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Show C2 Wednesday, May 28, 2008 Vernal Express Ouray Fish Hatchery raises endangered chubs, suckers BYKfVMAsHBY screens and a biofilter where live . M , , , , ,. .mi, lmK .tJ 1 i c... DKii.h0. bacteria eat the ammonia and I . " t ' ii ' " Express Publisher . . . , , , k - .v I :J c j t nitrates left in the water as fish I I & . . ' 4 ? f j X. In an effort to recover endan gered fish species in the Green and Colorado rivers, the federal fed-eral government has constructed .several hatcheries around the . West, including one located near ; Ouray. At the Ouray National Fish . Hatchery, biologists work specifi-! specifi-! cally with two different species of ' endangered fish - the humpback chub and the razorback sucker. Razorbacks live to be 30 to 40 ; year s old, but for various reasons, ; such as non-native fish predation and loss of nursery habitat, very ' few survive to adulthood, leaving them on the endangered species ! list. Because of this, biologists ; collected wild fish and spawn 'them, using the offspring as ! broodstock held and used at the hatchery. These broodstock are then used to produce eggs, then larvae. These fish are kept at the hatchery in Ouray for 18 to 24 months when the fish reach 12 inches in length they are ready to be introduced directly into the Green River. Approximately 15,000 foot-long foot-long fish are released annually into the river. "It has taken us a lot of years to learn what we know about raising razorback suckers," said hatchery manager Mike Mon-tagne. Mon-tagne. "We had to figure out the correct temperatures to breed, best diet, temperatures for the best growth. Everything was new to us." The hatchery was built in 1 992 and was converted to a National Endangered Fish Hatchery in 1996. There are 38,000 gallons of water in 57 different indoor tanks. Because they are in the middle of a desert, hatchery officials had to figure out how to raise fish with the least amount of water possible. They have reduced the amount of water needed to run the facility to 2,000 gallons a day. "This is all we need to replenish re-plenish the water we use daily in the tanks," Montagne said. "But there is quite a system to accomplish this." The hatchery uses pumps to circulate the water through the tanks, because it is not located on a moving waterway. An extensive filtration system of 60-micron waste is in use as well. And after all of that, there is an ultraviolet filter that is used to make sure disease isn't spread from tank to tank. The tanks hold thousands upon thousands of fish ranging in size from a very small larvae to those that are 12 inches long and ready for stocking. On the hatchery site there is also a series of lined outdoor ponds used for growing the larger fish to full size. There are 24 production ponds with a quarter-acre quarter-acre surface area and 12 brood storage ponds with a half-acre surface area. The broodstock is matured to 4 to 6 pounds for females fe-males and 3 pounds for males. The outdoor ponds reach temperatures of 85 degrees in the summer while the indoor tanks are maintained between 55 and 85 degrees depending on what is happening with the eggs, larvae or fish. "When it gets down to it this is a very high-tech place for raising fish," Montagne said. Tours of the facility are available to the public between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. daily. Take state Road 88 south to the Ouray Wildlife Refuge entry. Turn left on Wildlife Refuge Road and go to the end of the road following the signs to the fish hatchery. 1 L These Razorback sucker fish have reached the necessary 12-inch-length before being relocated to the Green River. Approximately 1 5,000 fish are released each year from the Ouray Fish Hatchery. r ift! " ' ' I I -- '- ' ' ' ' . .-. X ; Infill .it. r-.rtil.,--..-.,..-.. -- - - JJwVfJhWJ-Jaa-Ja-j V Hatchery manager Mike Montagne stands next to one of the tanks used to sustain the Razorback Montagne explains that if you look real close you can see the Sucker species that are being introduced back into the Green and Colorado Rivers. small fish just after hatching. .Sr., - : ViJJiJDjJM WWI 1 V BEFORE DIGGING, 'OR IN AN EMERGENCE CALL QUBSTlRppeln. TELEPHONE NUMBER 1-800-300-2025 WMIfinG GAS P1PELIHE BEF0RE DIGGING, OR IN AN EMERGENCE CALL QUESTZR Gas TELEPHONE NUMBER 1-800-767-1689 vAnnuiG GAS PIPELINE V V i They Mark High-Pressure Underground flafural Gas Lines of Questar Pipeline and Questar Gas Company. CALL BEFORE YOU DIG. State law requires that if you are doing any excavating, ' seismic work, road grading, building or other construction, you must notify the appropriate company two working days prior to commencing your project. A Questar representative will come locate and mark its existing underground pipelines for you at no charge. Questar is a participant in the following utility notification centers: Utah Blue Stakes 1-800-662-4111 OR Wyoming One-Call of Wyoming 1 -800-849-2476 CALL: Colorado Utility Notification Center 1-800-922-1987 Questar Pipeline only Jdm Idaho Dig Line 1-800-342-1585 Questar Go. only You may call Questar Pipeline directly at 1 -307-382-8882 (Direct calls notify only Questar Pipeline, not other utilities or pipeline companies) For a list of companies operating pipelines in your area, visit www.npms.phmsa.dot.gov. Be able lo recognize and report pipeline hazards. The uncommon conditions below may indicate a pipeline problem or emergency. Please immediately report a problem by calling one of the emergency numbers below. m fcyy Hissing or Dirt being Fire at or Fire blowing blown into near exposed apparently sound the air piping emanating from the . ground UESTMR Pipeline EMERGENCY TELEPHONE TOLL-FREE 1-800-300-2025 (Day or Night) For additional information: www.questarpipoline.com Water Bubbling blowing into action of the air at a outside water pond, creek surface or river Vegetation dead or brown "Rotten egg" odor UESFMR Gas EMERGENCY TELEPHONE TOLL-FREE 1-800-767-1689 (Day or Night) For additional information: www.questargai.com L t tg f . t.t .'' 1st .it t ' ; el ii m r II The hatchery may be located in the middle of a desert, but it is a valuable part of the federal government's efforts to address endangered fish species in the West. ' ; - r 1 Larger fish are removed out of the smaller indoor tanks and raised in outdoor ponds until mature. 1 i .1.' ill i ! 5 j ( j V I V', 1 " .. j ii J S ::V i Fish are fed by automatic fish Water is recycled at the hatchery and filtered through an extensive feeders located in each of the system to minimize water loss at the hatchery. tanks. i, |