Otago hatchery celebrates 20 years at Macraes Mine

 

Macraes may be a gold mine with a byproduct of fish, but some say it’s a fish hatchery with a byproduct of gold.

This year the Otago Fish & Game Council and OceanaGold are celebrating the 20^th anniversary of a glittering partnership, which created the Macraes Trout Hatchery.

Above: Flynn Caldwell (14), Mike Weddell and Greg Caldwell at Blakelys Dam, one of 16 Otago dams where the OceanaGold Macraes Hatchery trout are released by Otago Fish & Game. Photo: Callie Morgan, OceanaGold

“It’s an amazing marriage between unlikely bedfellows – a fishing and hunting conservation organisation and a gold mining company,” Otago Fish & Game Council chief executive Ian Hadland said.

“This partnership is advancing Otago sports fisheries for the good of local anglers and the wider community.

“Macraes is the anglers’ gold mine. The Macraes team provided funds and a site for us to build the hatchery and logistical support to construct and run the trout-growing operation.

“The partnership helps every fishing licence dollar go further and without the support of the OceanaGold it’s unlikely we would have a hatchery at all.”

Left: Otago Fish & Game officer Steve Dixon holding one of the brood stock rainbow trout at Macraes Hatchery during egg stripping this spring. Photo: Callie Morgan, OceanaGold

Situated at the Macraes Mine, the hatchery is coordinated by Otago Fish & Game staff with day-to-day support from OceanaGold staff including feeding the fish and managing water quality.

The project’s origins trace back to 2003, when Gregg Caldwell, an angler and Macraes employee, together with Fish & Game staff, developed and presented the concept of a hatchery to the Otago Fish & Game Council and OceanaGold.

This marked the start of a remarkable working relationship, which has seen Fish & Game release 150,000 yearling rainbow trout into put-and-take fisheries over the past 20 years.

Manager of Environment and Social Performance at OceanaGold’s Macraes Mine, Suzanne Watt, said she was proud of the role the hatchery has had in building a positive legacy for the Macraes team, the Macraes community, and for anglers across the Otago region.

“What started as a small idea, suggested by one of our workers, has transformed into an operation that brings joy to hundreds of local kids and licensed anglers across our region every year,” Ms Watt said.

“As a responsible miner, we are committed to leaving a positive legacy and actively contributing to the sustainable development of the local community. Our beautiful Macraes Trout Hatchery is one small way we are achieving this.”  

 

Mr Hadland said locations for the Otago Fish & Game liberated hatchery fish were carefully chosen to have minimal environmental impact.

“Good fisheries management has come a long way. We do not release trout into rivers, instead, we select isolated waters where there is either no or very little natural spawning.

“Otago put-and-take fisheries are important angling destinations for locals and visitors to the region, so we make sure they’re stocked regularly.

“These include the Dunedin water supply reservoirs, publicly accessible irrigation dams in the Maniototo area and some other small Otago lakes.”

The Macraes Hatchery has also reared about 10,000 two-year-old fish, ready to catch for beginner classes and Take A Kid Fishing events.

About 5,600 children have attended these events over the past 14 years.

“Take A Kid Fishing days are the most popular events that Otago Fish & Game runs, and their success is dependent on our partnership with OceanaGold,” Mr Hadland said.

“By encouraging people to get outdoors, trout fishing is good for wellbeing and provides a source of healthy, sustainable wild food.”