EELS IN THE RIVER

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23514, 31 May 1938, Page 7

EELS IN THE RIVER

I'O 11IE EDITOU Sir,—ln your report of the Wailaki Acclimatisation Society’s annual meeting, one member of the society is reported as stating that millions of eels went up the fish ladder at the Waitak) Hydro, and suggesting that the ladder be closed for two specified months, so that the run of eels would be .•topped Now, Sir, millions must mean no fewer than two millions, and even at that figure it sounds alarming On calculation, 2,000,000 in two months means an average of 33,000 per day Now. what is going to happen if those eels are blocked from ascending the fish ladder? It may mean tragedy for the town of Oamaru. What if they return down stream and find their way through the water race into the reservoir? This vast number of eels would be sufficient to block every water pipe in the district and cause a great deal of inconvenience Oamaru is famed throughout New Zealand for its dry climate, and should we have a dry spell this coming spring like we had last year it would be a near approach to a calamity. Every water pine blocked with eels! That would mean no water for drinking, or for hou ehold purposes, or for hosing the garden, to say nothing of the great expense of lifting the water pipes to get the eels out. I think. Sir, the eels should be allowed to climb the ladder in their millions if they want to. It may, perhaps, be the cheapest solution in the end. —I am, etc., Anxious Citizen. Oamaru, May 30.