Salmon farms attract wild species both large and small which are looking to find a meal. But this attraction can be fatal for the predators that are drawn to the fish inside in open net-pen. Even though it is illegal in B.C. to shoot a marine mammal, salmon farmers are routinely permitted to shoot ‘nuisance’ harbour seals and California sea lions around their farms.
Parasites occur naturally in the wild, but confining large numbers of farmed salmon in open net-pens over long periods of time creates artificial environments for parasites like the sea louse to multiply and spread. Their eggs are dispersed by the currents and can travel freely into and out of net-pens. Many salmon farms are located in more sheltered areas of the coast that are important migration routes of wild salmon.
Open net-pen salmon farms are located in areas along the coast where they can take advantage of ocean currents to deliver oxygen to their fish and disperse their wastes -- all at no cost to the industry. But there are costs to the ocean from these operations that extend from the surface to the seabed. The waste products (faeces and feed) from the farmed salmon in the pens are released directly into the surrounding water and settle to the sea floor. These wastes can change the chemical make-up and biological diversity of the seabed around the pens.
Pathogens - whether viruses or bacteria – are micro-organisms that can cause disease outbreaks in animals and plants. All organisms cope with pathogens in their natural environment. The ocean also has its share of ‘bugs’ that affect animals in the marine environment. Open net-pen salmon farms hold large numbers of fish at high density over long periods of time upsetting the natural balance and creating the right conditions for pathogens to amplify, mutate and spread to wild species that may be in the vicinity.
By-catch is the accidental harvest of marine species other than target species being fished or farmed. Open net-cage fish farms catch wild fish that can swim into their nets and until recently it's been hard to know just how big the problem is. A recent court action spotlighted this issue and now salmon farmers in British Columbia are required to report all bycatch of wild species and to immediately return them to the ocean outside the pens in a manner that causes the least harm as a condition of their aquaculture licence.
The transition to closed containment is gaining momentum as pilot projects are now either on the drawing board or up and running.
One company in Washington State is already supplying coho salmon raised in a land-based containment system to Overwaitea Food Group stores in B.C. and Alberta. The company has announced plans to double production to serve the growing demand for more sustainable farmed salmon.
Through the Coastal Alliance for Aquaculture Reform (CAAR), we are co-sponsoring a scientific collaboration with industry, government and academics to share data and conduct research and analysis to monitor and assess the interactions among sea lice, farm salmon and wild juvenile salmon in the Broughton Archipelago. The monitoring program is known as the Broughton Area Monitoring Plan (BAMP). More information about the collaboration, the research and the results is posted on the BAMP website.
Living Oceans Society and our partners in the Coastal Alliance for Aquaculture Reform (CAAR) negotiated an agreement with Marine Harvest Canada (MHC) to secure some interim protection for wild salmon.
In 2013 the salmon farming industry’s expansion plans were blocked when the B.C. government announced that it will not issue any new or expanded tenures for net-cage salmon farms in the Discovery Islands until at least September 30, 2020. The province acted in response to recommendations of the Cohen Inquiry into the Decline of the Fraser River Sockeye.
Living Oceans is an active stakeholder in the Aquaculture Stewardship Certification process, responding to every application for certification in Canada and participating in the scheme's various projects to revise the Salmon Standard.
ASC's Salmon Standard was created through a formal dialogue with industry. It was only implemented in 2015; almost immediately, we began to notice problems.
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