The Saint John River Basin and its Fishery Resources
The basin of the Saint John River is one of the largest in eastern North America. About 51% of the 54,500 square km drainage area is in the Province of New Brunswick, 13% in the Province of Quebec and 36% in the State of Maine. It flows from its source in the Saint John Pond, Maine, about 700 km to the Bay of Fundy at the city of Saint John. Head of tide is 3 km below Mactaquac Dam.
Obstructions to Fish Passage
The falls at the town of Grand Falls on the main river and a falls and dam on the Aroostook river are barriers to fish migration which divide the basin into New Brunswick components. The federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans has concentrated its effort on diadromous fish species (those spending part of their life in salt water) downstream of Grand Falls. Fish passage facilities on the main Saint John River below Grand Falls exist at Beechwood and Mactaquac dams.
Beechwood Dam, built in 1957, has a head of 17 m and is located 130 km upriver of Mactaquac Dam. It has a fish collection gallery and a mechanical skip-hoist which lifts fish over the dam into the headpond.
Mactaquac dam, built in 1967, has a head of up to 35 m. Fish passage is provided through a fish collection facility situated in the base of the dam, which is comprised of a collection gallery, holding pool, crowder and hopper. The hopper lifts upstream migrants into tank trucks for upriver distribution. All adult salmon captured in the migration channel at the Mactaquac Main Salmon Hatchery are sorted for broodstock and for transportation upriver where they are released for angling and natural spawning.
The Tobique Narrows Dam was built in 1953 on the Tobique River near the confluence of the main Saint John River about 35 km upriver from Beechwood Dam. A fish collection gallery and a pool-and-weir fishway circumvent the 24 m head of the dam.
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