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<br />, '
<br />Results vary,'
<br />for fish in '
<br />DOW pond
<br />p~~sonings
<br />
<br />
<br />Dr-HEATHER MIlSREGDR
<br />T11',Dm~Sonti...
<br />
<br />By 7 a.m, today. AnitB. Mart1nllli
<br />will be clothed head to toe in pro.
<br />tec:tlve gear and a face mask. pre-
<br />pared, .to' spread a powdered Ilsh
<br />poisoninFruita ponds,
<br />She hopes to beat the heat and
<br />be done by 10. Her ,goalie to klll'<o
<br />the non-native carp, green sunfISh
<br />and plains killifish lurking in the
<br />ponds, which pose a threat 10 en.
<br />dangered native fish If they're
<br />washed Into the river ill a:flood:
<br />Martinez, manager of nonl
<br />natbe !ish eradication for the Col-
<br />orado Division of Wildlife, ex-
<br />plained her program to' water
<br />users and board memben of the
<br />Colorado River Water Conserva.
<br />tlonDlslrict on Tuesday,''' "
<br />Hers ill a daunting task. Marii:ri.
<br />ez has counted 600' ponds within
<br />
<br />See FISH, page 68 ~
<br />
<br />FISH: Kills,
<br />, could cost' up
<br />to $7 million
<br />
<br />~ Continued from page 18
<br />
<br />the l00-year flOOdplain of the Colo.
<br />rado and Gunnison rivers fl'om Ri- '
<br />fie and Delta to the state line.
<br />Treating the ponds, either with
<br />polson or by pumping them until
<br />they're nearly dry, could cost any.
<br />where from $2.5 million to $6.9 mU-
<br />llon, she said,
<br />So far, she has tx-eated three
<br />ponds at a total cost of $64.400,
<br />with mbced results:
<br />. A Delta /llavel pit owned by
<br />Corn Construction was poisoned
<br />with chlorine in Deeember 1996
<br />and January 1997 with succeas, at
<br />a cost of $85,000. The DOW has
<br />sto<:ked the 9-acre pond with na-
<br />tive roundtaU chub. Before the
<br />
<br />U.::J.DA "vA~!UJ
<br />
<br />4J~~
<br />
<br />7. ..2 ';) - 95'
<br />
<br />pond was sterilized, workers found
<br />18 native fish and returned them to
<br />the river. '
<br />. A 5.aere pond at 220/4 Road,
<br />owned by Grand Junction Pipe
<br />and Supply Co., was pumped down
<br />and then poisoned with chlorine in
<br />March 1997 at a cost of $17,600. The
<br />effort worked, but non-native fish
<br />re-entered the pond during the
<br />1997 high water.
<br />. The 21-aere Frulta ponds, re-
<br />cently transferred from Corn Con-
<br />struction to Colorado State Parks,
<br />were pumped down in February in
<br />hopes that freezing temperatmes
<br />and lish-eating water birds would
<br />rid the ponds of non.natives. It
<br />, didn't work, and Martinez returns
<br />tOday to finish the jab with
<br />rotenone.
<br />Later thie smnmer, she plans to
<br />poison non-native fish in the north
<br />pond on Skipper's Island, west of
<br />Fruita,
<br />Meanwhile, DOW biologiSts are
<br />also working to rear and stock en-
<br />dangered fish, and they'Ve set pop.
<br />ulatlon goals that will take a big
<br />etfort to achieve, .'
<br />Biologist, T<im .:!'fesler said the
<br />Colorado S(JUllwflsh, now ~t1mat.
<br />ed at fouf fiSh per river ml)e in the
<br />Colorado and Vampa'.' rivers,
<br />should resch 20 per river mile.
<br />"As the top predator in the na-
<br />tive food chain, 20 fish per mile
<br />would represent 1 to 2 percent of
<br />the total fish biomass in the river,"
<br />Nesler sald,
<br />In addition, the agency has tar-
<br />geted a population of 475 ra20rback
<br />suckers per mile, bringing the en.
<br />dan~red bottom.feeder to 5 per.
<br />cent of the fi~biiimass.
<br />"Wlll that achieve de-listing of
<br />the fish as an endangered spe-
<br />cie.?" asked Ouray County Com.
<br />miesioner Frank Hadsall. '
<br />Only if the stocked fish cn; suc-
<br />cessfully reproduce, Nesler 'al.d.
<br />,
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<br />
<br />RECEIVED
<br />JUl 23 1998
<br />
<br />Colorado Water
<br />Conservation Board
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