Fishing Reports index > July 2008

West Coast Fishing Report

This month on the Coast there has been a lot of publicity regarding the use of 1080 (Monofluoroacetate) for possum control. It has been the subject of protests and more letters to the editor, than you can shake a stick at. People are concerned that the aerial dispersal of 1080 could contaminate their drinking water. This fear is of course understandable. One would imagine that spraying poison baits all over the place would affect water reservoirs and ground water. However the fact is 1080 breaks down quickly in water to harmless components. Unlike Chlorine in the town water supply which carries on its bug killing capacity until it exits the tap where it continues to taste bad until the chlorine evaporates.

Of interest to trout anglers is that fish are not fazed by 1080. This may be due, in part, to the rapid breakdown of 1080 in water. However, experiments have been conducted in New Zealand where trout were feed pellets containing 1080 with the fish suffering no ill effects.

Perhaps we need to be a little more concerned on the West Coast with some of the other substances that find their way into our fresh water. For example the use of fertilizers poses the threat of eutrophication (excessive plant & algal growth) of our rivers and lakes. The phosphorus contained in fertilizers is of particular concern. Phosphorus is a macro nutrient essential for plant growth and in soil is strongly attached to clay particles by a chemical bond. This means that every time you see a stream with a visible sediment load of soil and clay there is a fair chance that there will be an associated quantity of phosphorus. 

I have no intention of knocking farmers as they are an integral part of our economy and indeed our community. What is needed is a concerted effort by all in the community to work together to protect our fresh water from potential disasters that have destroyed waterways both overseas, and indeed in New Zealand.

One of the key ways our fresh water can be protected is by riparian planting and protection. It really is time that organisations such as the Regional Council, Federated Farmers, and Westland Milk Products took more of a lead role in the protection of this great asset we have in our beautiful rivers lakes and streams. 

Charles Teasdale

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