STOP Habitat Loss Now
Canada will see irreversible negative effects on the lives of fish and other species if we do not remove thousands of barriers affecting fish passage. Thousands of barriers that are blocking fish migration must be fixed.
Dammed Inconvenient
Many of Canada’s lakes, streams and rivers are part of ancient migratory routes that have been travelled by aquatic species for thousands of years. At various stages of life, salmon, sturgeon, American Eel and many other species have evolved to use different parts of these systems to hatch, mature and breed.
Over time, the construction of road culverts, dams and other structures has created barriers to fish swimming these ancient routes. In many places, fish can no longer pass from one important habitat to another. This loss of passage has been a major factor in the decline and disappearance of many species.
The Canadian Wildlife Federation is actively tracking and mapping aquatic barriers through the Canadian Aquatic Barriers Database (CABD). What we’ve learned so far tells a damming story about the health of Canada’s waterways. For example, while there are over 30,000 dams across Canada, only 250 are currently known to have fishways that provide upstream passage for aquatic species. While some rivers and streams have many kilometres of unobstructed flow, others have so many barriers they are simply unavailable to many species.
The good news is that many of these aquatic barriers can be fixed or decommissioned. Other measures can be taken to ensure safe passage around them. The United States is meeting this challenge head on by funding and implementing programs that have seen 800 dams removed in the past 10 years. Similarly, within the European Union in 2022 there were 325 river barriers removed, including several hydro-electric dams. Closer to home, in British Columbia, CWF is working with multiple partners to restore hundreds of kilometres of fish passage throughout the province. In the past five years, this work has restored access to more than 3.3 million square metres of habitat (328 hectares) at 25 sites throughout British Columbia.
On a national scale, however, Canada has fallen behind. A lack of federal funding and coordination on this issue means further endangerment of our nation’s freshwater species.
