runoff from wood that had been treated with wood preservatives. It compares the runoff of metals from construction debris and the runoff from the structure after it was built. The report concluded that the release of these metals from sawdust, shavings and other small pieces was many times higher than from solid wood.
From this I conclude that the toxicity of the runoff from Budget Steel's ground up wood is dangerous to the herring, sea-run cutthroat and the young salmon moving to the ocean from Colquitz and Craigflower Creeks.
If any reader wishes to assist in this awareness program, please contact me at the e-mail address below.

Sincerely,
Norm Jackson
Victoria, B.C., Canada
Selkirkvictoria@hotmail.com

Norm:
Thanks for taking the time to write and bringing to our attention some obviously urgent questions. If pollutants poured into the Gorge three weeks after the herring spawn, we have to wonder what impact it had.
The Gorge herring are famous for their large size, and as you point out, the run is vital to salmon feeding around the southern tip of Vancouver Island.
We have forwarded a copy of your letter to David Anderson, the federal Environment Minister, and will follow up to see if this matter is investigated.
-Sincerely,
Mark Hume
Editor

Mark and Nick:

You both are an inspiration to those of us plunking away at the print level. I'm surprised at your devotion and aptitude toward the mysteries that the pacific salmon and steelhead offer.

Best regards,
Terry Hanson
The Steelheader
Chilliwack, British Columbia
steelhdr@uniserve.com

{E-mail letters may be edited for clarity, taste and brevity. It is understood they express the opinions of the writers, not the editors.}