| Jerry Neuburger of the California Fisheries Network (http://www.calfish.net) on September 8 received a series of alarming photos from "Bibi" showing a major fish kill at a canal in the West Delta region at the beginning of Labor Day weekend.
While the kill was initially reported at or near the Chevron property in Pittsburg, it was quickly found that Chevron has no plant in the area with the closest facility in Martinez, according to Neuburger.
"The person first reporting the kill has since contacted DFG and with the assistance of GoogleEarth, has pinpointed the reported location of the disaster," said Neuburger. "DFG personnel are currently in the field, investigating to determine the cause of the incident."
The photos show hundreds of dead striped bass piled along the shore in scenes reminiscent of the Prospect Island Fish Kill in November 2007, when tens of thousands of stripers, Sacramento blackfish, Sacramento splittail, black bass, carp and other species perished in the largest fish kill ever documented on the California Delta.
In a post on Dan Blanton's fly fishing bulletin board (http://www.danblanton.com/bulletin.php), "Blane" reported a major fish kill at his duck club in Suisun while fishing there. "A formerly open-to-the Bay larger club had just repaired its levee, and as they pumped the several-hundred acres back into the Bay, all the stripers from three years of access were concentrated in the deepwater canals on the edges," he stated.
"Sadly, all the remaining fish will be dead in a couple of weeks as the water level drops---the otters and raccoons are already feasting, and the cormorants cannot choke down the fish due to their size," "Blane" claimed. "I saw an area in one of the canals that had 100+ BIG striper carcasses after they got caught behind a tule island and could not find their way to the retreating waters."
At the same time, there is also a report of a leak in a pipeline that crosses underground in the area of the fish kill. In order to repair the leak, Chevron needed to access the pipeline with heavy equipment. Chevron is in the process of bringing in the equipment needed to perform some road construction which required the draining of some of the waterways, according to sources.
Whether these two incidents are related or not remains yet to be seen.
Both Jerry and I have contacted Randy Imai from the California Department of Fish and Game's Office of Spill Prevention and Response. Imai has contacted the game warden and the local DFG water quality biologist in that region.
Imai will contact us about the location and extent of the fish kill as soon as he receives more information. Imai emphasized that it is not clear at this time whether the fish kill is on Chevron property as originally reported.
If you have any information confirming or documenting a fish kill in this region, please contact me at danielbacher [at] fishsniffer.com, 916-685-2245, ext. 224, Jerry Neuburger at gneuburger [at] yahoo.com, or Randy Imai at 916-324-0000.
Imai also encouraged people to report factual information regarding poachers and polluters to CalTIP (Californians Turn InPoachers and Polluters). CalTIP is a confidential secret witness program that encourages Californians an opportunity to help protect the state's fish and wildlife resources. The toll free telephone number operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You do not have to give your name.
CalTIP can be reached at 1-888-334-2258.
The reported fish kill takes place at a time when Sacramento River chinook salmon, Central Valley steelhead, Delta smelt, longfin smelt, green sturgeon, young striped bass and other species have declined to record low population levels, due to massive water exports from the Delta to corporate agribusiness and southern California and declining water quality. |
