Lake sturgeon back in safe waters after summer relocation on Mattagami River

In August, OPG employees once again took to the waters in northeastern Ontario to tag and relocate stranded lake sturgeon.

The yearly practice takes place after the annual spring freshet along the Mattagami River. When water flows decrease later in the summer, some sturgeon become isolated in pools downstream of the river.

This year’s effort involved OPG Environment staff and members of OPG’s Kapuskasing work centre. Sturgeon were recovered from the waters before being implanted with Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tags to track their future movements. The fish were then measured, weighed, and transported by truck to be returned to the upstream portion of the river.

“The lake sturgeon relocation program is a really important part of OPG’s effort to protect and preserve the Lower Mattagami River lake sturgeon population,” said Dan Gibson, Senior Environment Specialist with OPG.

Over the past 100 years, populations of lake sturgeon in Ontario have been significantly diminished by overharvesting, pollution, and habitat loss. But Canada’s largest freshwater fish, which remains a species at risk in Ontario, is mounting a comeback in the Mattagami River, with promising recovery efforts being recorded over the past decade.