Fish Kill Event - Roberts Creek

Fisheries Technician Wayne Wingert was contacted by a local resident who had observed fish dying at the mouth of Roberts Creek during a canoe trip down the Turkey River on Saturday afternoon on July 18, 2020. He did not pass that information on to Wayne until Sunday morning July 19, 2020, who then passed that information on to Fisheries Biologist Gary Siegwarth that evening. In coordination with the Decorah fish management, Gary Siegwarth arrived on site Monday morning July 20, 2020 to determine the upper and lower extent of the kill. Siegwarth began his investigation in St. Olaf by looking for evidence of dead fish at each bridge site downstream. The first dead fish were found just below the low water bridge on 250th street. Dead fish were also located around the lowermost bridge of Roberts Creek on Grape Road just upstream from the confluence with the Turkey River. Fish were in the latter stages of decay because of the length of time that had passed since the kill was first observed on Saturday afternoon. Recalling a similar kill several years ago that began right below Three Rivers FS, Siegwarth drove to that location to check it out and observed water being pumped from a building, across the chemical loading/mixing yard and into a short drainage ditch that leads to the Turkey River. The yard manager mentioned that it was liquid from a secondary containment area that was being discharged. Siegwarth then contacted EPD in Manchester to report what had been found.

Because of the lack of access on that stretch of Roberts Creek, Siegwarth conducted a total count of the area by canoe. The count was under represented due to dead fish removed by predators and those that washed into the Turkey River.

Species identification were possible for all fish carcasses observed. The following species were identified: blacknose dace,common shiner, hornyhead chubs, stoneroller, white sucker, golden & shorthead redhorse, carpsucker and smallmouth bass.