The O'Connor Lake Net Pen facility is truly the jewel in NVISEA's juvenile rearing facilities. NVISEA's O'Connor pen system has twelve 145 square meter (16' by 16' by 20') individual pens. Each is enclosed by submerged PVC coated wire mesh to prevent predator attack and net damage.
The system is operated from September, when fry are transferred from the hatchery, to May when smolts are released to their natal streams. The site is allowed to fallow for the summer months of the year. NVISEA's current O'Connor production is 300,000 coho smolts and 40,000 steelhead smolts.
Lake Pen Rearing
The advantages of lake pen rearing are primarily associated with reduced costs as no electricity is required to pump water and the automated feeders are solar powered. Smolt quality is also improved by lower density lake rearing.
