At GSA, we have been considering two significant and very recent developments (both transpiring in June 2024) regarding open net-pen fish farms:
- The hard-fought victory of fish farms remaining shut in the Discovery Islands, which was possible only with the leadership and stewardship of First Nations.
- The federal government extending its timeline by four additional years—until 2029—to transition fish farms to closed-containment facilities on land.
The science is clear: fish farms affect the health of wild salmon and other marine life because they release waste, and spread diseases and parasites. Thankfully the Discovery Island fish farms are no longer a threat to out-migrating salmon, with their already vulnerable health, because those farms are now definitively shut.
For every victory, there can often be a setback—and the federal government giving itself a four-year extension on its commitment to get the nets out is definitely not ideal. The commitment, originally made in 2019 with a deliverable of getting open-net fish farms out of B.C. waters by 2025, has been watered down and pushed into the later phases of a subsequent federal administration.
The current administration has abandoned its commitment to getting the nets out—and that’s unsurprising to us, unfortunately. Three years ago, when DFO issued their summary of engagement findings on their open net-pen transition plans, GSA noted the absence of a commitment to remove the nets by 2025 from coastal waters. We were also surprised by the inclusion of in-water containment systems and hybrid technologies as possible alternatives because in-water options cannot fully remove the pollution, disease, and waste from the marine environment.
We have also long expressed concerns with the tensions and murky responsibilities of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) being both promoter and regulator of the aquaculture industry, and now the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner is also concerned. The Commissioner is currently investigating allegations that senior DFO officials may have tried to silence scientists’ alarms about the harms of fish farms on wild Pacific salmon.
Wild salmon need the nets out – and that transition is supported by more than 120 First Nations across B.C.
At GSA, we continue to advocate for the removal of fish farms and for a plan that supports the affected communities with new economic opportunities, including closed containment aquaculture jobs and a rebounding wild salmon economy.
Contact your MP today to continue the momentum of closing these fish farms down!