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November
2001 Newsletter
Fish
Death Trap
 Ten
years ago the City of Hamilton spent a few million dollars
building a fish graveyard in Red Hill Creek. The 200-metre
concrete channel at Queenston Road was constructed in 1991.
It removed a fifth of a kilometre of fish habitat and immediately
began blocking the normal movements of fish in Red Hill
Creek. This was and remains a clear violation of the federal
Fisheries Act which requires that there be "no net
loss of fish habitat".
Every
government agency that has examined this channel admits
it was a mistake and should be removed. But nothing is done.
The City refuses to fix the problem and the "regulators"
stand and watch.
What
is going on, and what can citizens do to change this?
The
channel was built to prevent Red Hill Creek from acting
normally. Over time, all creeks and rivers move from side
to side. At Queenston Road, the Red Hill Valley is very
narrow. Any movement of the creek poses a direct threat
to the plans of the City of Hamilton to build an expressway
down the middle of the valley. At Queenston there is room
for the creek and six lanes of expressway — but only
if the creek doesn't move. Hence the concrete channel.
Concrete
channels have been used for similar purposes in earlier
times, but by the late 1980s, it was widely recognized that
this was a foolish practice that was extremely damaging
to fish and other aquatic life. However, in 1990 the Ontario
Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) issued an open-ended
permit to allow not only the Queenston channel but any other
"creek works" that Hamilton wished to do in Red
Hill Valley in preparation for the expressway.
The
MNR issued this permit on behalf of the federal Department
of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) but apparently never bothered
to consult with them. The two-page fill-in-the-blanks permit
was also technically invalid because the permitted start
date of work was later than the end date.
The
Queenston channel is worse than most. It is very long and
flat-bottomed, forcing the creek to spread out and become
very shallow in low-flow periods. In high flows, the channel
acts like a chute, accelerating the speed of the flows and
offering no protective bottom structure to break the current.
To add to the problems, a small dam or weir was installed
two-thirds of the way up the channel. An extremely robust
fish might be able to swim up the channel under some conditions,
only to be confronted with this dam.
In
the spring of 1992, Hamilton municipal officials found that
the channel was blocking the spawning run of White Suckers.
In the fall of 1992, citizens began noticing dead salmon
in the channel. Media publicity and a public outcry put
governments on the spot. An MNR official stated: "There's
no doubt it has to be fixed" and "The Ministry
would have a good case on its hands if it charged the Region
with violating the Fisheries Act, but that would be counter-productive".
A Hamilton official stated: "Some things just don't
work out".
There
was a proposed solution. A hole was cut in the weir, and
fifteen large concrete blocks were bolted into the channel.
This didn't happen until after the 1993 salmon run. It could
have been done much earlier, but the various governments
argued among themselves as to who would pay the $7,600 cost.
In
any case, the solution didn't work. It didn't increase the
depth of the channel water. No blocks were located in the
lower third of the channel. And the blocks quickly began
to wash away. After about a dozen had disappeared over a
two year period, a new set was put in place. All but two
have now gone down the creek, most of them in the first
year after they were installed. The uselessness of these
blocks is clearly shown by the fact that none were replaced
for over four years.
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Last
week, after the salmon spawning run, the City sent
a backhoe into the creek to retrieve some of the
blocks for re-installation in the channel.
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The
most obvious victims of the Queenston channel are the
Chinook Salmon that spawn in Red Hill Creek each fall.
Government officials pounce on this fact to dismiss concerns
about the channel. They say that these fish are non-native
and don't successfully spawn. In fact, while Chinooks
are a pacific salmon, they are successfully reproducing
in many streams around the Great Lakes. They are also
the largest fish species in the creek (and the Great Lakes).
This should help them get by the channel. Salmon are famous
for jumping waterfalls and overcoming obstacles that bar
their way to the spawning grounds.
In
fact, the channel likely blocks the migration of every
other fish species in the creek, including the native
species. Twenty-four species have been found in the creek
since 1995, but only a quarter of those have been found
in the two-thirds of the creek upstream of the Queenston
channel. Native species found just below the channel but
not above it include Three-Spined Stickleback, Logperch,
Green Sunfish and Common Shiner. Government officials
ignore this fact. They also have no comment on the indisputable
fact that the concrete has eliminated 200 metres of fish
habitat.
The
City says it plans to fix the Queenston channel. However,
it refuses to start the work until it gets approval to
build the Red Hill Creek Expressway. Their position is
roughly — we will only correct our mistakes in the
creek when we are allowed to make lots more. The City
also refuses to reveal how it plans to fix the channel.
This is an interesting question because, as noted above,
the narrowness of the valley at Queenston gives them no
room to manoeuvre.
The
channel is clearly illegal and in violation of the federal
Fisheries Act. The approval given to build it was inappropriate
at best and most likely also illegal. It certainly is
an embarrassment to the MNR. The City, however, says the
1991 permit prevents anyone from forcing them to fix their
mess.
This
charade has now gone on for ten years. It may continue
indefinitely if governments at all levels remain unwilling
to accept their responsiblities. If you would like to
help Friends do something about this, please call Don
at 905-664-8796.
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