Cardigan River's waters are clear after last year's fish kill, and residents are cautiously optimistic

Stephen Brun · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 16, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 10 minutes ago

The origin of a food termination past summertime successful an eastbound P.E.I. stream remains a mystery, and immoderate are keeping a adjacent oculus connected the authorities of the water. 

Fish began showing up dormant successful the Cardigan River, adjacent the 48 Road, successful June 2024. The full fig of much than 300 dormant included brook trout, rainbow trout, juvenile salmon and stickleback.

Nearly a twelvemonth later, the waters are clear, which has radical who usage the stream pleased. 

"It's truly encouraging, due to the fact that I'm really putting my sportfishing enactment in… I tin travel it each the mode down, I tin spot it each the mode down," said Ivan Hughes, who grew up sportfishing successful the Cardigan River. 

"I deliberation if it's bully for me, it's besides going to beryllium bully for the fish." 

WATCH | All-clear fixed for h2o successful the Cardigan River pursuing June 2024 food kill:

Fish kills tin hap for respective reasons: algal blooms, droughts, infectious diseases, oregon dense rainfall washing silt into a shallow h2o system, perchance accompanied by traces of cultivation oregon concern chemicals.

At the clip the dormant food were discovered, officials besides noticed a thick, smelly sludge successful the water.

But investigating of samples done by Fisheries and Oceans Canada, oregon DFO, the period aft the food termination showed nary abnormalities successful the h2o and were inconclusive arsenic to the cause. 

This month, DFO said that remains the case. 

"On July 9, 2024, Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) received the results from Environment and Climate Change Canada, which showed nary abnormalities successful the h2o chemistry of the collected samples," the bureau said successful a connection to CBC News. 

"As such, the tests are inconclusive and DFO has closed the probe successful this matter."

The study does suggest h2o prime could person been an contented astatine the time. It said things similar h2o somesthesia oregon nutrient levels could person been issues.

While the tests showed higher levels of chloride, sodium and nitrogen adjacent a food hatchery settling pond, the amounts were wrong biology guidelines.

Gideon Pringle, the managing manager of the Mowi hatchery, said successful an email, "There is nary crushed to judge that our facilities were successful immoderate mode connected with the food termination that was reported."

There is cautious optimism from radical similar Hughes astir what could hap with the stream this year. 

He enactment unneurotic a radical of astir 20 acrophobic residents, the Cardigan River Community Group, who person been moving with Mowi and the provincial and national governments to support the waters clean. 

"You're astir devastated reasoning that we had bully steadfast waters present and however would this happen, wherefore would it happen? Just rather acrophobic for the watercourse itself due to the fact that this was an enjoyable spot to beryllium and for food to beryllium killed successful it, we weren't precise happy," helium said. 

"The sanction of the crippled present is we privation radical to travel backmost into this watercourse and the streams astir Cardigan and bask them and food again and bask them conscionable similar we did 30, 40 years ago." 

About 4,000 brook trout fingerlings were released into the stream aft the kill, and Hughes said helium hasn't seen immoderate dormant food successful the country since the food termination past June.