2007-07-23 Dunk River
The Dunk River suffered a very significant fishkill over the weekend of July 21-22, 2007. However, there was another fishkill over the weekend, on the Tryon River. The Tryon river fish kill was reported first and environmental officials were investigating that fishkill, when the Dunk River fishkill was reported. As it turns out, the Dunk river fishkill was much worse.
View Dunk River Fishkill July 21, 2007 in a larger map
Here is the PEI Government news release on July 23, 2007
Department Investigating Incident of Dead Fish
CHARLOTTETOWN, PEI -- The Department of Environment, Energy and Forestry is investigating an incident where dead fish were discovered in an Island stream Sunday.
The incident occurred in the east branch of the Tryon River in the Maple Plains area. A local resident called in the report at approximately 5 p.m. Sunday. Gerald MacDougall, Manager of Fish and Wildlife, says it appears the fish have been dead at least a couple of days.
Investigators were onsite Sunday evening and returned first thing Monday morning. They are taking water and fish samples for analysis, collecting dead fish, and working to identify the area of stream affected. During the initial stage of the investigation Sunday, investigators collected about 225 dead fish, including rainbow trout and brook trout.
The provincial Department of Environment, Energy and Forestry is continuing the investigation in co-operation with Environment Canada.
Later the same day, a followup news release
Department Updates Investigations Regarding Fish Mortalities
CHARLOTTETOWN, PEI -- The Department of Environment, Energy and Forestry is investigating a second incident of fish mortalities in an Island waterway. Gerald MacDougall, Manager of Fish and Wildlife, provided an update late Monday afternoon on the two incidents that are under investigation.
The second incident occurred in a tributary of the Dunk River in the Emerald area. It was discovered late Monday morning. Mr. MacDougall said the initial investigation suggests more than six kilometres of stream and thousands of fish have been affected. He said there are a significant number of large fish including salmon and rainbow trout. Fish samples were sent to the laboratory for analysis Monday afternoon and investigators were collecting other samples as the investigation continued.
The other incident of dead fish occurred in the upper east branch of the Tryon River. Mr. MacDougall said approximately four kilometres of stream were affected. Cleanup crews collected about 725 fish in total between Sunday evening and Monday. Investigators collected water, soil and vegetation samples, as well as dead fish. Samples have been sent to the laboratory for analysis.
In the case of both incidents, Mr. MacDougall said it appeared the fish were dead for at least a couple of days. The water temperature and dissolved oxygen readings in the streams were within the normal range for this time of year.
The provincial Department of Environment, Energy and Forestry is continuing to investigate the incidents.
The Department of Fisheries and Oceans will be making arrangements to close the affected areas to angling. It’s expected the closures will include the east branch of the Tryon River and the Dunk River upstream from Walls Road, including Scales Pond.
The next day, the province released another announcement:
INVESTIGATIONS CONTINUE
CHARLOTTETOWN, PEI -- As the cleanup continued on the Dunk River Tuesday, provincial crews checked several other major river systems in Prince Edward Island for dead fish. Gerald MacDougall, Manager of Fish and Wildlife, says there are no signs of fish mortalities on the other rivers.
The department is continuing to investigate an incident on the upper east branch of the Tryon River and one on the Dunk River. The first incident, reported Sunday evening, affected approximately four kilometres of stream. Cleanup crews collected about 725 dead fish Sunday and Monday.
Most of the cleanup on the Dunk River is expected to be completed Wednesday. That incident affected more than 12 kilometres of stream from the Emerald area to Scales Pond. Crews walked the river Tuesday to identify the area affected, take additional samples, and collect dead fish. About 500 fish have been picked up so far, however, Mr. MacDougall said the incident affected thousands of fish including many large rainbow and speckled trout and salmon. The water is very cloudy so the cleanup effort has been difficult and slow, he said.
The Dunk River and east branch of the Tryon River are closed to angling. While the Department of Fisheries and Oceans initially planned to close just a portion of the Dunk River, it was decided Tuesday to close the entire river to angling as a precautionary measure until more is known about the impact on the river. At this point, the closures are in effect for the remainder of the year.
The provincial Department of Environment, Energy and Forestry is continuing to investigate the incidents in co-operation with Environment Canada. Water, soil and vegetation samples, as well as dead fish, have been sent to the laboratory for analysis. Mr. MacDougall said it will be at least two to three weeks before results are received.
From CBC News on Tuesday July 24, 2007. Blame it on the rain... Milli !
Fish kill 'unfortunate,' says minister
Buffer zone legislation is working to prevent fish kills, despite two incidents in P.E.I. rivers on the weekend, says Environment Minister George Webster.
Webster calls the two major fish kills this week on the Tryon and Dunk Rivers "unfortunate and disappointing," but also said he believes buffer zone legislation has resulted in fewer fish kills in recent years. The province is making progress in protecting waterways, he said, but the Island received very heavy rain on the weekend and the current systems didn't hold up.
"As a result we have an issue that's under investigation and we will determine what happened in the end here. It will take us several weeks but we will find the answer that we need on this particular issue," he said.
Webster said all buffer zones in the area of the fish kills will be inspected to ensure buffer zone regulations were met. The province will do whatever it can to ensure the rivers rebound quickly.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/story/2007/07/24/fish...
By August 1, 2007, the full extent of the fishkill on the Dunk River was known
'Thousands' affected by fish kill
Gerald MacDougall, manager of P.E.I.'s fish and wildlife section, told CBC News on Tuesday that fisheries officers picked up 550 fish after the kills were discovered July 22 and 23, but that represents only a fraction of what was killed.
"We do estimate there's thousands of fish that would have been affected," said MacDougall.
"Dead fish were found over 12 kilometres of the stream, and the large size of the fish picked up would also indicate that there were more fish killed. Almost all were over five centimetres, so we're missing the smaller fish, which could represent over two-thirds of the population."
Of the fish recovered, 263 were brook trout, 140 were rainbow trout, and 85 were salmon. Officials will return to the two rivers Wednesday to find out if there are any fish left alive.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/story/2007/08/01/fish...
Darryl Guignion, former professor at the University of Prince Edward Island was interviewed by the CBC.
Buffers not enough to stop fish kills: biologist
Buffer zones intended to protect P.E.I. waterways from pesticide runoff need to be enhanced with other measures, says the biologist who reported the first of two fish kills discovered in eastern Prince County this week.
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Guignion suspects a buffer zone around a potato field may have been breached by the heavy rain last Saturday, carrying pesticide into the Dunk and Tryon rivers. Provincial officials said Tuesday they had hoped buffer zone laws would prevent this.
When fields are sloped, said Guignion, terracing, strip cropping and wider grass waterways should be used to help block the flow of water. Right now, these are voluntary measures only. Guignion believes they should be mandatory.
But Environment Minister George Webster says it's too early to say what recommendations, if any, may be made after the latest incidents.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/story/2007/07/25/fish...
Darryl was also interviewed by the Journal Pioneer
Dunk River fish kill shocks biologist
Now Guignion, after visiting the Dunk River only a few hours after scooping scores of trout from a tributary in the Tryon River, says he fears the worst.
The latest kill happened on the Dunks main branch, above Scales Pond.
Gerald MacDougall, provincial manager of fish and wildlife, says the toll could be in the thousands.
He also many large trout, three and half pounds or larger, had been found dead.
Guignion said trout were likely lying there for a couple of days. Many dead fish will be found for several kilometers along the river, he predicted.
What is especially distressing is the number of Atlantic salmon parr discovered, said Guignion.
There are only a few producing salmon rivers on the Island and the Dunk River is one of the best.
http://www.journalpioneer.com/Outdoor-activities/2007-07-23/article-1398...
This did get the government to do something
GOVERNMENT TO STRENGTHEN THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION ACT
CHARLOTTETOWN, PEI -- Provincial enforcement officials have directed six farm operations to remove potato headlands in nine fields. As a result of the investigations, Government is taking action to strengthen the Environmental Protection Act. The changes to the act will correct deficiencies in the existing legislation.
John Clements is head of the Investigation and Enforcement Section in the Department of Environment, Energy and Forestry. He said one field under investigation is on the Valleyfield River in Kings County and the others are on the Dunk River, in the area of the border between Prince and Queens Counties.
Mr. Clements said some of the fields do not have the proper buffer zone in place; and in all cases, there are problems with the headland, which is the area at the bottom of a field that is planted in a row crop such as potatoes. When the headland is within 200 metres of a watercourse, Mr. Clements said it should be planted in a perennial grass to help capture runoff. In these cases, Mr. Clements said the rows end in clay and there is then a potato headland – that is rows of potatoes planted across the bottom of the field.
I don't think anything came of this
Webster calls for wider buffer zones
A new plan to prevent future fish kills in Island waterways could include wider buffers zones between farm fields and waterways, P.E.I. Environment Minister George Webster said on Friday.
Speaking on CBC Radio One's Island Morning, Webster said his plan goes beyond changing the Environmental Protection Act. He said it's a four-pronged approach to protect Island streams and rivers from pesticide runoff from farmers' fields.
"We are currently looking at buffer zone widening. I personally think that's something that has to be done," said Webster. He also noted Armand DesRoches has been appointed to head up a commission to look at nitrates in the environment.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/story/2007/09/14/webs...
Farmer named in buffer zone dispute
P.E.I.'s Department of Environment has ordered the brother of the provincial environment minister to remove a potato crop deemed to be too close to a water course.
The order comes as part of an investigation into major fish kills on the Dunk and Tryon rivers. If he does not comply, Webster faces a fine of $220 a day.
The province asked nine farmers to pull crops, and all of complied except for Webster. Provincial officials told CBC News earlier this week Webster disputes that there is a problem in his field. Webster is refusing to comment on the issue.
To date there's been no connection made between any of the fields in question and the fish kills.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/story/2007/08/24/webs...
Farmer denies contamination claims
A P.E.I. farmer accused of breaking environmental regulations said Friday his fields pose no threat to the environment, but he will consider pulling up part of his crop.
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As part of their investigation, officials did aerial surveys of the province, looking for fields adjacent to waterways that did not provide a sufficient buffer zone.
The initial survey identified nine farms and the farmers were asked to comply with regulations and pull up some of their crops and replace them with grass. Webster was given 72 hours to comply or face fines of $220 a day
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/story/2007/08/24/webs...
Can't pin down cause of fish kills: officials
Environment Canada cannot determine what caused two major fish kills in central P.E.I. in July, the department announced Monday.
In a news release, Environment Canada said the amount of time that passed before the dead fish were discovered — probably about two days — made it impossible to determine any certain cause, because pesticides in the river would have degraded in that time.
Because the cause of the kills cannot be determined with certainty, there will be no charges laid
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/story/2007/10/15/fish...
Here is the Environment Canada News Release
Laboratory Test Results Regarding Fish Kills Announced
DARTMOUTH, NS, October 15, 2007- Environment Canada announced today that it has completed its testing of samples taken after fish kills at Dunk River and Tryon River, Prince Edward Island, in July 2007 and it concluded that it cannot determine the exact cause of either incident.
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The pesticide Chlorothalonil was found in samples taken from the Tryon River and the pesticide Metribuzin was found in samples taken from the Dunk River. The levels of both pesticides detected were not high enough to cause fish kills.
The low amount of pesticide found in the fish tissue samples is not surprising given the amount of time between when the fish kills occurred and when the samples were gathered. The Tryon River fish kill was reported two days after it took place, and the Dunk River fish kill was reported three days after it occurred. Government officials gathered samples immediately after each kill was initially reported. However because the fish were dead for at least two days before the sampling began, the amount of pesticide in them may have degraded in that time.
http://www.ec.gc.ca/default.asp?lang=en&n=714D9AAE-1&news=68CA9BC9-9371-...
Details About the Analyses of Samples Taken Regarding the Fish Kills on the Tryon River and Dunk River in July 2007
The results for the water samples from the Tryon River showed levels of the pesticide Chlorothalonil five times higher than the Guideline for Protection of Freshwater Aquatic Life, established by the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment. These samples, however, did not contain levels of Chlorothalonil sufficient to kill fish. Officials believe that the pesticide was present at higher levels immediately after the rainfall event, which occurred three days before the samples were collected.
No Chlorothalonil was detected in the Dunk River water samples, nor in any of the fish tissue samples. Water samples taken at the Dunk River contained the pesticide Metribuzin, at levels three times higher than the Guideline for Protection of Freshwater Aquatic Life. However, Metribuzin is less toxic than Chlorothalonil and is not considered the cause of the fish kill in the Dunk River.
The pesticide Linuron was also detected in very small amounts in Dunk River and Tryon River water samples. These detections were in amounts much lower than the Guideline for Protection of Freshwater Aquatic Life and the amounts detected would not be considered toxic to fish. Linuron was also found in fish tissue samples, but also at levels that would not be considered toxic to fish. Additionally, three other pesticides, Carbofuran, Metalaxyl and B-Endosulfan, were also found in trace amounts in some water and sediment samples, at levels that would not be toxic to any aquatic life.
