Residents upset as hundreds of fish killed when Richmond Hill pond drained ahead of schedule by mistake

Yorkregion.com
Sept. 19, 2022

On the last Saturday of August, a great blue heron was seen having a surprise feast on swarms of dying fish trapped in small scattered puddles in what was a full pond just a few days before in a Richmond Hill park.

The fish would soon perish by the hundreds, lying rotten everywhere on the muddy bottom while other aquatic animals wandered about and had nowhere to swim and eat in the suddenly drained pond in Twickenham Park located on Canyon Hill Avenue.

The shocking sight of the once-thriving pond on Aug. 27 turned resident Adam Shapiro’s evening walk with his family into a frantic search for an answer.

“We were just thinking it was kind of crazy. We were kind of in shock. The first thing that went through your mind was like, oh, we need to do something,” Shapiro said.

After a call to the City of Richmond Hill, the Shapiros learned that Twickenham Pond was drained for the purpose of rehabilitation work -- however, not before a biologist was able to assess or relocate a diversity of wildlife that depended on the pond.

“I'm a little bit upset because I feel like this is a very easily avoidable incident,” said Shapiro, noting it was a result of neglect by the city.

The water was drained out of the pond “mistakenly” one week ahead with all the wildlife still living in the pond, Shapiro said he learned from the city’s project manager.

A Richmond Hill spokesperson said that an external vendor hired by the city “prematurely” began to drain the pond in August, in preparations for the rehabilitation work scheduled for September.

“Once the city became aware, steps were immediately taken to refill the pond,” spokesperson Lynn Chan noted.

Shapiro said city workers acted fairly quickly by refilling the stormwater management pond with water through a fire hydrant a few days later, but the area had not only sustained an extensive loss of fish but also experienced a disruption of the existing ecosystem of the decades-old pond.

The Twickenham Pond was constructed in the early 1990s to manage runoff from rain and melting snow, prevent flooding, erosion and improve water quality of the Upper East Don River, according to the city.

Craig Streicher, who also lives in the neighbourhood, said he was disappointed that Richmond Hill “mismanaged” the draining of the community pond that's been a habitat for a variety of wildlife, including turtles, kingfishers, owls and ospreys.

“These decisions have serious ramifications," Streicher said. “You've got to be very careful in terms of these decisions. It really does impact our neighbourhood.”

Shapiro said he saw workers removing the dead fish from the pond, using netting, one day after refilling it.

On Sept. 6 -- more than a week after the Twickenham Pond was prematurely drained and a few days after it was refilled for remedy -- workers began to re-drain the pond as part of the rehabilitation work.

This time, the city spokesperson said it was drained in accordance with environmental regulations set out by the Ontario government and the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority.

“The city worked with a wildlife biologist to ensure all regulations related to wildlife are being followed,” the spokesperson said.

Over the years, the water quality in the pond and its function for stormwater management have reduced due to the natural accumulation of sediment, the city says.

Work is expected to be completed by the end of the year, which the city says will help create a healthier environment for local wildlife.

However, Streicher noted the impact of the premature draining would have a lasting impact on the environment beyond the dead fish and the stinky smell. The bacteria of the rotten fish would go into the water system.

“A lot of things have been compounded with that error, or whatever happened with the city, because they didn't do this right,” Streicher said. “So someone needs to be accountable for this.”