I am not a long time resident of Nelson but I have been here for 16 years, long enough to see the damage the dams have done. In Manitoba we had lots of small lakes that were loaded with crayfish, fresh water shrimp and all the good bugs that fish live on. Kootenay Lake is dead. Everyone wonders why there are no fish. Well, it is pretty obvious to me. Big business rules the world.
Now that they have dredged the lake at the mouth for the ferry they have been able to lower the lake even more. All the creatures that live on the shore have died because their homes have been destroyed. There is nothing left to feed the small creatures that feed the fish. It makes me laugh. I do geothermal and they won’t allow us to disturb the shore line but because hydro is big business they can do what they want.
Columbia Basin trust gets millions from the money they invested in the dams but they put nothing back into the lake that they destroyed. Same with the power companies, they put nothing back into fixing the damage they do every year by lowering the lake.
I realize it cannot be helped but at least stock the lake. Hire some biologists. Make some channels for the ling cod to spawn down at Creston were they use to spawn before they dammed it up. The grandchildren won’t fish because they sit in the boat for six hours to even get a bite, not like it use to be 50 years ago.
Garry Meadows
Nelson
