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HomeNewsCooler Water Temperatures Prompts Angling to be allowed again in Horsefly River

Cooler Water Temperatures Prompts Angling to be allowed again in Horsefly River

Cooling water temperatures have allowed the re-opening of angling in Horsefly River.

The Ministry of Lands, Forests, and Natural Resource Operations made the announcement today.

The Horsefly River was closed to fishing on July 13 due to warming water temperatures. The closure was supported by the Horsefly River Angling Management Plan, which calls for the river to be closed for conservation when temperatures exceed 18 degrees Celsius.

The closure was originally put in place until Aug. 31, but cooling nighttime air temperatures have resulted in water temperatures cooling to levels that allow for a sustainable catch-and-release fishery.

The average daily water temperature as of Aug. 24, 2015, had fallen to 16 degrees Celsius which is below the identified threshold of 18 degrees Celsius according to Ministry staff who have been monitoring water temperatures on a daily basis since the closure was implemented.

David Ramsay, Manager of Provincial Fisheries, says although the Horsefly River was the only closure within the Cariboo there are substantial closures within the rest of the province including the Okanagan and Lower Mainland.

He says the province will be looking at a potential action plan in the future years.

“This was quite unprecedented in terms of what’s happened in the province of BC up to till this date, but once we start to reopen the rivers over the winter we’ll re-evaluate all the conditions for which these closures happened over BC and we’ll start working towards a plan or a prescription on how we deal with warm water temperatures and drought flow issues.”

The Horsefly River was closed due to high water temperatures three times over the last 10 years-2006, 2009, and 2010.

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