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CFB Gagetown Champions Fish Friends |
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ST. ANDREWS, NEW BRUNSWICK, Mar. 17 -/E-Wire/--
St. Andrews – Thanks to Canadian Forces Base Gagetown, two schools in Oromocto and one in Gagetown will be participating in the Atlantic Salmon Federation’s popular Fish Friends education program this year.
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Patricia Edwards, ASF's Regional Director for New Brunswick, along with Andy Smith, Aquatic Biologist with Base Gagetown, Robin Hanson of the Oromocto Watershed Association and District Coordinator Robert Mazerall will deliver 300 eyed Atlantic salmon eggs to each of the three schools: Gesner Elementary in Oromocto at 09:30h Hubbard Elementary in Oromocto at 10:30h and Gagetown Elementary at 13:00h on Monday, March 17.
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Ninety-seven other New Brunswick classrooms, volunteers, students and teachers will also share the excitement of the 2008 Fish Friends program. “Arriving at a classroom with a jar full of eggs is a highlight of any day,” said Edwards. “It’s wonderful to see how eager the students are to look after the eggs and learn about the environment.”
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“Atlantic salmon is a species of interest at CFB Gagetown,” stated CFB Gagetown’s Andy Smith, “Aquatic habitat management on the base is focussed on protecting, rehabilitating and enhancing habitat for salmon, as well as brook trout and species at risk.”
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During the Program students observe salmon or trout eggs, monitor water quality and temperature, watch the eggs hatch into alevin and grow into fry, feed the fry and clean their aquariums. Teachers use an accompanying curriculum to teach the children about fish habitat, bio-diversity, life cycles, adaptation, freshwater ecology, and stewardship. In May and June, the students release their fry into nearby streams and rivers to continue their life cycles.
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Mr. Smith continued, “CFB Gagetown’s involvement with Fish Friends will help Base Gagetown build partnerships and promote our environmental activities with external organizations and the local community, an approach consistent with the Army’s Strategic Environmental Direction and CFB Gagetown’s environmental objectives.”
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The Fish Friends units are bought by individuals, businesses, foundations, and volunteers in river associations affiliated with the New Brunswick Salmon Council and ASF. CFB Gagetown is joining long-time Fish Friends supporters, The Sobey Foundation and The David and Faye Sobey Foundation.
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"Sobeys is proud to be a long-time supporter of such an innovative and engaging program as Fish Friends. This initiative gives youth a unique opportunity to take an active role in their communities while helping increase awareness about the environment," said Jason Potter, President Operations for Sobeys Atlantic region.
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In 1992, Fish Friends began as part of a government-funded five-year, $5.7 million public awareness and education program for Atlantic Canada. It was so popular that ASF strived to keep the program alive when government funding ran out. Because of the interest and enthusiasm of the private sector, Fish Friends has not only survived, but also flourished, and has expanded from Atlantic Canada into Quebec, and New England to include 600 schools. In 2008, ASF's 60th anniversary year, the organization celebrates the success of a program that has endured to educate more than 270,000 students on conserving natural resources, bio-diversity, freshwater ecology and stewardship.
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ASF Contacts: Muriel Ferguson Patricia Edwards
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506 529-1033 (direct) 506 536 -3051 (Office)
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506 529- 4581 506 364- 5324 (Cell)
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The Atlantic Salmon Federation is an international, non-profit organization that promotes the conservation and wise management of wild Atlantic salmon and their environment. ASF has a network of seven regional councils (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, Maine and Western New England). The regional councils cover the freshwater range of the Atlantic salmon in Canada and the United States.
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Eggs will also be delivered to Geary Elementary School at about 11:30 a.m. on March 17.
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Contact Info:
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ASF Contacts:
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Muriel Ferguson
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506 529-1033 (direct)
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506 529- 4581
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Patricia Edwards
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506 536 -3051 (Office)
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506 364- 5324 (Cell) Website : Atlantic Salmon Federation
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