Hundreds of coho fish fry about to move into their next stage of development at the Hoy Creek fish hatchery in Coquitlam were killed in their trays recently - and pollution from road run-off is the suspected cause.
Approximately 600 juvenile fish that were transitioning from the alevin stage, where they absorb their egg sac and develop a fish shape and breathing apparatus, were killed over several days beginning March 19.
Hatchery manager Rodney Lee of Hoy/Scott Watershed Society said volunteers were checking the health of the fry when they noticed several were dead or dying but couldn't figure out the cause.
"It's kind of shocking to see," Lee said. "You open up your trays to look at their health, and you say, 'Hey, there's something wrong here.'"
Lee said the most likely culprit is road run-off, which can accumulate over several days of dry weather and then is washed into the stream, which flows into tanks in which the fish are raised.
A video was made and distributed on Facebook, and Lee said he would like people to be reminded that all storm sewers in the Tri-Cities flow into creeks and people should be careful about what they wash into them.
Approximately 1,700 fish survived the calamity and the Hoy/Scott Watershed Society expects to raise 8,500 coho this year.
Plans are also in the works to expand the hatchery to raise chum salmon to augment the natural run, if the society can get approvals and funding.
