Natural Sciences

Electrofishing is a non-harmful fishing technique used by field personnel to help identify or relocate fish present in waterbodies. McIntosh Perry stores state of the art electrofishing units at our offices across Ontario to be able to respond quickly to our clients needs and deploy resources into the field on short notice. Our field professionals are  both trained and certified to carry out electrofishing in support of a variety of projects where fishery related studies, inventories, or salvage may be required. We can also prepare the documentation and secure the required Scientific Collectors Permit required prior to carrying out electrofishing at your site.

For many infrastructure or other projects, in-water work may often be needed, thereby requiring the isolation of a work area within a watercourse. This necessitates the removal of fish from the working area and relocation to a safe area downstream prior to initiating any work. Our field professionals are trained and certified to carry out fish salvage and can provide all the services required to support any fish removal/relocation requirements for your project. Typically, the services summarized below are required.

Fish Removal Plan, MNRF Scientific Collector’s Permit, and Fish Removal Services:

• Apply and obtain required a Ministry of Northern Development, Mines, Natural Resources and Forestry (NDMNRF) Scientific Collector’s Permit, including required Fish Collection Record reporting to NDMNRF); and
• Fish Removal Services by qualified staff as per industry best practices, including any requirements by NDMNRF, Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO), any Local Conservation Authority

McIntosh Perry biologists are frequently retained by both private and government clients to conduct in depth studies that characterize and document aquatic habitat conditions within study areas. Staff are skilled at preparing Existing Conditions and Related Impact/Mitigation reports that explore how a proposed development (both shoreline adjacent and in-water) might impact the area fish habitat and provide protection recommendations in our reporting. Our studies support a wide range of undertakings including provincial and municipal infrastructure, industrial, institutional, and private development projects.

Our staff are experienced in completing comprehensive watercourse habitat assessments for your project if required as a part of aquatic studies, restoration, or other works. We will carry out field investigations to map aquatic habitat features and values present within study areas inclusive of watercourse dimensions, in-stream cover, riparian and aquatic vegetation, substrate information, flow characteristics, sedimentation and pollutant point sources.

Following an assessment, when a proposed undertaking is shown to potentially impact fish populations, a Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) request for review may be needed. Our scientists can prepare the required documentation to support the Request for Review and communicate with agency staff to assist in securing approvals. We  work closely with regional DFO offices on a regular basis on behalf of our clients in an effort of supporting their submissions.

Benthic organisms are valuable indicators of water quality, as diverse populations present within the sediments of watercourses. Monitoring of benthic organisms both upstream and downstream of a targeted area can provide important information about the source of pollution/toxicity. The presence of pollution-tolerant benthic organisms is a strong indicator of good water quality; and inversely, pollution-tolerant benthic macro-invertebrate presence is associated with poor water quality. Our team can develop your monitoring program, carry out sampling, provide statistical analysis/interpretation of the data, and provide a comprehensive report detailing the results.

Our biologists, ecologists, and scientist can assist you with any projects where fish passage must be optimized or where existing barriers to fish mobility have been identified. Our Natural Sciences team includes professionals with extensive experience in fish passage assessment and design. We work closely with our structural and drainage design teams and provide consultation regarding design modifications to enhance passage for example: assuring optimal watercourse flow for identified species, the need for baffle placement, or substrate quality enhancement.

At McIntosh Perry our multidisciplinary approach to watercourse restoration includes collaboration between  Natural Sciences, Water Resources, Environmental Engineering, and Geomorphology disciplines as the scope of projects can be complex including the establishment of riparian zones, native plantings, fish passage features, bank stabilization, substrate modification, etc. From large to smaller watercourse restoration projects, we are able to meet your needs.

Our team can carry out in-field investigations to determine or confirm if watercourses that can be impacted by proposed infrastructure repair or replacement, represent fish habitat. As such, we would provide direction regarding the need for additional services i.e., permitting, construction timing windows, the need for electrofishing or fish salvage, or other recommendations/approvals.

We have staff trained and certified in environmental monitoring for construction projects. We can meet your construction, or post construction monitoring needs with the capability to deploy staff on a regular basis, if required, from several offices located throughout Ontario.