The future of fish farms in British Columbia is uncertain. On June 7, Judge Paul Favel supported the Ministry of Fisheries decision to not renew the licenses of 15 fish farms in the Discovery Islands, and denied a joint application by industry and the Laich-kwil-tach Nation for a judicial review. At the end of this month the licenses of the remaining 66 fish farms still operating in this province will expire. 

It has been a month since the current  Fisheries Minister, Dianne Lebouthillier, reassured the industry that, “In the mandate letter, I’m asked to put in place a transition plan. It doesn’t say that we have to close everything, that we have to close all the aquaculture centres. It really means working to put in place measures to protect wild salmon. I’ve confirmed that there will be no closure of aquaculture centres in 2025.”

Independent biologist Alexandra Morton explained,  “The  recent decision by Judge Favell was a big surprise because DFO staff appear to have worked quite actively in support of the salmon farming industry, particularly the aquaculture management division.  That’s why there’s an ethics commission, right now, that was launched into how they’re handling the science. They made it difficult for the minister to win this lawsuit.  They offered the companies the opportunity to pay for their licenses before the minister had made her decision. So in court, the industry lawyers brought up that the companies had paid for their licenses, they expected them.”  

“For reasons like that, and many others, the lawyers cautioned us that we probably would lose this judicial review. We lost the last one as well. So the minister had to go back and make a new decision.  The companies launched a judicial review on the new decision and  we won. The industry is  almost certainly going to appeal the decision.”  

“This is going to drag on and on and on, but what the decision did was it alerted the Canadian government to the fact that they can close the salmon farms. They do have what is needed. Their concerns are valid.”  

When Judge Favel made his decision about the Discovery Island fish farms, he weighed the opposing concerns of two groups of First Nations. 

Seven of the closed fish farms are within traditional territories of the Wei Wai Kum First Nation, We Wai Kai Nation and Kwiakah First Nations, collectively known as the Laich-kwil-tach Nation. Another of the closed farm sites, Raza Island, is off the northern tip of Cortes Island. 

In a press release last year, Wei Wai Kai Chief Councillor Ronnie Chickite declared, “This court challenge is not about whether we support fish farming or not – it is about our inherent right as title holders to decide how our territory is used, and determine for ourselves if, when, and how fish farms could operate in the future. We strongly believe the minister’s decision to not reissue licences in our territories was a political decision heavily influenced by nations who do not have title in our territory.” 

Yet many Indigenous Nations are dependent on sockeye salmon that pass through the Discovery Islands en route to the Fraser River.

The Union of BC Indian Chiefs joined with a number of  them in a joint press release supporting the closure.  

Chief Wayne Sparrow of the Musqueam First Nation declared, “Musqueam territory includes the mouth of the Fraser River and the marine waters surrounding the mouth of the river and we therefore have a unique responsibility to protect the river and the valuable resources within it.”  

Chief Tyrone McNeil President of the Stó:lō Tribal Council, representing Salish tribes in the Lower Fraser River, agreed, “As Fraser River wild salmon are our relatives, we have the responsibility and obligation to care for them, defend them, and steward them so that we can continue to take care of each other in a reciprocal relationship as we have since time immemorial. Pursuant to our laws and responsibilities, we have consistently advocated against open-net pen salmon farming in coastal British Columbia.”

Judge Favel reasoned, “The Minister owed a deep level of consultation to Indigenous peoples outside the Discovery Islands since the right and potential infringement is of high significance to the Aboriginal peoples and the risk of non-compensable damage is high. Fraser River salmon play a significant role in the exercise of Aboriginal rights by many Indigenous peoples and the risk to the health of the Fraser River salmon posed by fish farms in the Discovery Islands is unacceptably high. In contrast, the risk of non-compensable damage to the Laich-kwil-tach and Klahoose is low because the impact of a decision not to reissue licences is the loss of economic benefits from their territories, which is quantifiable and compensable.”

Alexandra Morton: “When Joyce Murray made this decision to keep the farms closed the second time, she was the minister in charge. She said that there was uncertainty about the science.  I wouldn’t say it was uncertainty, I would say the record has been seeded  with lots of opposing views. Within DFO, are scientists who say the industry is at low risk and there’s different scientists who very emphatically say it’s high risk to wild salmon. DFO has never reconciled how it’s possible that they have left that amount of doubt. In any case, she said there’s uncertainty and therefore we have to take the route of precaution. We have to keep these farms closed.  The judge looked at how she made this decision and decided that she had made it properly.”

“That’s a huge relief. I was starting to wonder whether Canada can close down industries that have been found to be damaging to this country,  to our wildlife, to our natural systems, to our ecosystems. It was a pretty huge decision.  My colleagues and I were just shocked that we actually made it through this hurdle. The industry is probably going to  appeal, but the appeal can only be  on the way that the judge made his decision. We’re going to be one step removed from the issue of the farms themselves.  

“In 16 days,  all the federal licenses on the salmon farms expire. So by July 1st,  Canada  has to make the decision whether to renew these licenses.  This has been going on now for quite a while.  Every year they’ve been given a one year pass and every year they argue that they should get a six year license or a ten year license to inspire investor confidence and allow their businesses to move forward.”

In 2019, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau mandated then-Minister Bernadette Jordan to work with the Province of British Columbia and Indigenous communities to create a plan to transition away from open-net pen aquaculture in British Columbia by 2025

The BC Salmon Farmers recently issued a press release stating, “It is acknowledged that concerns remain; however, data shows impacts are low and wildlife populations remain healthy according to the best available science. With new agreements and strict regulations now in place, the path forward must thoughtfully consider both environmental and socio-economic priorities to achieve balanced outcomes for all.” 

Alexandra Morton: “This is probably the most critical moment in the history of salmon farming in British Columbia. You would think that the salmon farmers are working as hard as they can to be as clean as they can and to appear sustainable.  But at this moment in Nootka Sound, Greig’s Seafood has a farm with an average of 34.55 adult sea lice on their fish.  The limit is 3. They’re 10 times over what DFO thinks is safe for young wild salmon and they have other farms that are over the limit in that area as well.” 

Cortes Currents checked Grieg Seafood’s sea lice reports from Nootka Sound. Three of the 4 operational farms were exceeding the limit, the most recent reports show an average of 6.70 sea lice at Gore, 8.65 at Muchalet North and 34.55 at Concepcion.

Aside from the high numbers at Conception, this is not unusual. These farms now have to take remedial actions. They may be immediately successful, or it may take months, during which the farm’s sea lice levels fluctuate wildly.

While the impact is unknown, independent scientific studies have shown that potentially dangerous pathogens spread from fish farms to wild salmon.  

Up until now, these are things DFO allows. 

Top photo credit: In 2015 SFU doctoral student Sean Godwin published research showing the vulnerability of juvenile Fraser River sockeye to sea lice. – Lauren Portner, Simpon Fraser University via Flickr (CC BY 2.0 DEED) 

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