The Oyster River Enhancement Society (ORES) runs one of the most efficient volunteer hatcheries on Vancouver Island.  The Oyster river hatchery has been such a success that it has actually brought back salmon returns to almost historical levels in the Oyster.  How many rivers do you think that has happened on? Very few. My good friend Rick Janzen has been volunteering their for years and periodically I get to visit the facility and help out.  A couple of weeks ago Rick had told me that there is a possibility that they may be losing their gaming funding through the provincial government and that would leave them on the hook for more than a $30,000 shortfall.  

Anyhow, ORES is seeking anglers and stream-minded people to join them in their work to continue rebuilding the salmon stocks and habitat on the Oyster River by volunteering and/or buying a $10 annual personal membership, $20 for a family or $30 for a business.  For membership information please visit their website at: http://www.oysterriverenhancement.org/volunteering–membership.html

The Oyster River Enhancement Society volunteers meets every Tuesday at 8am at the hatchery for a quick coffee then the work is divided among them and off they go, feeding the fish, sawing up fallen trees, repairing roofs, mending fences, cleaning the eggs trays, collecting brood stock and other jobs that need doing.  Most of the work is done by 11am, just in time for a coffee and lots of talking.  Seems to me this can be more of a social club than a hatchery!  The vast majority of the volunteers are local anglers that feel the need to give back and I applaud their efforts and their passion.

Here’s a video of the kind of work that is being done at this volunteer hatchery: