Canada’s National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Canada’s healthy oceans are worth billions more than what can simply be extracted from them.
Oceans and coastal ecosystems generated at minimum $7.1 billion in benefits in 2023, new figures from Statistics Canada suggest.
Continue reading Canada’s oceans provide billions in value beyond fishCanada’s National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Conservationists and many First Nations are celebrating a Federal Court of Appeal decision that upholds the closure of salmon farms in BC’s Discovery Islands.
A battle over the ultimate fate of open-net pen salmon farms in the region’s waters, between the mainland and northeastern Vancouver Island, has spanned close to five years.
Continue reading Appeal court ruling backs Discovery Islands salmon farm closures
The lengthy legal battle over salmon farming in British Columbia’s Discovery Islands reached a significant milestone on January 29, 2026, when the Federal Court of Appeal dismissed a challenge by MOWI. This decision follows five years of tension that began when former Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan mandated the removal of all salmon farms from the region by mid-2022. While the industry complied with the order, they simultaneously pursued a series of lawsuits to overturn the government’s directives. Following their latest defeat, Mia Parker, MOWI’s director of environmental performance and certification, emailed media “While we are disappointed that the federal court of appeal did not find in our favour, we respect the findings of the court.”
Continue reading Federal Court of Appeal Dismisses Mowi’s ChallengeCanada’s National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Whale researcher Janie Wray vividly remembers the first time she saw humpbacks bubble-net feeding on the northern BC coast more than 20 years ago.
First, the mournful calls begin at depth, followed by a perfect ring of bubbles rising through the water. Moments later, herring scatter and flash as they leap from the ocean as up to a dozen humpbacks surge upwards in unison, breaking the surface with their maws agape.
Continue reading Social smarts help BC humpbacks adapt as oceans changeCanada’s National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Canada continues to tout itself as a “world leader” in tackling ghost gear’s threats to marine life and coastal communities even though funding for the program dried up in 2024.
Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s (DFO’s) former investments to address abandoned, lost or discarded fishing gear, were axed without explanation by the federal Liberals more than a year ago, said Gord Johns, NDP MP for the Courtenay-Alberni riding on Vancouver Island.
Core pillars of the ghost gear program to retrieve the plastic pollution and responsibly dispose of, recycle, or return ghost gear, have been cut completely, or dramatically scaled back, since the program launched in 2020, Johns said. What’s more, Ottawa remains silent about future ghost gear funding after the release of the recent budget in November.
Continue reading Canada is claiming credit for tackling ghost gear, despite scuttling funding
