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Meziadin Fishway - North Coast
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Daily
Large Chinook Counts 1990-2007 [HTML]
[PDF]
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Daily
Coho Counts 1990-2007 [HTML]
[PDF]
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Daily
Large Sockeye Counts 1990 - 2007 [HTML]
[PDF]
The Meziadin Fishway
The Meziadin River flows
into the Nass River system approximately 180 km from where the
Nass flows into Portland Inlet. The known major sockeye producers
in the Nass River system include Meziadin, Bowser, Damdochax,
and Fred Wright lakes. The Meziadin fishway was constructed
to bypass a series of waterfalls known as Victoria Falls. The
purpose of the fishway was to provide access to existing spawning
grounds above the falls and to provide a method of determining
the spawning escapement of sockeye salmon in the Meziadin system.
Previous studies in the late 50’s indicated high fish mortality
was occurring due to the inability of the salmon to move past
Victoria Falls.
Prior to the construction of the Meziadin fishway in 1966, it was thought that the
Meziadin system produced less than 40% of the total Nass sockeye return. Since the
completion of the fishway it has been discovered that 70 to 80% of the Nass River sockeye
run returns to the Meziadin system.
The Meziadin fishway was designed either to operate unmanned or to hold enumeration
facilities, which are operated by support personnel. Since 1966, the fishway has been
manned during each season. Operations usually begin in the first week of July. The exact
starting date is determined by water levels, which must be low enough to allow personnel
to enter the water and install trap panels at the end of the fishway.
The personnel operating the fishway are responsible for the daily counts of returning
salmon, biological sampling, water level measurements and camp maintenance. The
enumeration continues until early September. Sockeye salmon are also sampled on a daily
basis for biological information. The number of fish sampled each day is determined by
calculating one percent of the total count from the previous day up to a total of one
hundred fish. The fish are dipped from the holding trap, sampled and returned alive to the
river.
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