2025

The Lake Ontario Atlantic Salmon Restoration Program is a multi-organization partnership headed by the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters (OFAH) to restore a self-sustaining population of Atlantic Salmon to Lake Ontario, from which they have been extirpated since the 1890s. The full-scale restoration program was officially launched in 2006 with a long-term goal of a self-sustaining population in 20-25 years. The restoration program has four major components: (1) fish production & stocking; (2) habitat protection and improvement; (3) research & assessment; and (4) education & outreach. While significant corporate and in-kind support has been received to date, it is only meeting baseline funding requirements, and we are seeking additional funding to ensure the long-term success of the program.

With this proposal, we are seeking to support the fish production & stocking and education & outreach components of the program, both of which involve extensive travel away from the OFAH office to deliver. More specifically we are looking to supplement fish production costs to ensure we continue to have eggs available for school children in classroom hatcheries and fish available to stock into our target rivers. Additionally, we seek support for travel to have OFAH staff drive to stocking events to coordinate the volunteers needed on-site to release fish each spring. We are also looking to support travel for our classroom hatchery education program, which involves at least two rounds of travel to 90+ locations: to deliver eggs and to subsequently release the hatched fish with the schoolchildren into our target restoration rivers. Some schools also receive an in-class presentation on the history of Atlantic Salmon in Ontario and the restoration effort to bring them back. Several emergency trips to repair or replace classroom hatchery equipment also occur each year.

By producing and stocking Atlantic Salmon in the rivers targeted for restoration of this well-known sportfish, we are returning a part of Ontario’s lost natural heritage to our environment. Reaching our long-term goal of having a self-sustaining population of Atlantic Salmon will be a significant benchmark for Ontario’s biodiversity efforts and provide social and economic benefits to the province’s angling community. We have already achieved a small catch-and-release fishery in the rivers but with time, angler awareness, and sustained stocking, this will grow. By having volunteers contribute to the stocking efforts, we also engage local communities in activities within their watersheds and promote the long-term stewardship of the habitat Atlantic Salmon need to sustain themselves in the Lake Ontario basin.

The classroom hatchery component of the restoration program has multiple benefits: (1) it increases the number of fish released into the river each year, OFAH-mentored classes contribute approximately 7,500 fish to the program; (2) it provides students and teachers with a hands-on science opportunity while also engaging them in species restoration; (3) it provides the program the opportunity to give in-depth presentations on Atlantic Salmon, conservation, and watershed health to students and communities; (4) it creates future stewards of local watersheds as the students learn about the history of Lake Ontario and its species, giving them a reason to care about the future of these rivers with “their” fish in them. This OFAH-led program provides over 2,500 students with this 4-5 month hands-on science opportunity, and reaches another 8,000 students with a briefer exposure to the program.