Litvínov, 20 April 2012 – Today, Unipetrol RPA and the Czech Fishing Union (ČRS SÚS Ústí nad Labem) released about 25,000 golden shiner (also Ide fish) fingerlings into the Bílina River. The event is part of a three-year cooperation between Unipetrol RPA and the Ústí nad Labem branch of the Czech Fishing Union, which began in 2010. In releasing these young fish, Unipetrol RPA is doing its part in the celebration of Earth Day, which is occurs globally on 22 April.
“The golden shiner is a highly protected and very rare species of fish. Last year, due to the efforts of Unipetrol, more than 23,000 of these shiners were released into the Bílina River. The Czech Fishing Union in Ústí nad Labem has been working to restore this fish population in the river for a number of years and thanks to its successful hatchery efforts, the results have been very positive. There have been a number of comments received from sports fisherman attesting to the fact that the population of golden shiners in the river is excellent. Unfortunately, the fish are also very popular with cormorants, who also like to visit the Bílina River in winter,” explained Václav Jelínek, a technical specialist working with the North Bohemian division of the Czech Fishing Union.
Pavel Sláma, Unipetrol’s Director of Health, Safety, the Environment and Quality commented on these efforts stating that:“Between 2010 and 2012, our company will have contributed 250,000 crowns to these fish restocking efforts and today’s release of these golden shiners will have been the fourth joint activity organized by our company with the Czech Fishing Union. After the results of an assessment of the impact of this joint project on the fish stock in the Bílina River have been completed by the staff of the Czech Fishing Union, we will be looking forward to discussing how we can expand our work with the union in future years.”
The new young fish were released at four different locations – at České Zlatníky by the mouth of the Srpina River, at the towns of Želenice and Hostomice and in Stadice close to the Královský Pramen Creek. The golden shiner has a relatively tall body, a small head and soft mouth. Along the upper part of its back, the fish is a rather dark grayish blue color. Along its sides, the fish is bright silver and it has a white belly. The golden shiner lives in the lower reaches of major rivers, where it tends to stay together in schools.
The fish is highly demanding in terms of its environmental needs and water quality requirements. Its diet is composed of plankton, insects, smaller fish and even parts of plants. In Czech rivers, these fish can live for 10-15 years. The largest fish can grow up to 60 cm in length and weigh 2-3 kilograms. In April and May, they move upstream to spawn where they like a gravel or sandy bottom but there eggs can also be found attached to water plants and roots. The largest females can produce over 100,000 eggs.
UNIPETROL, a.s. is a group of companies operating in the petrochemical industry in the Czech Republic. In 2005 UNIPETROL became a part of the PKN ORLEN Group, the largest oil processor in Central Europe. The UNIPETROL Group is oriented mostly towards oil processing, fuel distribution and petrochemical production. In all of these business areas the UNIPETROL Group is among the key players both in the Czech Republic and on the Central European market. The Group ranks among the leading firms in the Czech Republic in terms of its revenues, and employs almost 4,000 people.
Contact:
Mikuláš Duda
Press Department Manager
Telephone: +420 225 001 407, +420 736 502 520
E-mail: mikulas.duda@unipetrol.cz