Friday, May 24, 2019 ~ SOOKE
~ West Shore Voice News
The organizers of a new salmon hatchery have been involved in discussion for six months with the staff at the District of Sooke regarding the location of the hatchery being in a flood plain.
But a building permit has not yet been issued.
“Meanwhile, we have proceeded with the building as the salmon are returning in October and we could not wait,” said Mike Hicks. “The building is totally open and can be inspected at any time,” said Hicks. The foundation is in, and trusses are up.
Hicks also noted that a hatchery must be located in a flood plain where the interaction with the fish — to the benefit of restoring and enhancing the fish population — is entirely the point.
District of Sooke staff visited the construction site yesterday May 23 with an order that halted construction on the project which began in December 2018. Apparently there are concerns about construction within a flood plain. The district had demanded that the Juan de Fuca Salmon Restoration Society apply for an exemption to allow it to build on a flood plain.
The District has been without a permanent Chief Administrative Officer (head of staff) since last year. Interim CAO Don Schaeffer only just issued the stop work order, with the project appearing to be proceeding in violation of the municipal rules.
Significant funds were raised by Hicks and the Juan de Fuca Salmon Restoration Society including the donation of in-kind services by several equipment operators and many suppliers who probably had timeline restrictions of their own.
“Yes, we are on a flood plain, but there is a general exemption under the regulations for the type of use we have going on. All we have is a concrete floor, some tanks and fish. No one lives in the building and we store no other materials that would qualify under their assumed goods regulation,” said Wally Vowels, one of the volunteers on the project. Apparently all the electrical is above the 100-year flood level.
“We are hoping the District of Sooke will adopt the Provincial guidelines and issue a permit following the Monday night Council meeting,” said Hicks.
The new hatchery is on CRD land, and Hicks says the CRD fully supports the project. CRD staff are now compiling the needed documents and presenting them to the District of Sooke. It’s unclear why the administrative disconnect took place, given that all the necessary steps are evident.
Hicks is the Director of the Juan de Fuca Electoral Area. For many years he has been active in the fishing community in the Sooke and Juan de Fuca areas. In particular, he has helped guide the fundraising and project development of the new hatchery which replaces the previous Jack Brooks Hatchery which could no longer support the production of salmon fry due to minimal water in the creek alongside.
The new Sooke River Jack Brooks Hatchery has the potential to increase the Sooke River Chinook run from 500 to 5,000. Located on Rock Creek (a tributary of DeMamiel Stream on land owned by Timber West Ltd) the Jack Brooks Hatchery has been operating since 1981, supported with funds and volunteer support by the Sooke Salmon Enhancement Society.
Climate change has dramatically reduced the supply of water resulting in the early release of Chinook fry and increased mortality, it is explained in a hatchery report. The fry are released in April at a weight of 2 grams rather than in June at a weight of 4 grams.
The Juan de Fuca Salmon Restoration Society has partnered with the Jack Brooks Hatchery and started planing to build a new hatchery on Charters River to replace the old Jack Brooks Hatchery. Adjacent to the Charter’s Creek Interpretive Center, the 5,000 sq ft state-of-the-art hatchery will receive water directly from the Capital Regional District (CRD)’s Sooke Reservoir. This constant and guaranteed source of Sooke River water will result in ideal conditions, a later smolt release date, and a dramatic increase in Chinook production and survival.
The new location is centrally located next to the Charter’s Interpretive Center, CRD Park’s entrance, and Sooke River Road which will provide access to a steady flow of visitors and volunteers into the future. The advantage of the new location is the reduced stress on the mature
juvenile Chinook as a result of less travel time, especially with the increased traffic through the municipality of Sooke and associated delays.
The existing hatchery that is being phased out is located off a logging road in a remote area. The new Charters Creek location will be 300 ft from Sooke River Road (which now has improved access with signalized lights at Highway 14 / Sooke Road), making it readily accessible to the thousands of general public, students and potential volunteers who also visit the nearby Sooke Potholes which is a CRD Regional Park.
Wi-fi is available which will enable a live-cam for security, monitoring and marketing.
The original estimate for the cost of building construction and hatchery equipment is $840,000 in materials and labour. Construction completion is aiming for September 30, 2019.