Rattling Brook Watershed Obstruction Removal Project

In the summer of 2023, DFO biologists working in the Rattling Brook watershed reported to the committee and ERMA that they had concerns that there were locations where obstructions to salmon migration existed. Low flows in tributaries resulting from a dry summer were obstructing salmon from exiting Amy’s Lake after being transferred via truck from the trap in Norris Arm. One of these tributaries was Christmas Brook.

The objective of this project is to manually remove and rearrange rocks and boulders in the section of the stream at the outlet of Christmas Brook. This will create a more defined route that salmon can utilize to exit Amy’s Lake and find their way upstream to spawn.

The project will involve hand tools such as prybars and come-along to remove and reconfigure rocks and boulders within the stream channel. This will result in the creation of a more defined route within the stream channel to restore the ability of salmonids to migrate upstream during minimal summer flows. Care will be taken not to straighten the channel but to maintain a natural meander. Temporary sediment control measures will be in place to control any siltation created because of the work.