Trout Unlimited casts online for rescue funds
Organization tries crowdfunding to pay for fish preservation effort
A non- profit that works to protect waterways has launched a unique fundraising campaign this year to help pay for an ongoing project that rescues stranded fish in irrigation canals each fall.
The Trout Unlimited project, which relies on help from the province and dozens of volunteers, has rescued 850,000 fish since it started in 1998.
It’s short $ 8,200 this year, so the organization has decided to try an online Indiegogo campaign.
“Normally, the project is funded by the provincial government,” said Lesley Peterson, provincial biologist for Trout Unlimited Canada. “This year, the province decided to move forward on a different project.”
Provincial money will still allow the annual fish rescue to take place in the Carseland Canal, but some of it will now go toward research to monitor fish populations in the waterway.
It will include implanting fish with transmitters to track their movements and answer some questions around whether they are spending the entire summer in the canals or if they are able to move back up the river.
As a result, some of the other canals are without dollars for the annual fish rescue that takes place once the channels are emptied in the fall.
When the diverted water is no longer needed, the canals are closed and the water is drained. Any fish left are trapped because there’s no way for them to return to the rivers.
The rescues try to save as many fish as possible before they die.
Peterson said any money raised through Indiegogo will help pay for the rescues in the Western Headwaters Canal near Calgary and the Lethbridge northern canal near Fort Macleod.
“We’re just looking to cover the costs,” she said, noting they’ve always relied on volunteers as part of the project.
Peterson said they have a lot of support over the years so they’ve decided to try their first crowdfunding campaign.
“It’s unique,” she said. “We’ve had so much interest from volunteers over the years.
“They are very giving of their time.
“We’re hoping those who can’t give their time will give money.”
For more information on the campaign, go to www. indiegogo. com/ projects/ fish- rescue#/ story.
We’ve had so much interest from volunteers ... They are very giving of their time. We’re hoping those who can’t give time will give money.