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[Dave]

Anglers will be happy to know spawning gravel taken from the lower river has recently been added to the outlet of Chilliwack Lake.  This project was done by DFO’s habitat restoration unit, with collaboration from the Fraser Valley Watersheds Coalition, and was partially funded by anglers themselves, through the proceeds of the Wally Hall Jr. steelhead derby.
FWR readers will know the outlet of Chilliwack Lake is extremely valuable spawning habitat and annually has the most wild early run steelhead we have observed over six years of observations.  In addition to steelhead this new gravel (1989 square meters, roughly the size of a hockey rink!) will be utilized by pinks, coho and summer run chinooks.

Buck and I encourage anyone interested to head up that way for a look – I think you will be impressed.

[Rodney]

Great Dave! Just downstream from the bridge? Or above?

[Dave]

Above the bridge on the left bank looking out to the lake.

[norton]

Thats great dave. We placed spawning gravel in the same location in 1995. I guess it was due to be replenished.

[Rodney]

[Dave]

Thanks for posting these pictures.  We can't wait till April - May to see how the steelhead like it ...
I will take a few trips up there this fall to document coho usage and report back.
Awesome project, funded in part by anglers.  Great stuff

[GordJ]

So gravel mining is okay if it is for a "good" use but bad if it is for construction? This is confusing for me.

[Dave]

Gordj, a small proportion of the gravel extracted from the lower river is now appropriated to be replaced into the upper river where it is desperately needed for spawning salmonids.
Gravel removals in the lower river every other year will not stop, for many reasons, but the fact that local and federal government departments, after years of bickering, have agreed to replace gravel into the upper river is a good news story to me.

The proponents of this project do not condone gravel mining in the lower river; full stop. But we do consider projects like this to be a sensible, practical, and logical concession to something many consider to be a money grab by the City of Chilliwack.

Nowadays, you take what you can get.

 

[chris gadsden]

Gordj, a small proportion of the gravel extracted from the lower river is now appropriated to be replaced into the upper river where it is desperately needed for spawning salmonids.
Gravel removals in the lower river every other year will not stop, for many reasons, but the fact that local and federal government departments, after years of bickering, have agreed to replace gravel into the upper river is a good news story to me.

The proponents of this project do not condone gravel mining in the lower river; full stop. But we do consider projects like this to be a sensible, practical, and logical concession to something many consider to be a money grab by the City of Chilliwack.

Nowadays, you take what you can get.

Dave who did the negotiating to get this project to move forward?

[Dave]

Dave who did the negotiating to get this project to move forward?

DFO, the Fraser Valley Watersheds Coalition, the City of Chilliwack and the Sto-Lo Tribal Council.

[chris gadsden]

DFO, the Fraser Valley Watersheds Coalition, the City of Chilliwack and the Sto-Lo Tribal Council.

Thank you.