WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 27 2023
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MASS FISH KILLS
Researchers hunting for ways to save salmon from toxic chemicals BRENT RICHTER
brichter@nsnews.com
The federal government is putting $1.8 million into a UBC study that could one day help prevent mass fish kills like the one the North Shore saw in October.
Dozens of coho salmon were killed as they returned to spawn the Brothers Creek system. The most likely culprit was 6PPD-quinone – a chemical that’s sprayed on tires to extend their life, but among the most toxic in the world for salmon. It tends to accumulate on roadsides and then is washed into the creeks by stormwater. While some species aren’t so susceptible, coho will die within hours of exposure to as little as a millionth of a gram of 6PPD per litre of water. The UBC study led by researchers Rachel Scholes and Timothy Rodgers builds on a partnership with Fisheries and Oceans Canada researchers measuring the presence of 6PPD-quinone in more than 70 creeks on the South Coast, Vancouver Island and Fraser Valley.
Over the next three years, they’re hoping to zero in on where the hotspots are and start planning mitigation measures. “We’re actually really interested in implementing our findings,” Scholes said. “Hopefully, it means healthier urban creeks and streams.” The good news is that the first phase of their study found very promising results using rain gardens or other biofiltration systems that include rocks, soil and plants, as a means to keep contaminants out of the gills of fish. “The big result was just that for all but the biggest storms, the 6PPDquinone was really well-captured by these rain gardens,” Rodgers said. “More than 90-plus per cent.” Although rain gardens have already shown promise, the second phase of the study will also look at how they could be made even more effective by adding different levels of biochar, a form of charcoal, to the soil mix to see if it will capture even more of the chemical. Continued on A25
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STAND UP PENGUIN BOARDER Deep Cove Kayak’s Mike Darbyshire, a.k.a. the penguin, invite all to the 42nd annual Penguin Plunge in Deep Cove on Monday, Jan. 1. Visit nsnews.com for full details about the plunge. PAUL MCGRATH / NSN