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harbour

Saturday September 8, 2018

September 7, 2018 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday September 8, 2018

Scientists urging people to stop dumping aquarium and market fish into Hamilton Harbour

Harbour scientists say they have been finding some strange new creatures in Hamilton Harbour this summer, suggesting people are dumping aquarium and fish market species into the waters.

June 24, 2015

“We’ve seen some fish that really should not be there and it’s really a sign of people purposefully and irresponsibly and illegally releasing fish into Hamilton Harbour,” said Becky Cudmore, senior science adviser on aquatic invasive species with Fisheries and Oceans Canada.

Among the findings are four tilapia fish and a type of aquarium catfish. This is on top of an established population of goldfish, the outcome of untold numbers of people emptying their aquarium fish into the bay and Cootes Paradise.

“What we are seeing with goldfish is something we don’t want to see happening with other species,” she said.

She believes the tilapia, a non-native species originally from the Middle East and Africa, were bought at a fish market and then released into the harbour in a misguided effort to save the fish from being eaten.

“It’s not fair to the fish because they are not meant to be in that water,” said Cudmore. She urged people with unwanted aquarium fish to take the fish to pet rescue centres or back to the store where they bought them.

She expects tilapia in the harbour will die out over the winter because the species prefers tropical environments. But some could survive by using warm water effluent from Hamilton steel mills as an overwintering haven.

Tys Theijsmeijer, the head of natural lands for the Royal Botanical Gardens, says as well as adversely affecting native species, introduced species can bring new diseases to the ecosystem. (Source: Hamilton Spectator) 

 

Posted in: Hamilton Tagged: carp, crab, diversity, ecosystem, fish, goldfish, Hamilton, harbour, invasive, mitten, native, species, tilapia

Saturday January 9, 2015

January 8, 2016 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator Ð Saturday January 9, 2015 Hamilton Harbour becoming giant goldfish bowl Millions of tiny ones are swimming around after a summer that saw weather and water conditions turn Cootes Paradise into a massive breeding ground for the carp-like creatures. The non-native fish species Ñ that people buy as pets and sometimes, ill-advisedly, release into local waterways Ñ have suddenly gone viral in the bay and have become the latest complication in its rehabilitation. It used to be that goldfish in the Ontario outdoors had a very low survival rate and little success at reproducing. But officials at the Royal Botanical Gardens and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada say that's been changing in recent years in the warmer weather we've been experiencing. They've noticed exponential increases in numbers being counted at the Desjardins Canal Fishway Ñ from 20 or less per year in the late 1990s to 2,500 this past spring. And early this winter, millions of five centimetre, young-of-the-year goldfish have been seen swimming in giant schools at various locations in the harbour, including the section of the canal below the railway bridge. "They seem to be heading toward taking over," says Tys Theysmeyer, the head of natural lands for the RBG. Becky Cudmore, an invasive species expert with Fisheries and Oceans Canada, says it's a problem being noticed at numerous locations in the lower great lakes, with Hamilton Harbour being a particular hot spot. "With increased warming trends we're seeing an increased ability of some fish species to survive in areas where we wouldn't think they could survive," she says. Theysmeyer says low water levels in the early summer in Cootes Paradise Ñ where fish tend to reproduce Ñ that suddenly rose later on also assisted goldfish reproduction. Shallow water is good for eggs, slightly deeper water is better as the tiny fish start to swim around. When water levels jumped 50 cms, d

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday January 9, 2015

Hamilton Harbour becoming giant goldfish bowl

Millions of tiny ones are swimming around after a summer that saw weather and water conditions turn Cootes Paradise into a massive breeding ground for the carp-like creatures.

The non-native fish species — that people buy as pets and sometimes, ill-advisedly, release into local waterways — have suddenly gone viral in the bay and have become the latest complication in its rehabilitation.

It used to be that goldfish in the Ontario outdoors had a very low survival rate and little success at reproducing.

But officials at the Royal Botanical Gardens and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada say that’s been changing in recent years in the warmer weather we’ve been experiencing.

They’ve noticed exponential increases in numbers being counted at the Desjardins Canal Fishway — from 20 or less per year in the late 1990s to 2,500 this past spring. And early this winter, millions of five centimetre, young-of-the-year goldfish have been seen swimming in giant schools at various locations in the harbour, including the section of the canal below the railway bridge.

“They seem to be heading toward taking over,” says Tys Theysmeyer, the head of natural lands for the RBG.

Becky Cudmore, an invasive species expert with Fisheries and Oceans Canada, says it’s a problem being noticed at numerous locations in the lower great lakes, with Hamilton Harbour being a particular hot spot.

“With increased warming trends we’re seeing an increased ability of some fish species to survive in areas where we wouldn’t think they could survive,” she says.

Theysmeyer says low water levels in the early summer in Cootes Paradise — where fish tend to reproduce — that suddenly rose later on also assisted goldfish reproduction. Shallow water is good for eggs, slightly deeper water is better as the tiny fish start to swim around.

When water levels jumped 50 cms, doubling the volume of water, Cootes Paradise “basically turned into a goldfish factory,” he says.

Most troubling, he says, is when the invading fish become fully grown. They can reach more than 40 cms in length, much smaller than mature carp, but big enough to cause similar damage to a fragile ecosystem.

Carp are destructive because they crowd out other species and are constantly churning up the bottom in their search for food. This inhibits the growth of plants and indigenous fish species.

The RBG has taken extensive steps to push them out of Cootes Paradise, most notably by using the fishway that operates like a gate for hand sorting of desirable and non-desirable species trying to return from Hamilton Harbour to Cootes in the spring. Those efforts have been largely successful.

But huge populations of carp remain in the harbour throughout the year and are a factor in discouraging the growth of desirable fish species such as pike and bass there. (Source: Hamilton Spectator)

 

Posted in: Hamilton Tagged: biology, carp, Cootes, fish, goldfish, Hamilton, harbour, invasive, Paradise, species

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

June 23, 2014 by Graeme MacKay

By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday, June 24, 2014

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

City wants to push ahead with Randle Reef work

Mayor Bob Bratina says Randle Reef project partners are searching for a way to begin work this year despite delays caused by over-budget construction bids.

April 27, 2002

Environment Canada recently revealed all construction bids have come in over budget for the first stage of the $138.9-million project to trap more than a million tonnes of coal tar sludge in Hamilton Harbour.

Work on building a steel-walled containment facility was supposed to start this spring, but may now be put off until sometime next year.

Bratina said he and city manager Chris Murray met with federal officials over the weekend and confirmed “absolute support” for the project, including the contentious decision to contain rather than dig up the pollution.

November 9, 2007

He said federal officials are also convinced the $139-million budget for the project is on target, despite “significant” budget overruns from all bidders.

Federal officials will meet with bidders in July to go over the disparities in detail.

But in the meantime, Bratina said the city and other project partners are keen to “push ahead” on some aspect of the stalled project this year, if possible.

December 20, 2012

He conceded any decision to hive off a portion of the project would need federal approval, but expressed hope more options would come out of talks with bidders next month.

“We really need to show the public that our commitment is there and we’re willing to start the project and deal with disparities as we go along.” (Source: Hamilton Spectator)

 

Posted in: Hamilton Tagged: clean up, Editorial Cartoon, environment, Hamilton, harbour, pollution, Randle Reef, Stelco

Friday, June 28, 2013

June 28, 2013 by Graeme MacKay

Friday June 28, 2013By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday June 28, 2013

Ahoy, tall ships arriving

If you hear cannons blasting on the bay Friday afternoon, don’t be alarmed.

It will be friendly fire to signify the start of an amazing weekend of maritime history.

Between 2 and 4 p.m., six majestic tall ships from around the world will sail into and around Hamilton Harbour in a stunning display of marine history to officially begin the Tall Ships Hamilton event.

As each vessel enters the bay, those with armaments will fire their cannons in salute and the Haida, a Second World War destroyer permanently docked at Pier VIII, will blast return charges from its four-inch guns to welcome the arrival.

Unfortunately, rain is expected during the Parade of Sail, but officials say they plan to continue with as much of the ceremony as possible. The ships will be on display Saturday and Sunday at Pier 8. (Source: Hamilton Spectator)

Posted in: Hamilton Tagged: 1812 Bicentennial, Hamilton, harbour, history, tall ships, War of 1812

Friday February 3, 2012

February 3, 2012 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday February 3, 2012

Ontario Place Closed

By the standards of government communications, as we know them today, it was downright poetic.

“Ontario Place is Ontario,” the advertisement in the Nov. 10, 1970, edition of The Globe and Mail proclaimed. “It will show us and the world where we’ve been, where we are and where we are going.”

If we’re going to be honest, even in its heyday the lakeside complex never did quite live up to those lofty dreams. It was a great place to see a concert, at least back in the era of the quaint little Forum and its revolving stage. It offered a unique movie-going experience, until commercial chains put in Imax theatres of their own. It had bumper boats and a waterslide and a “punching bag forest,” which all held a certain magic for kids. None of this really made it the beacon to the world – Toronto’s answer to Expo 67 – that its creators envisioned.

But there was something noble about those ambitions. And there is something depressing about how they ultimately panned out: the provincial government of the day announcing Wednesday that it’s indefinitely shutting most of Ontario Place’s current operations, because it’s tired of losing $20-million a year.

This is what it’s come down to for a province $16-billion in the hole, scratching and clawing for any dollar it can save. Rob Ford, the hawkish mayor of Toronto, likes to talk about keeping things we “need to have,” while letting go of ones that are just “nice to have.” Dalton McGuinty’s provincial Liberals don’t speak quite as bluntly, but with the odd exception – an ongoing investment in the Pan Am Games – they increasingly find themselves forced to embrace a similar philosophy. (Source: Globe & Mail) 

 

Posted in: Ontario Tagged: Amusement, closure, Hamilton, harbour, Ontario, Ontario Place, renovation, sale, Toronto, white elephant
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