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Hope for a River
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Thursday 25th February, 2010 Another front page away from home. I was going to write about cormorants, but my take is different than a lot of anglers, and I know it has been discussed before. Personally I like cormorants and I like otters. To me I want nature as a whole or not at all. I do understand that we have modified the natural environment and I realize that some “control” isn’t a bad thing, but killing a competitor is not a solution, especially when we cause the problem with our own harvest, habitat destruction, and over-use. Anyways, I wasn’t planning on talking about them so I won’t. I will mention though, that despite a half eaten rainbow, I love seeing sign of otters on one of our local rivers. I have written about this river before and it is well known in southern Alberta. Massive man-made changes to the environment are a relatively recent activity in Western Canada, especially when compared to the changes that have occurred in Europe. Prior to the 1900’s the Crowsnest River and valley were relatively undisturbed. By the 1930’s the railway, mining, and urbanization had lead to extensive damage… all in the name of progress. One of the worst kicks to the river occurred in the 20’s when the locals decided to straighten a long section of river to “relieve” flooding. The straightened channel resulted in a uniform stretch of river with very little features for fish to use. On top of this a few local mines were using the river and floodplain as a waste dump. Luckily mining practices, standards, and economics have changed and the Crowsnest valley has seen an end to mining. Now if only people would stop moving in we could get rid of the threatening urban expansion. Despite the damages, the river has developed into an excellent fishery. Good numbers of fish, good average sizes (thanks to all the nutrients dumped), and exceptional scenery make it a destination for folks from around the world. To add to the draw, a group of folks have got together and have set the wheels in motion to start restoring some of the river back to its natural path. I don’t want to jump the gun and discuss this in too much detail (I presented this project over a year ago to a local conservation group and can barely contain myself when I think of the works). I will say that this is going to be a first for Alberta, even though these types of meander restorations are ‘common’ in the USA. As the project moves forward, I’ll continue to write about it, but for now, it is good to be inspired by what a few can accomplish with the right nudges here and there. Hopefully within a couple of years a 80 year old blight will be corrected.
Never give up…
 
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