All posts by Rochelle Baker

Rochelle Baker is a staff reporter with Canada’s National Observer, thanks thanks to a grant from the Local Journalism Initiative of the Government of Canada. She previously worked as a newspaper reporter and photographer in BC’s Lower Mainland for over 7 years.
Indigenous Nations, Rivers & Oceans

First Nations Seaweed farming

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National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Larry Johnson takes the responsibility of his traditional name — Anii-tsa-chist, or Keeper of the Sea — bestowed to him three decades ago by a much-respected uncle very seriously.

“I’m very proud of the name,” said Johnson, the president of Nuu-chah-nulth (NCN) Seafood, and a fisherman descended from generations of fishermen.

“It is an honour to hold it and to try to live up to that name, and that’s what I try to do every day,” he said.

It’s why Johnson is so excited by the prospects of seaweed aquaculture, one of the newest ventures NCN Seafood has undertaken in partnership with Cascadia Seaweed.

Continue reading First Nations Seaweed farming →
Environment

Surveying impacts of the Bute Inlet slide

National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Federal scientists and the Canadian Coast Guard have joined the flurry of scientific activity around the site of a massive landslide late last year in the Bute Inlet watershed on B.C.’s isolated central coast.

Continue reading Surveying impacts of the Bute Inlet slide →
Environment, Rivers & Oceans

BC seaweed: the cure for belchy cows and climate change?

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National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Canadian scientists are investigating whether regional seaweeds might be the new superfood for cows, and battle climate change in the process.

Continue reading BC seaweed: the cure for belchy cows and climate change? →
Justice

Mowi and Cermaq seek an injunction in the Discovery Islands

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National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Two international aquaculture companies are heading to court to try to quash a recent federal decision to phase out contentious fish farms in the Discovery Islands.

Continue reading Mowi and Cermaq seek an injunction in the Discovery Islands →
Rivers & Oceans

Mapping critical kelp beds along the Pacific coast

National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

An ambitious project to map and monitor sea kelp forests along the entire B.C. coast is afoot, and scientists are using seemly disparate tools — both ancient and modern — to do it.

Continue reading Mapping critical kelp beds along the Pacific coast →