Quebecers launch safety app to help fishers navigate 'unstable' ice conditions

Marc-André Galbrand says the ice is not what it used to be on the Saguenay River in eastern Quebec.

What was once a solid, frozen slab dotted with fishing cabins along parts of the 100-kilometre stretch has become unpredictable and even "unstable."

"We have all these new realities," said Galbrand, the director of Contact Nature, an environmental organization based in Saguenay, Que. "Last year … was the first year that we were not able to organize the ice fishing villages because the ice was just too thin."

This week, he says the river has almost no ice at all.

"With climate change … we lost almost 95 per cent of the ice," said Galbrand.

The melting ice and the danger it presents to fishers is part of what inspired him to create an app called Glaces du Fjord, designed to help inform people and keep them safe.

Working closely with the coast guard and local fishermen in the area, the app compiles information about the tides, cargo schedules and ice conditions, including thickness. It even gives users the chance to report changes or issues while out on the water. 

A place to turn to for questions, says fisherman

Set to be released to the public on Friday, Galbrand says Contact Nature — the organization behind the app — has been working on the free tool for months.

The app uses information from St. Lawrence pilots who fly over the water and create "ice cards" multiple times a week to note information about the conditions for icebreakers, says Galbrand.

He says he came up with the idea after seeing similar products designed to detect mountain safety and avalanche prevention.

With the Saguenay River being a unique and popular winter fishing destination, Mathieu Aubin says the app can help increase security.

"There's really [a] unique kind of fishing … it's really remote and it's gaining [popularity]," said Aubin, who runs a general store and local bait shop, Accommodation des 21, which has been in his family for five generations.

He was among the 20 people who have helped test the app and, over the past few months, helped collaborate on the project.

He says the tool will not only serve experienced anglers, but also those new to the sport.

"A lot of people coming here don't have the experience and ask a lot of questions everywhere on Facebook and [even] call to the bait shop … [asking] if they can go on the ice, if it's safe, where they should go," said Aubin.

"So with the app, all the information will be managed by one organization and it will be the right information."

He says it's a need that's just recently developed, considering some older fisherman in the region have experienced steadily cold winters in the past which have allowed them to go on the ice without any problem or concern.

A recent analysis from the non-profit Climate Central suggests that Canadian cities are seeing more above zero days in winter because of climate change.

"We see the climate change, the temperature is going higher. That's why we try to make some application like this to help," said Galbrand.

He believes this type of tool could also be helpful for other regions in Canada and Quebec, particularly farther south in Montreal, as temperatures continue to warm.