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Fish kills eyed at
Maumee River power plant

 Electricity is the life-blood of our way of living. It is that important. But what if the company that is supplying power is destroying a natural resource in the process?

This about sums up a long-standing battle between the owner of the Bay Shore Power Plant on the Maumee River at Toledo and environmentalists, including many sportsmen, who say the plant kills millions of Lake Erie fish, including walleye, every year.

The latest salvos will likely be hurled on Tuesday, March 3 when the Ohio EPA will host a public information session at 6:30-8:15 p.m. in Oregon, OH not far from the power plant.

The meeting is to discuss a new report that evaluates options for reducing impingement and entrainment of fish by the power plant cooling water intake system.

The meeting will be held at Wynn Elementary School gymnasium, 5224 Bay Shore Road, Oregon. FirstEnergy Corp. Bay Shore plant is located nearby, drawing and discharging water near the confluence of the Maumee River and the Maumee Bay section of western Lake Erie.

Untold numbers of fish, their eggs and larvae are captured or killed each year by the cooling water intake systems.

Impingement occurs when fish and shellfish are trapped against the water intake screens.Entrainment occurs when fish eggs and larvae are drawn into the cooling water system.

The federal Clean Water Act requires these facilities to use the best technology available to minimize environmental impacts.

FirstEnergy conducted detailed studies on fish impingement and entrainment and on the thermal plume created by heated water discharged into Maumee Bay from the plant's cooling system.

Illinois angler Don Prola nailed this plump walleye from Mega Bites last spring.
Reddit Fishing Article Index

Ohio EPA asked an independent environmental engineering firm, Tetra Tech, to examine FirstEnergy's studies and the technologies available to reduce the Bay Shore intake system's impact on fish and determine which ones would work best at the plant.

Tetra Tech's report also reviewed impacts on Maumee Bay from the thermal plume. At the public meeting, Ohio EPA representatives will detail the report and answer questions.

Ohio EPA is currently considering renewal of the plant's wastewater discharge permit and may require improvements to reduce the facility's environmental impact on Maumee Bay.

FirstEnergy reps also are expected to attend and present information on company studies.

Capt. Tony Denslow