Pour A 40 Out For Our Fishy Friends

Not only will nature not win the game but we can force it to carry its weight around these parts:

The New York City Department of Environmental Protection says it is using bluegills to detect changes in the water quality at its reservoirs.

The fish are kept in holding tanks and the system detects tiny electrical signals the fish generate as they swim.

“It’s kind of like the old canary in the coal mine,” said DEP spokesman Ian Michaels.

“These are fish that are particularly sensitive to changes in water quality. You can monitor the fish for their level of agitation and for other changes in their behavior.”

Michaels said the fish have proven adept at detecting problems, including reacting to a diesel spill two hours sooner than any of the agency’s other early-detection devices.