Hoy Creek Hatchery

Gravel Donation and Trailer Use Greatly Appreciated

Hoy Creek Hatchery manager, Tyler Storgaard, and assistant manager, Anne Woosnam shovel gravel off the trailer donated on Feb. 17 (HSWS photo)

Thank You for the Generous Donations and Support

We would like to express our gratitude to Heidelberg Materials North America for their recent donation of gravel, and to High Definition Concrete Ltd. for the use of their trailer.

Community support plays a crucial role in the success of our organization, and these generous contributions are greatly appreciated. Without the support of local businesses and community members, completing essential work projects can be a significant challenge for us.

The donations made on February 17 will aid us in our ongoing efforts to clean and repair failing infrastructure at the Hoy Creek Hatchery. Contributions such as these, enable us to continue our important work in salmon conservation and habitat preservation.

We also extend our sincere thanks to the dedicated volunteers who contributed their time and effort to the cause. Their hard work and commitment have been invaluable in advancing our projects and maintaining the momentum of our initiatives.

Once again, a sincere thank you to Heidelberg Materials North America and High Definition Concrete Ltd., and all of our dedicated volunteers for their invaluable support and contributions. Together, we are making a significant and positive impact on our environment, and we are grateful for the opportunity to build a more sustainable future for the Hoy and Scott Watersheds.

Matt, Suzz and Annie help with gravel offloading to fill an area behind the Hoy Creek Hatchery in Coquitlam. (HSWS photo)

Spawner Survey Report for 2023

Our spawner survey crew recently got some hands on experience with bio sampling salmon carcasses. (HSWS photo)

Hoy/Scott Watershed Society director, Rodney Lee led our spawner survey for 2023.

Seven of our volunteers assisted in 13 surveys and put in a total of 40.5 hours.

Spawner surveys are a basic form of stock assessment where the data can be used to gauge the health of salmon returns. In short, we walk the creek and count live and dead salmon (by species) to get a sense of the number of returning fish. Data is submitted to the Streamkeeper’s database as well as to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO).

Participants walk in chest waders in and around the stream including stepping over fallen trees, walking on in-stream rocks and muddy banks, and crouching under overhanging tree branches to identify salmon species targeting chum and coho but occasionally other species (chinook, pink) may have been seen.

The weekly survey area was the stretch of Hoy Creek from the Johnson St. pool (between Glen and Guildford) to Hoy Creek Hatchery in Coquitlam and statistics were taken from October through to January.

Here are the survey details which provide totals of carcasses for chum and coho, as well as peak live counts. We have compared them to our 2021 and 2022 results in the chart below.

Volunteers measure the salmon and record findings. (HSWS photo)

2023 Spawner Survey Data and Comparison to 2022 and 2021

*Please note that this exercise is not a population estimate and annual results can be affected by several factors including weather patterns.

NOTE: Should you see salmon in the creek that have been cut in half, or have the tail or head cut off, from October through December that could mean those salmon have been marked for the annual Salmon Spawner Survey. We count live and dead fish weekly in a designated stretch of the stream. The dead salmon are cut as to not double count the dead fish the next week. This helps get an absolute count of salmon that have spawned in a particular area of a stream.

2023 Broodstock Collection Complete

Matthew Watts and Tyler Storgaard working in the incubation room at Hoy Creek Hatchery preparing the eggs.

It was another busy broodstock season for the Hoy/Scott Watershed Society at the Hoy Creek Hatchery as salmon began to return to stream in October. Hatchery manager, Tyler Storgaard reports the following:

  • Our Chum are developing past the eyed stage and we have 13,684 in incubation.

  • For Coho, we did just lose a tray not due to fungus or outbreak, but due to a single female that was not viable.  Currently, we have a green egg estimate of 13,655 – the final enumeration to be completed at the shocking stage which is likely to occur in early 2024.

Thanks to all the volunteers who supported these activities, and to our daily feeders who monitor and maintain our equipment.

Egg renumeration. Hoy Creek Hatchery.

Coho eggs in the heath tray, Hoy Creek Hatchery.

Coho broodstock

Youth to Sea spend a day at Hoy Creek Hatchery

A big thank you to the Ocean Wise 'Youth to Sea' program, who spent a good part of Saturday, November 18 with volunteers of the Hoy/Scott Watershed Society learning about the watershed, the Hoy Creek Hatchery operations, and the salmon.

The activities were led by Isaac Nelson, community adviser from the DFO and hatchery manager, Tyler Storgaard.

"Youth to Sea is a hands-on learning program that endeavours to unite youth to make a difference towards ocean conservation." The youth were led by Ethan Wong of Ocean Wise.

Photos provided by Youth To Sea.

Society Conducting Annual Spawner Salmon Survey

An example of what you could see in the section where the salmon survey is taking place. Dead fish are cut so as to not count them the next time we pass the same area. (HSWS photo)

Should you see salmon in Hoy Creek or Scott Creek that have been cut in half, or have the tail or head cut off, that means those salmon have been marked for our annual Salmon Spawner Survey.

We count live and dead fish weekly in a designated stretch of the stream. The dead salmon are cut so as to not double-count the dead fish the next week. This helps get an absolute count of salmon that have spawned in a particular area of a stream.

Spawner surveys are a basic form of stock assessment where the data can be used to gauge the health of salmon returns. In short, we walk the creek and count live and dead salmon (by species) to get a sense of the number of returning fish. Data is submitted to the Streamkeeper’s database as well as to Fisheries & Oceans Canada.

Each week, results are recorded.

Questions? Email us at hoyscottcreeks@gmail.com

Chum Arrive for Salmon Come Home

Left to right: Kyle Uno, President, HSWS; Councilor John Peters, KFN; and Rodney Lee, DFO. (Photo: HSWS)

Held in partnership with the City of Coquitlam, the Salmon Come Home festival returned to its traditional layout and format around the Hoy Creek Hatchery on Oct. 22. The weather was mild and enjoyable as the rains held off.

The event celebrates the return of the salmon and the chum had only just been spotted in the stream a few days prior.

The Hoy/Scott Watershed Society (HSWS) would like to thank Kwikwetlem First Nation councilor, John Peters who provided a welcome to open the festivities, along with the president of the Hoy/Scott Watershed Society, Kyle Uno.

Entertainer, Angela Brown in hat and rainbow cape is an annual favourite with her stories and costume parade. (Photo: HSWS)

The event was very well attended by other environmental groups and residents enjoyed educational displays, stories and a dress-up parade with Angela Brown and her nylon zoo, musical entertainment by Ruel Morales and Elaina Buenaventura, carvings by Indigenous storyteller, Simon Winadzi Jamesler and Creative Art Cart programs by J Peachy Gallery and crew from Red Fox Society.

A big highlight was seeing live salmon for brief seconds during a talk provided by DFO community advisor, Isaac Nelson, assisted by hatchery manager, Tyler Storgaard.

Thanks to Jay Peachy and Friends who put on a pancake breakfast with proceeds supporting the Society.

Thanks also to Radio-Canada / CBC French who came out and featured the event in their newscast that evening.

A great time was had by all!

Children of all ages marvel at the live Coho salmon held by hatchery manager, Tyler Storgaard during a talk by DFO. (Photo: HSWS)

New Salmon Statue at Hoy Creek Hatchery

Visitors of Hoy Creek Linear Park will notice a new salmon statue beside Hoy Creek, this one with its kype (nose) facing upstream.

The original salmon statue, now aged and chipped has been moved to a new spot, now visible by those entering the park from Princess Crescent east of the Hoy Creek Hatchery.

“It was an exciting time for our volunteers to take part in the cement pouring, and the later positioning of the new salmon, “ said hatchery manager and Hoy/Scott Watershed Society vice president, Tyler Storgaard. “We’ve heard stories from when the first one was poured at least 20 years ago, and founding member, the late Chris Hamming was involved. His wife, Henrietta said that her husband Chris couldn’t believe that they forgot to place it pointing upstream, so it was great to finally correct this with the new statue.”

After the mold had set for a few weeks, the salmon was revealed and set into place on September 23. The Society wishes to thank the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Salmonid Enhancement Program, our community advisor, Isaac Nelson, and technician, Eric Kukulowicz, for their support in casting this new statue.

Hatchery manager, Tyler Storgaard puts water into the cement mixer on Sept. 16 when the statue was cast.

The old salmon statue being moved at Hoy Creek.

New salmon statued put in place on Sept. 23, 2023

Storm Drains Marked before Salmon Return

Society volunteer, Saki helps pound down a decal east of the hatchery. (HSWS photo)

Society volunteers managed to get more area storm drains marked with bright yellow fish decals before the rains of October and the return of salmon to our streams.

Areas of focus were east of the Hoy Creek Hatchery, along Princess Crescent and northward along Town Centre Boulevard south of Douglas College, as well as drains along Lansdowne Drive from the Coquitlam Crunch Trail down to Guildford Drive.

It is important to note that the water that goes into a storm drain doesn't get processed through a sewage system like household water does, but goes directly into our waterways. Marking our storm drains is an opportunity to help educate the public and to draw attention to having clean streams that help keep our fish safe.

In previous years yellow fish were stenciled on with paint near storm drains, but the Hoy/Scott Watershed Society volunteers use a new method with supplies provided by Fisheries and Oceans Canada. Bright-yellow sticky peel-off decal fish are pounded into place with a rubber hammer.

Please be mindful - everything entering a storm drain ends up in a creek. Creeks contain aquatic life that can’t survive pollution being dumped into the habitat. As members of the public, we all have a duty to steward and protect the environment that we live in. Should you witness any suspected pollution being dumped into a storm drain, please take immediate action to report it to the authorities:

  • City of Coquitlam Engineering 24-hour emergency (Municipal): 604-927-3500

  • Observe, Record, Report (Federal): 1-800-465-4336

  • Report all poachers and polluters (Provincial): 1-877-952-RAPP

Freshly marked for the return of the rain. (HSWS photo)

Fish don’t smoke! We’re always surprised at how many cigarette butts we see next to storm drains. (HSWS Photo)

Surplus Coho Fry Released

Matt nets some Coho fry to release into the creek.

On June 29, Hoy Creek Hatchery held approximately 8,405 coho fry.

Hoy-Scott Watershed Society's annual aquaculture license with federal fisheries allows us to incubate up to 25,000 eggs but only release 5,000 1-year-old Coho smolts from that brood year in May.

Any excess are released to other creek areas. From those locations, the Coho fry can make use of the habitat, grow and eventually make their way out to the ocean to complete their lifecycle.

Transport bin.

Matt releasing fish into the stream.

HSWS volunteers Tyler Storgaard and Matthew Watts weighed and counted out our surplus fry (5,265), loaded up the truck for transport and released them at 8 different locations along Hoy and Scott creeks. The fry weighed approximately 3.5 grams and are about 5 months old.

The remaining hatchery fry will be transferred to the rearing pond at Hoy Creek and will remain there until they will be released at our Salmon Leave Home event in May 2024.

Data Logger Redeployed in Hoy Creek

Matt Watts helped with the first deployment in 2022 of the temperature data logger, housed within the cinder block you can see in Hoy Creek. This one went missing through the winter/spring.

In August of 2022, volunteers of the Hoy/Scott Watershed Society went to deploy a temperature logger in Hoy Creek north of the hatchery.

The logger which can be held in the palm of one’s hand was fixed within a cinder block to hold it steady in the stream.

Over the winter/spring however, the block must have been moved along with the movement of heavy water flow and other rocks tumbling down the stream, as when we returned in late spring the logger was nowhere to be found, even though we found the cinder block.

The logger that went missing, seen in Nikki’s hand, connects to the HOBO app.

A deployment report being done on June 7, detailing location, date, water depth, etc, as well as to ensure the logger has been connected to the app. Seen here, Anne Woosnam records while Nikki provides the information.

In June of 2023, we returned again with Nikki Kroetcsh, DFO’s PSEC Community Engagement Coordinator to redeploy another logger, this time fixing it within a case to the cement barrier along the stream.

It's important to capture photos as when we return to check the logger and upload data into an app on our phone, the location can change drastically.

We’re pretty sure this one will stay put!

The Society is maintaining two other locations with loggers. One is south of the hatchery and monitors temperature, and the third one is adjacent to the hatchery which monitors temperature and other details, however, this one is not to be confused with the Flowlink monitoring system.

See our Facebook photo album.

Nikki prepared the casing to house the logger, which will be secured to the concrete wall seen in front of her.

The new casing for the logger can been seen fixed to the concrete beneath the water. Let’s hope it remains there! Photos taken by Robbin Whachell.