LILLOOET, B.C. - Officials say they're working as quickly as possible but can't determine if they're on track to create a natural passage at the site of a Fraser River landslide that would allow salmon to reach their spawning grounds.
The slide discovered last month created a five-metre waterfall in a narrow and remote portion of the river near Big Bar north of Lillooet, B.C.
Al Magnan, environmental lead for the team working to help the fish pass, says conditions change every day so crews aren't working on a timeline.
Millions of fish are expected to reach the site in the coming weeks and Magnan says 40,000 of primarily chinook and sockeye have already been recorded two kilometres downstream from the barrier.
He says crews have transported 1,400 salmon by helicopter but few have been recorded passing the site on their own.
If more fish don't begin making it past the slide site, officials say a fish ladder to help salmon move up the waterfall is ready for installation on the weekend or early next week.
