Heavy ND snowfall kills North Dakota fish

Record snowfall across North Dakota may have led to a major fish kill on about 40 lakes, the state Game and Fish Department says.

The heavy snow also refreshed lakes in the state. About 30 lakes that had been dried up are now full of water and will be restocked with fish, the agency says.

State fisheries chief Greg Power said Game and Fish employees plans a survey over the next two weeks to determine the extent of the fish kill.

"The winterkill likely happened border to border to border to border," Powers said.

Lakes that suffered fish kills will be restocked, he said.

The winter was similar to that of 1996-97, the worst in years for fish kills, Powers said. North Dakota averages winterkill at about 10 lakes annually, he said.

Oxygen for fish is limited when snowfall blocks light into the lakes, preventing photosynthesis. Plants die and stop giving off oxygen, and then the plants consume oxygen as they decompose, Powers said.
...
Hendrickson said carp and bullheads, two fish that can survive in lakes with low oxygen, already have been found washed up along the [Patterson Lake's] shore.

"That's usually a signal that it killed everything," Hendrickson said.

When the people of 2058 look at this time capsule, what will they think of the once-widespread fear that carbon dioxide was going to kill us all?

While the clear majority of the essays mentioned global warming or other environmental issues, 9-year-old Meadow School student Nick Eaton had a particularly altruistic vision of the future in which he sees “absolutely no bullies, no violence, and no wars.” Eaton, who tied for first place in the 4-6 Grade Category, wrote, “In 2058, I hope that everyone can hold hands.”