Alberta warns pet owners to keep goldfish out of lakes
Provincial officials say dumped goldfish are surviving in Alberta waters, where some have grown to 15 inches and can crowd native species.
By Georgia Hale · Staff Writer
2 min read
Alberta officials have a blunt message for pet owners with unwanted goldfish: do not dump them in local water.
The provincial government is warning residents through its “Don’t Let It Loose” campaign after more than 100 incidents involving invasive goldfish in Alberta waterways, according to the province.
Nicole Kimmel, Alberta’s invasive species specialist, told CBC News the problem is not mainly fish reaching lakes and ponds after being flushed. She said people are deliberately releasing them outdoors.
“People are actually intentionally dumping them into our waterways, and they are overwintering and thriving and finding ways to reproduce,” Kimmel told CBC News.
Big fish, bigger problem
The Alberta Ministry of the Environment said some goldfish recovered in the province have reached 15 inches long. The ministry said the fish can grow quickly when they have plenty to eat and are no longer limited by the size of a home aquarium.
Once in the wild, the ministry said, goldfish can compete with native species for habitat. The province classifies them as invasive when released into Alberta waters.
The warning also carries legal bite. Alberta’s campaign says releasing invasive species, including goldfish, into waterways can bring penalties of up to $70,900 and as much as one year in prison.
Kimmel said the risk is broader than one fish splashing into a pond. She told CBC News that aquarium dumping can also introduce other unwanted material into a water body.
“People might think that they’re just dumping goldfish, but actually they might be introducing snails, fish disease, plant fragments that can also take over a water body in Alberta,” Kimmel said.
Province says keep aquarium species contained
The province’s guidance is aimed at stopping aquarium pets and related organisms from being released into places where they did not originate. Kimmel summed up the rule for CBC News: “Never release anything into the water that it didn’t come from.”
Alberta’s campaign frames the issue as a preventable threat to local ecosystems, with officials pointing to repeated discoveries of goldfish in provincial waterways as evidence that some released pets are surviving outside tanks.
The message from the province is simple enough for every fishbowl: if a goldfish can no longer stay at home, a lake, creek or pond is not the answer.
This story draws on original reporting from UPI.