DFO

An Atlantic salmon is seen collected for samples from during a Department of Fisheries and Oceans fish health audit at the Okisollo fish farm near Campbell River, B.C. Wednesday, Oct. 31, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS /Jonathan Hayward

B.C. salmon farm closure decision was necessary, says DFO amid court challenges

DFO: recent science suggests uncertainty about risks posed to wild salmon by the area’s farms

 

Seafood companies Cermaq, Grieg Seafood, and MOWI Canada West have filed an application to review DFO’s decision to close the Fish Farms in the Discovery Islands last month. (Photo courtesy Grieg Seafood BC)

B.C. First Nation, aquaculture companies challenge Discovery Island fish farm closures in court

Feds made the announcement to close fish farms in Discovery Island region last month

 

Kris Dudoward is shown aboard the commercial fishing vessel Irenda earlier this week with catch of sockeye salmon on B.C.���s Skeena River near Prince Rupert. The union representing commercial fisheries, the United Fisherman Allied Workers filed a petition on Feb. 22 requesting the end of foreign ownership of fishing licences and quotas on the BC coast. File - THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Mitch Dudoward **MANDATORY CREDIT**

Union files petition in Ottawa to stop foreign ownership of fishing licences and quotas

UFAW-Unifor seeks a formal ending to all foreign investment, owner operator policy framework

 

An Atlantic salmon is seen during a Department of Fisheries and Oceans fish health audit near Campbell River, B.C. Wednesday, Oct. 31, 2018. A group of scientists is calling out flaws of the DFO’s latest report on sea lice and wild salmon in an open letter to Federal Minister Joyce Murray. THE CANADIAN PRESS /Jonathan Hayward

Scientists slam DFO report regarding salmon farms, sea lice

Open letter addressed to DFO finds ‘inconsistencies’ with salmon farm findings

An Atlantic salmon is seen during a Department of Fisheries and Oceans fish health audit near Campbell River, B.C. Wednesday, Oct. 31, 2018. A group of scientists is calling out flaws of the DFO’s latest report on sea lice and wild salmon in an open letter to Federal Minister Joyce Murray. THE CANADIAN PRESS /Jonathan Hayward
Heavy equipment at work at Coastal GasLink pipeline crossing at the Lho Kwa (Clore River) in northwestern B.C. (David Suzuki Foundation photo)

Feds quietly backed off while Coastal GasLink pipeline work killed fish in B.C.

Fisheries officers cited safety concerns, but critics say none existed

  • Feb 8, 2023
Heavy equipment at work at Coastal GasLink pipeline crossing at the Lho Kwa (Clore River) in northwestern B.C. (David Suzuki Foundation photo)
Laura Myers, Taylor Trapp and their pup Sitka take in one of the final days of the 2022 salmon run in Goldstream Provincial Park. (Justin Samanski-Langille/News Staff)

Unusual weather leads to mixed results for Vancouver Island’s salmon runs

Southern Island largely performed better, systems north of Nanaimo more likely to struggle

Laura Myers, Taylor Trapp and their pup Sitka take in one of the final days of the 2022 salmon run in Goldstream Provincial Park. (Justin Samanski-Langille/News Staff)
FILE - Recirculating Aquaculture Systems, which involve moving the fish farm to land as opposed to an open net fish farm, is one possible future for the aquaculture industry in British Columbia. This photo, of a boat and crane situated next to a collapsed “net pen” by Cooke Seafood off the coast of Cypress Island in Washington State in 2017, came when a net failure allowed tens of thousands of nonnative fish to escape. The incident resulted in a nearly $600,000 settlement to the Lummi Indian tribe over the net collapse and damage done to the native salmon population, and prompted the state government to end the practice of fish farming nonnative fish. regarding File Photo David Bergvall Washington State Dept. of Natural Resources via AP

B.C. aquaculture fishing for new answers as it faces its murky future in 2023

All eyes are focused on the DFO’s next move as industry looks at new systems

FILE - Recirculating Aquaculture Systems, which involve moving the fish farm to land as opposed to an open net fish farm, is one possible future for the aquaculture industry in British Columbia. This photo, of a boat and crane situated next to a collapsed “net pen” by Cooke Seafood off the coast of Cypress Island in Washington State in 2017, came when a net failure allowed tens of thousands of nonnative fish to escape. The incident resulted in a nearly $600,000 settlement to the Lummi Indian tribe over the net collapse and damage done to the native salmon population, and prompted the state government to end the practice of fish farming nonnative fish. regarding File Photo David Bergvall Washington State Dept. of Natural Resources via AP
Salmon during the Invisible Migration in a tributary in B.C.’s northwest. (Photo: Tavish Campbell)

DFO inadequately rebuilding B.C. salmon stocks: Audit

Less than a 6th of B.C. salmon stocks have been assigned a health status per legislation

Salmon during the Invisible Migration in a tributary in B.C.’s northwest. (Photo: Tavish Campbell)
Mowi Canada West salmon farm. (Mowi photo)

Union of BC Indian Chiefs want more action on fish farm closure from the feds

Nanaimo-Ladysmith MP criticize federal plan UBCIC calls nothing but ‘another bait and switch’

  • Nov 24, 2022
Mowi Canada West salmon farm. (Mowi photo)
Where the Harrison River in British Columbia runs deep and the mountains stand tall that is where thousands of eagles dare as salmon spawn. A bald eagle eats a chinook salmon along the Harrison River in Harrison Mills, B.C., Thursday, Nov. 24, 2016. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward

Lack of rainfall could mean 3-week delay for Vancouver Island salmon spawning

However, overall returns are expected to be solid despite unusual weather patterns

Where the Harrison River in British Columbia runs deep and the mountains stand tall that is where thousands of eagles dare as salmon spawn. A bald eagle eats a chinook salmon along the Harrison River in Harrison Mills, B.C., Thursday, Nov. 24, 2016. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward
An Atlantic salmon is seen during a Department of Fisheries and Oceans fish health audit at the Okisollo fish farm near Campbell River, B.C. Wednesday, Oct. 31, 2018. The executive director of British Columbia’s salmon farmers association says a formalized consultation process for the future of the industry is welcome after several years of “ad hoc” discussions stemming from the Liberal government’s pledge in 2019 to end open-net pen salmon aquaculture off B.C.’s coast.��THE CANADIAN PRESS /Jonathan Hayward

Vancouver Island First Nations worry feds flip-flopping on B.C. fish farms transition

BC Salmon Farmers Association ‘heartened’ after its round of meetings with Fisheries minister

An Atlantic salmon is seen during a Department of Fisheries and Oceans fish health audit at the Okisollo fish farm near Campbell River, B.C. Wednesday, Oct. 31, 2018. The executive director of British Columbia’s salmon farmers association says a formalized consultation process for the future of the industry is welcome after several years of “ad hoc” discussions stemming from the Liberal government’s pledge in 2019 to end open-net pen salmon aquaculture off B.C.’s coast.��THE CANADIAN PRESS /Jonathan Hayward
Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s Marine Mammal Rescue team completed a humpback whale disentanglement mission on Oct. 14 near Texada Island. The whale on the left was entangled in 300 feet of marine rope and a buoy, used for prawn traps.

VIDEO: DFO team rescues entangled humpback whale in Georgia Strait

Distressed whale entangled in a large yellow buoy, was accompanied by two others

Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s Marine Mammal Rescue team completed a humpback whale disentanglement mission on Oct. 14 near Texada Island. The whale on the left was entangled in 300 feet of marine rope and a buoy, used for prawn traps.
Sockeye salmon carcasses are shown discarded along the shores of the Fraser River in B.C. in this undated handout photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO, Rodney Hsu

Poaching fears as Fraser River salmon are dumped to rot, even as returns slump

DFO says it needs buyers to do their part to stop black-market sales

Sockeye salmon carcasses are shown discarded along the shores of the Fraser River in B.C. in this undated handout photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO, Rodney Hsu
B.C. Wildlife Federation emailed this photo of rotting sockeye salmon to news outlets on Thursday, Sept. 8. (Submitted photo)

Rotting sockeye salmon dumped along Fraser River signals ‘rampant’ illegal sales

B.C. Wildlife Federation says the dumping involves thousands, possibly tens of thousands of fish

B.C. Wildlife Federation emailed this photo of rotting sockeye salmon to news outlets on Thursday, Sept. 8. (Submitted photo)
Spawning sockeye salmon are seen making their way up the Adams River in Roderick Haig-Brown Provincial Park near Chase, B.C. on Oct. 14, 2014. Optimism over an expected bumper season for wild British Columbia sockeye salmon has turned to distress, after a regulatory body’s estimate of returns to the Fraser River dropped by nearly half this week. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward

Concern for B.C. sockeye salmon as Fraser River return estimates drop by millions

Pre-season estimate of 9.8 million returning fish down to 5.5 million

Spawning sockeye salmon are seen making their way up the Adams River in Roderick Haig-Brown Provincial Park near Chase, B.C. on Oct. 14, 2014. Optimism over an expected bumper season for wild British Columbia sockeye salmon has turned to distress, after a regulatory body’s estimate of returns to the Fraser River dropped by nearly half this week. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward
Diver was charged $12,000 for getting too close to a pod of killer whales near Prince Rupert on July 22, 2022. An orca swims past a recreational boat sailing just offshore in the Salish Sea in the San Juan Islands. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, File)

Scuba diver fined $12K for getting too close to killer whales near Prince Rupert Harbour

It is the largest fine on-record for this type of offence

Diver was charged $12,000 for getting too close to a pod of killer whales near Prince Rupert on July 22, 2022. An orca swims past a recreational boat sailing just offshore in the Salish Sea in the San Juan Islands. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, File)
DFO were aware in November that Trans Mountain work in the Coquihalla River would permanently alter salmon and trout spawning grounds. (Submitted photo)

Trans Mountain construction was green-lit with permit, despite early salmon run near Hope

Advocacy group Protect the Planet discovered and raised the alarm about the dead salmon near Hope

DFO were aware in November that Trans Mountain work in the Coquihalla River would permanently alter salmon and trout spawning grounds. (Submitted photo)
Peter Krahn describes the scope of his selective fishing technology, FishTraps, at Island 22 boat launch in Chilliwack for DFO personnel, elected officials and fishing industry reps. (Jennifer Feinberg/ Chilliwack Progress)

B.C. man developing less harmful way to harvest salmon selectively

Elected officials, DFO, fishing reps met at Chilliwack boat launch to see demo of new technology

Peter Krahn describes the scope of his selective fishing technology, FishTraps, at Island 22 boat launch in Chilliwack for DFO personnel, elected officials and fishing industry reps. (Jennifer Feinberg/ Chilliwack Progress)
An Atlantic salmon is seen during a Department of Fisheries and Oceans fish health audit at the Okisollo fish farm near Campbell River, B.C. Wednesday, Oct. 31, 2018. The executive director of British Columbia’s salmon farmers association says a formalized consultation process for the future of the industry is welcome after several years of “ad hoc” discussions stemming from the Liberal government’s pledge in 2019 to end open-net pen salmon aquaculture off B.C.’s coast. THE CANADIAN PRESS /Jonathan Hayward

B.C. salmon farming industry welcomes consultation after years of ‘ad hoc’ talks

Consultation to bring industry, First Nations and governments together to talk about transition

An Atlantic salmon is seen during a Department of Fisheries and Oceans fish health audit at the Okisollo fish farm near Campbell River, B.C. Wednesday, Oct. 31, 2018. The executive director of British Columbia’s salmon farmers association says a formalized consultation process for the future of the industry is welcome after several years of “ad hoc” discussions stemming from the Liberal government’s pledge in 2019 to end open-net pen salmon aquaculture off B.C.’s coast. THE CANADIAN PRESS /Jonathan Hayward
Aquatic science biologist Shawn Stenhouse releases an Atlantic salmon back into its tank during a Department of Fisheries and Oceans fish health audit at the Okisollo fish farm near Campbell River, B.C. Wednesday, Oct. 31, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS /Jonathan Hayward

B.C. fish farm licences outside Discovery Islands renewed until at least spring 2023

Atlantic salmon facilities around Discovery Islands not being renewed, final decision in January

Aquatic science biologist Shawn Stenhouse releases an Atlantic salmon back into its tank during a Department of Fisheries and Oceans fish health audit at the Okisollo fish farm near Campbell River, B.C. Wednesday, Oct. 31, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS /Jonathan Hayward