The Story of the Whitehorse Rapids Fishladder | Friday, August 12, 2011

The Whitehorse Rapids Fishladder, the longer wooden fishladder in the world, was built in 1959. In 2009, to mark the 50th anniversary of the ladder, Yukon Energy had a podcast produced to tell the story of the ladder and its significance for the annual Chinook salmon migration. We thought it would be worth posting it again here for those of you who didn't hear it the first time.

We encourage visitors and Yukoners alike to drop by the visitors' centre this month to see the salmon as they travel through the ladder. We are planning a special Appreciation Night next Wednesday, August 17th from 5 to 9 p.m. There'll be children's activities, food and refreshments, great door prizes, and you'll have a chance to see the salmon and learn about their incredible journey from the Bering Sea. Everyone is welcome.

A Regal Arrival | Monday, August 8, 2011

The first king (chinook) salmon of the season have reached our fish ladder at the Whitehorse Rapids dam. The salmon began gathering at the bottom of the ladder late last week and the first one ventured up to the viewing tanks on Friday, August 5. Since then we've had a total of 20 salmon go through the ladder - 12 males and 8 females.

If you're in the Whitehorse area, we invite you to drop by the fish ladder to see the salmon and learn about their amazing journey from the Bering Sea. You can also view them on our fish cam.

Checking Our Air Quality | Monday, July 25, 2011

If you live in Whitehorse you may have noticed that one of our diesel generators is operating today. That's because we are testing the quality of the air coming from the diesel stacks at our Whitehorse plant. This is a requirement of our Air Emissions Permit.

The testing takes about six hours per diesel unit and we will test one a day for the next several days (we have seven diesel generators in Whitehorse).

The results will be submitted to the Yukon Environment Department later this year once they have been analyzed.

Yukon Energy and Climate Change | Thursday, July 21, 2011

Yukon Energy is often asked if we take climate change into account when planning for future energy needs. Indeed we do.

This summer we have hired scientists from the Yukon's Northern Climate Exchange to gather information for us on the expected impacts of climate change on the glaciers that feed our hydro systems. The scientists will also make recommendations about what Yukon Energy should do to better prepare for any changes in flow from glaciers.

The work will start next month. The scientists will gather information through satellite and aerial photographs and will verify it through work on the ground. They will then compare it with historical data. We expect a report in about a year from now.

Some of our staff will also receive training that will help them better understand climate change science, and provide them with tools that can be used when doing current and future resource planning.

Air Emissions | Tuesday, June 7, 2011

As a result of the shutdown of our Aishihik plant for a few weeks, and the subsequent need to burn more diesel than is normal, we have received a number of questions about air quality. Yukon Energy does have an air emission permit that we must abide by, and the emissions from our Whitehorse diesel plant remain well within the limits of our permit. Our air emissions permit, and the detailed permit application, can be found on our website. Please note that the application is a large file (7 MB) and may take some time to download.

The Silver Lining in the Dark Cloud | Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Of course no one wants or likes power outages. However there was one good thing that happened as a result of an outage on August 18th. It allowed us to find a new tool to help the Yukon River Chinook salmon reach their spawning grounds upstream from the Whitehorse Rapids fishladder. 

During the outage, we first had to increase the amount of water we allowed through the spillway of our Whitehorse dam so that our reservoir, Schwatka Lake, would not overflow. Then we slowed the flow so that the lake could re-fill. The extra water seemed to push the salmon closer to the entrance of the ladder. Then when the water flow was cut back the fish seemed to be enticed by the water flowing in the ladder. More than 100 salmon swam up the ladder in the few hours after the power outage. 

We had never seen anything like this before. Working with fishladder and fish hatchery staff, we simulated these conditions four times over the last two weeks (minus the outage of course). Each time there was a similar response from the salmon.

The faster the salmon can move through the fishladder and get to their spawning grounds the better it is for their health, so we hope to be able to use this tool in future years as a way of helping the fish on their migration. However we can't guarantee that we'll be able to do this every year; it will depend on summer water levels.

Preserving the Past | Wednesday, September 1, 2010

A couple of years ago while doing studies around Mayo Lake, Yukon Energy became aware of two heritage resources sites that needed some attention. In conjunction with the First Nation of Na-cho Nyak Dun we embarked on a project to protect and preserve the heritage values that the sites contained.

Peak of Summer Water Levels | Thursday, August 5, 2010

We had a question the other day from a Yukoner who wondered if the water levels on Marsh Lake had reached their peak yet. In fact we don't expect the levels to peak until late this month or sometime next month. Here you can find the latest water level chart. As always, please let us know if you have any questions.

The First Fish | Tuesday, August 3, 2010

It's always an exciting time when the first salmon of the season arrive at the Whitehorse Rapids Fishladder. The first one arrived yesterday, with a couple of more making their way up the ladder today. The best time to view the salmon is first thing in the morning (9 a.m.). If you can't get to the ladder see them, they can be viewed on our live salmon cam. Please note that the camera does take a few minutes to load so we ask for your patience.