‘Come on folks, it’s reconciliation time’: B.C. scientist behind new data on contaminated fish habitat

A combination of rewilding and reconciliation could help B.C. protect its fish and fish habitats while improving the province’s response to climate change, according to one scientist.

A combination of rewilding and reconciliation could help B.C. protect its fish and fish habitats while improving the province’s response to climate change, according to one scientist.

Paul Ross is the lead author of a recently-published study that analyzed water samples collected from the former Semá:th X̱ó:tsa (Sumas Lake) region following last November’s historic floods.

A team led by Rainforest Conservation Foundation identified an inordinate amount of contaminants in the former lake, which was drained in 1924, including “excess nutrients, metals, fecal coliform, hydrocarbons, pesticides, pharmaceuticals and personal care products, perfluorinated compounds, sucralose and tire-related chemicals.”

It’s the first monitoring of water in the fish habitat and former lake, which was artificially drained by hydraulic pumps installed in 1921—making a prairie out of what was once a vibrant aquatic habitat that First Nations communities relied on.

“The history was not only a disservice to the community, it was something that flew in the face of Mother Nature and said ‘OK, what do you think of this, we’re going to drain this lake that quadruples in size,” Ross told CTV News.

“What we've been seeing since we constructed those pump stations since 1924 is five major floods. We call them floods, but really it’s just Sumas Lake re-emerging,” he said.

The report explains the goal of the study was to “understand the threat of myriad pollutants to flood-affected areas with a focus on fish (salmon) habitat and the well-being of First Nations communities.”