THE FIRST of a series of golden perch to be released in the Wimmera River were let go on Friday by agriculture minister Joe Helper.
The golden perch will be followed by an additional 50,000 which have been allocated to the river over the next 12 months.
The release heralded the first time in years certain sections of the Wimmera River will be stocked with fish, thanks to good rain and water savings delivered from the $688 million Wimmera Mallee Pipeline Project.
“The Brumby Labor Government values the importance of fishing as a recreational pastime so it is taking action to enhance recreational fishing opportunities for all Victorians,” Mr Helper said.
“The 50,000 additional golden perch comes on top of the 30,000 golden perch delivered annually to parts of the river upstream and is aimed at making the Wimmera once again a great native fishery.”
The river currently flows throguh Horsham, Dimboola and Jeparit for the first time in years and has enabled restocking programs, Mr Helper said.
Mr Helper said with Dimboola celebrating its 150th birthday this year and the long-awaited return of the Dimboola Rowing Regatta on November 21, the town had a great reason to celebrate.
“The fish stocking complements what has been a great few months for the residents of the town which like many in the region has been hit hard by drought over the past decade.
“Depending on weather conditions and future flows, there is also some possibility of a return upstream of the Horsham Fishing Competition which was last held in 2005.
The competition was an important tourist event for Horsham each Labor Day long weekend and
it attracted thousands of keen anglers to the Wimmera city, he said.
The Wimmera River is the largest river in Victoria that does not flow into the ocean
