Evidence that sea lice from fish farms is not only driving Broughton Archipelago salmon runs towards extinction, but also impacting herring stocks should be setting off alarm bells says North Coast MLA Gary Coons.
“We must take immediate action to protect herring and salmon in British Columbian waters by implementing the recommendations of the Special Committee on Sustainable Aquaculture,” said Coons. “Herring and salmon are lynchpins of both the coastal ecosystem and our fishing industry.”
Coons was a member of the New Democrat led Special Committee on Sustainable Aquaculture. The committee’s final report made 55 recommendations, most of them directed at open pen salmon farms. One of their key recommendations was a transition to ocean-based closed containment and an end of open pen farming in British Columbian waters.
“It’s been a year and a half since the committee made their final report and the Campbell Liberal government has only implemented half of one recommendation, despite the growing body of scientific evidence showing the connection between open pen farms and declining salmon and herring stocks,” said Coons. “Action must be taken immediately.”
Runs located in the Broughton Archipelago have fallen to disastrous lows. In one key indicator stream, Glendale Creek, there were only 19,000 spawning salmon counted this year, compared with 264,000 last year.
“The aquaculture industry and Gordon Campbell’s Liberals are the only ones who don’t believe that open pen farming is killing our wild fish,” said Coons. “Do we have to wait for a total collapse before something is done to protect these key species?”
Coons is concerned that the poor management by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans is adding to the strain on salmon and herring stocks, which are already being hit by changes in the ocean and impacts from farms.
“The Heiltsuk Tribal Council has indicated that returns of herring and salmon have been so low for the past three years that they have been unable to harvest their food social and ceremonial allocations. The Heiltsuk have demanded meetings with both the Province and Federal governments to remedy the situation with their constitutional rights,” said Coons. “We need to make some major changes in the way we interact with our ocean and both levels of government seem to have abandoned their responsibilites.”
What is particularly worrisome about the collapse of these fisheries is the important place that both of these species hold in the coastal ecosystem. Herring are the breadbasket of the pacific, an important food for many species, including salmon. Salmon are a mainstay of the diet of several iconic British Columbian species, including bears and orcas.
“There are lots of hungry bears in the province this year,” said Coons. “There are not enough fish spawning, not enough fish for the bears, the eagles and the orcas. This can’t continue.”
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