I have been working the last few days to organize a bit of a welcoming at Island 22 tomorrow, Thursday for around 12:30 for the paddlers. Some families have made up some signs in support of this event. I also will be providing some coffee and goodies. If you have an hour or so to spare and you live in the Chilliwack area I would appreciate a few people joining in the welcoming. There also will be an opportunity to sign the petition against fish farms.
Thanks,
Chris
Chilliwack Progress
Paddlers on the Fraser trying to save wild salmon
Salmon stewards are paddling down the Fraser River this week to publicize the plight of wild salmon.
Text By Jennifer Feinberg - Chilliwack Progress
Published: April 27, 2010 2:00 PM
Updated: April 27, 2010 3:57 PM
What started out as "a small idea" to support the Get Out Migration campaign to remove fish farms in salmon migration routes, has blossomed into a related effort called the Fraser River Paddle for Wild Salmon.
"The goal is to remind people who live along the river that we must care for this incredible river, not contaminate it, and to encourage people to support Alexandra Morton’s brave quest to say to fish farms, get out!" event organizer Elena Edwards said in a news release.
The Fraser paddlers will be on the water for 10 days, stopping to greet wild salmon advocates and collect petitions in a range of communities. The premise is that a combination of overfishing, climate change, and fish farms along migration routes are all decimating B.C.'s salmon runs, and the petition calls for an end to open-net pens as part of the solution.
"We will be asking people along this journey to tell us what wild salmon mean to them," she said. Edwards and others from the Fraser paddle will eventually be meeting up with biologist/activist Alexandra Morton on Vancouver Island to present copies of the petition on May 7. Morton left on Earth Day, starting out from Sointula on Vancouver Island with the goal of delivering messages and signatures in Victoria by May 8 or 9.
Fisheries advisor Ernie Crey of the Sto:lo Tribal Council said he's pleased to hear about the paddle initiative, and urges people to show up, sign the petition and meet the participants. When the Fraser River contingent didn't have a way to get across the Strait of Georgia to Sidney, Crey said he contacted MP John Cummins, who quickly agreed to help make it happen by finding a boat owner willing to shuttle them over to Vancouver Island.
"The paddlers are trying to conserve what remains of the wild salmon runs," Crey said. "The trip is about informing the public that all is not well for the salmon in the Fraser."
If members of the public can't make it out to the riverside this week, they can go online to comment or write their MP.
"Tell everyone you're not prepared to stand by and let the wild salmon vanish," he said. "Salmon are iconic for B.C."
Local paddlers will be starting from Hope, near the mouth of the Coquihalla at the end of Wardle Street, leaving at 10 a.m. on Wednesday morning April 28. They'll be landing at Cheam beach before nightfall to be honoured with stories and songs, and then heading for Island 22 in Chilliwack on Thursday afternoon, arriving at about 1 p.m.
All meeting spots and gatherings along the Fraser, and other details can be found on the event page 'Fraser River Paddle for Wild Salmon' on Facebook and FoolishAprilFish.com website. For Morton's campaign go to
www.salmonaresacred.org.
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Topic: Meet and Greet The Paddlers in Support Of Wild Salmon At Island 22 (Read 3261 times)