Breed students raise trout, awareness about environment

LYNN – The Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife stocked Sluice Pond with 2,725 rainbow and brown trout this year, but next spring there might be a few extra fish looking to move in thanks to Pam Morse’s eighth grade science class at Breed Middle School.Morse’s students will be hatching and raising trout in class over the winter. The class will be responsible for caring for the baby fish and charting their growth. They’ll also be monitoring the conditions in the tank, keeping tabs on the water temperature and quality.”It’s a way to reconnect kids with nature,” said Morse, who added that the project dovetails with eighth grade science curriculum. “This is one way of taking the standards out of the text book.”The tank, trout eggs and other equipment were provided by a special educational outreach program run by Trout Unlimited, a national organization committed to preserving and protecting rivers, streams and upland habitats for freshwater fish, particularly trout.Trout Unlimited claims roughly 150,000 members throughout the United States. Many are anglers who have a deep affection for trout partly because landing one can be a genuine challenge. Other members favor the fish because it lives in cold, clean water and its presence is a sign that the environment is in good health.Zach Johnson, a former history teacher at Lynn Tech who has moved over to teach at Breed, is a trout fan and a member of Trout Unlimited’s Nor’east Chapter. He suggested Breed students as possible candidates for a Trout in the Classroom project and chapter President Kevin Correa agreed. According to Correa, centuries ago streams filled with trout flowed through many areas of the North Shore. The fish were so plentiful they could be caught by dipping buckets or nets in the water. Some accounts suggest that early settlers pulled them out of the water by hand.Over time, however, the North Shore’s waterways were seriously compromised by pollution from industrial and residential development. The state also built thousands of damns which disrupted the natural cycles of the waterways.”The trout have survived despite how hard conditions have been,” said Correa. “We would like to bring them back to a sustainable level.”Sustainability is an environmental benchmark that would mean that Correa, Johnson and the 400 other members of the Nor’east chapter of Trout Unlimited could continue to fish for trout knowing there would still be a healthy population of fish for the next generation. Sustainability would also mean the state would no longer have to step in and stock ponds with fish.But to bring trout back to that level on the North Shore would probably require some significant sacrifices from people. Homes and buildings may even need to be removed to allow streams to regenerate.The students who will be raising trout with Morse will look at those types of environmental issues and challenges with Johnson in their social studies class. “Having a thriving community is a trade off in the environment that involves making some decisions,” said Johnson. “These students will start to become educated and informed about how a community uses its natural resources.”Morse said students will also learn what they can do as individuals to lessen their impact on the environment.For now, however, the class is eagerly awaiting the arrival of about 200 trout eggs.”They are really excited,” said Morse. “They ask everyday if the fish are coming.”Morse said hand-on opportunities like this do a lot of raise awareness in kids.”I know they will take some positive ideas from this,” she said.And that’s exactly what Correa and others at Trout Unlimited are hoping.”The best way to get people to care and protect a resource is to have them enjoy it,” he said.