​Would North Dakota rather poison the well or sip from it?

Something Fishy is Going on 

By the time this is published a renovation will have taken place -- and we are not talking about the renovation occurring at the High Plains Reader office that has left your editor squatting at John Strand’s desk for the past week.

According to the North Dakota Game and Fish Department, a “chemical renovation” is taking place at the Raleigh Reservoir in Grant County, which is located in southwestern North Dakota. This “renovation” is intended to eradicate a species of fish in said body of water -- which ironically enough happens to be our state fish, the Northern Pike.

Anglers love or hate the Northern Pike. It’s bony, toothy, and known to put up a good fight. So why introduce countless dollars worth of poison into an ecosystem, instead of boosting the local economy by encouraging tourism and promoting fishing? After all, it is ice derby season -- why not encourage a no limit on Northern Pike in the reservoir?

Unfortunately that notion isn’t nearly as sexy as paying Josh Duhamel a million and a half dollars to parade around the streets of downtown Fargo for the sake of North Dakota tourism..gag me with a spooner (that’s a fishing joke). Let’s not even discuss production costs.

The pike has only been a thorn in the side of the Raleigh Dam since 2009, but there is no possible eradication of one species in the reservoir. Everything with gills will perish. Yes, these things take time, money and able bodies, but there has to be a safer, more logical solution.

According to the 2013 census, the population of Grant County was fewer than 2,400 people. The population of the entire county is comparable to the population of Horace, which is located just outside of Fargo.

In a world where hunger is a serious issue, is our state willing to kill off a sustainable food source rather than netting and distributing to the less fortunate? Could this be some twisted metaphor for an unconscious desire to destroy community rather than embrace it, or is it just a case of indifference?

In other news, the largest fracking spill in our state’s history occurred this January, contaminating the Little Muddy River and Blacktail Creek near Williston with three million gallons of fracking brine. The Little Muddy is a tributary that drains into the Missouri River, which also happens to be the town’s drinking water source.

Though the incidents have no correlation other than the fact that our wetlands serve as a delicate and important ecosystem, they are being senselessly contaminated both accidentally and intentionally.

Rotenone, the poison, is typically used as a fish-killing agent or piscicide. It is a naturally occurring chemical found in the seeds, stems, and roots of certain plant species and has organic farming and gardening associations. It has also been linked to Parkinson’s disease.

According to pan-uk.org it is a “general inhibitor of cellular respiration” meaning it suffocates anything with gills. Don’t worry, folks, the reservoir will be stocked with species considered more desirable in the end, and if we end up with more undesirables we’ll choke ‘em out.

Are we being led to believe that a natural poison is the lesser evil when compared to synthetic varieties?

Rotenone also serves as an insecticide and has been used in organic farming and gardening. Dusting the gooseberries in your garden is one thing, but massive quantities will destroy the insect populations in the area as well as the fish population, some of which may seem fine and dandy, but think about our disappearing pollinators.

As a state whose primary focus is agriculture we SHOULD be thinking about our pollinators. North Dakota is the top honey-producing state in the nation. Now that the oil boom is over, let’s REALLY think this through.

Officials are hoping the poison will dissipate before the ice melts. We’re staying optimistic. Instead of a glass half full, we’re looking at a reservoir half full -- of rotting fish carcasses in the spring.