Tag Archives: Windsor causeway
Highway 101 shut down as Avon River causeway protestors urge action to allow free fish passage
On Nov. 16, Howe was among the dozens of people who gathered to hold a ‘respectful, reduced traffic flow’ on Highway 101. The majority of traffic was detoured but some trickled through, starting and stopping in six-minute intervals to reflect the short time frame that fish have to pass through the gated structure. It was an inconvenience to many motorists – but according to fisherman Darren Porter, it was a necessary move. “At the end of the day, how else do you get media here?” asked Porter, while surrounded by water defenders. Porter has been drawing attention to the limited fish passage in Windsor for several years. >click to read< 07:38
Nova Scotia: Residents raise alarm over causeway’s threat to local fish stocks
“This river is already dying, we’re already losing all of our fish, and along with losing all of our fish, we’re losing our rights as well,” said Nikki Lloyd, of the Annapolis Valley First Nation. Darren Porter, a local fisherman and fishery spokesperson for the Fundy United Federation, said over many years, he’s seen a reduction in productivity for both professional and recreational fishers. Government efforts, he alleged, to improve passage times have fallen short of what’s required to keep the ecosystem healthy. >click to read< 13:08
Fisherman Darren Porter has been keeping a one-man vigil at the Windsor causeway since last Thursday
The Hants County weir fisherman and marine science data collector has been floating in his open boat up to 20 hours a day to raise awareness for the lack of fish being allowed up the Avon River. “About six minutes on a tide,” said Porter of the amount of time the big gates in the Windsor causeway are opened to allow water through. That, he argues, is not enough time to allow the inner Bay of Fundy salmon, shad, gaspereau, striped bass and tom cod to get up the Avon River. That also, he argues, puts the operators of the gates (Department of Agriculture) in violation of the federal Fisheries Act. >click to read< 09:03
