Restoration & EnhancementPleasant River Hatchery
The Pleasant River Fish Hatchery is an education and enhancement facility housed in the basement of the Wild Salmon Resource Center. The Hatchery was built by local volunteers to hatch Atlantic salmon to stock into the Pleasant River.
The hatchery is run by local volunteers with the supervision of DSF staff. School groups and community members are invited to come tour the hatchery between February and May when the hatchery is in operation.
In the more than ten years of operation thousands of students and community member have visited the hatchery to learn about wild Atlantic salmon conservation and biology, and hundreds of thousands of salmon fry have been reared and stocked into the Downeast salmon rivers.
The East Machias Aquatic Research Center (EMARC)
The East Machias Aquatic Research Center is a project of the Downeast Salmon Federation (DSF). The DSF is in the process of developing a research and community outreach facility on the East Machias River which will include a fish hatchery, a flow-through fresh water experimental facility, a state certified water quality testing
laboratory, a Technical Resources Center, and a small Historic Museum - Education Center.
Photos from East Machias
The first phase of insulating and siding are done and the Hatchery water intake box is in the river. Click below to see photos of the activity.
Photos of the Hatchery Intake Box Installation
After planning for two years, the permits were in place and the weather was perfect. To see photos of the installation of the hatchery water intake box click below.
EMARC-East Machias Hatchery Up and Running
In March 2009, EMARC received approximately 20,000 fertilized Atlantic salmon eggs from the Grand Lake Stream state fish hatchery.
EMARC-Feasibility Report
In keeping with the Federation’s mission, “to preserve and restore wild populations of Atlantic sea-run salmon in five Washington County rivers: Dennys, East Machias, Machias, Pleasant and Narraguagus”, the Federation’s intention is to convert the former Bangor Hydro’s Power generation building, which is located on the site, to an aquatic research facility.
East Machias Dam
In 1926, Bangor Hydro completed construction on this dam, located in downtown East Machias at Route 1, to generate electricity by channeling the entire river down a 4' diameter tube or "penstock" where it would turn a hydrocone, generate electricity and then exit the system downriver.
The East Machias Aquatic Research Center closer to becoming a reality
Through a series of grants and agreements with other local organizations the EMARC is comeing closer to being a reality. In 2001 the DSF received a grant from the Maine Science and Technology Foundation to hire a consulting firm to conduct an initial feasibility study (to see study final report click) and preliminary building and site plan (to view building and site plan click) for the aquatic research/ education facility. With this completed the DSF applied for and received a $75,000 challenge grant from the Downeast Maine Salmon Restoration Fund. The DSF was successful at finding match for this grant and some of the money was used along with funding from Maine DEP to install a new septic system in summer 2003. The DSF applied for and received another challenge grant from the Downeast Maine Salmon Restoration Fund for $115,000 and is curently fundraising to meet that challenge.
Download Salmon Restoration Workshop Proceedings
PROCEEDINGS OF THE WORKSHOP
Protection and Restoration of Salmon Habitat: Lessons Learned Around the World
Edited by Michael Herz, Sheepscot Valley Conservation Association
Wells Conference Center,University of Maine, Orono October 15, 2001
