By Ethan Ready

Salmon Funding

Spruce City Wildlife receives $240k for Upper Fraser Chinook Strategic Enhancement Project

Jul 16, 2020 | 4:46 PM

PRINCE GEORGE – Long before the Big Bar Landslide, which heavily restricted passage of salmon to their spawning grounds, salmon have been in trouble through British Columbia.

For this reason, the Spruce City Wildlife Association (SCWA) is excited to be receiving a substantial about of funding for their hatchery and salmon program on River Road in Prince George. Receiving $240,000 in funding from the BC Salmon Restoration and Innovation Fund (BCSRIF), they’ll put it towards efforts for the Upper Fraser Chinook Strategic Enhancement Project.

“It means so much, not only for Spruce City but for salmon in general up here,” said Steve Hamilton, SCWA President. “We’ve got spring and summer chinook 5-2’s. Some are threatened, some are endangered, so that allows us to essentially start working on them both”

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Under the permits they operate under, SCWA works exclusively with raising Chinook salmon.

According to Hamilton, Spruce City plans on putting this funding towards a myriad of things.

“A lot of our stuff is physically and manually done. Now we’re going to be able to go automated. We’ll have temperature monitoring, PH monitoring, water levels that we can check with the touch of a phone,” added Hamilton.

They also now have a backup generator that kicks in in the event that their power was ever to go out at the hatchery. Within 30 seconds, the generator would kick in and their eggs are then safe without someone needing to physically go down to the hatchery to fix the issue.

Amidst the pandemic, Hamilton says volunteers are of no concern to them in coordinating their efforts, stating their group is committed to the project.

The British Columbia Salmon Restoration and Innovation Fund is a contribution program funded jointly by the federal and provincial government. The fund will provide an investment of up to $142.85 million over 5 years to support BC’s fish and seafood sector, and to ensure the sustainability of wild Pacific salmon and other B.C. fish stocks.

“Our Volunteer team at SCWA is extremely excited to receive this support. This will take us to the next level in trying to strategically rebuild some stocks in the Upper and Mid Fraser” said Dustin Snyder, SCWA Vice President and Director of Stock Rebuilding Programs.

The fund supports protection and restoration activities for priority wild fish stocks, including salmon, as well as projects that will ensure the fish and seafood sector in BC is positioned for long-term environmental and economic sustainability.

The federal government will provide 70 per cent of the funding, with the remaining 30 per cent coming from the Province of B.C.