Category Archives: Rivers & Oceans

Animals, Rivers & Oceans

Number of marine species at risk in Salish Sea more than doubled, report says

A recent report from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency states “the total number of marine species at risk in the Salish Sea has doubled from 2002 to 2015.” 

The accompanying map shows they are referring to an area that stretches from the Puget Sound to the Strait of Juan de Fuca and north beyond  Cortes and Quadra Islands. Christianne Wilhelmsen executive director of the Georgia Strait Alliance, explained this is because the EPA thinks of the Salish Sea as whole entity, rather than dividing it between two nations. While a few of the entries are American, most of the species listed are accompanied by terms like ‘COSEWIC‘, ‘B.C.’ and ‘Canada,’ which shows they come from Canadian sources.

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Rivers & Oceans

New fisheries minister wades into fish politics, cutting herring harvest in half

National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

In her first major decision, new federal Fisheries Minister Joyce Murray has reduced the West Coast commercial herring fishery by half.

Wading into the thick of fish politics Thursday, Murray said the decision is based on an abundance of caution given herring are a critical food for endangered salmon stocks — further jeopardized by the double whammy of fire and floods in B.C. this year.

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Rivers & Oceans

Proposed DFO rules put BC’s prized spot prawn fishery in peril again, harvesters say

National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

A swell of outrage is rising again as the Department of Fisheries and Oceans revisits regulation changes that independent harvesters say will sink B.C.’s local spot prawn industry.

The newest version of the DFO regulations are equally unworkable for small harvesters, provide big companies exporting products overseas an advantage, and will effectively deny local consumers and communities access to fresh prawns caught sustainably by local fishers, said Sonia Strobel, CEO of Skipper Otto, a community collective of harvesters selling products to local consumers. 

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Rivers & Oceans

Opportunity to install ‘fish friendly’ flood infrastructure in the Lower Fraser Valley

The recent mega-floods have brought an opportunity to rectify one of the problems that has long plagued salmon runs in the Lower Fraser Valley. Hundreds of miles of outdated flood protection infrastructure has been chopping fish up when they return home to spawn. Now much of it will have to be repaired or replaced. The Watershed Watch Salmon Society sees this as the opportunity to install ‘fish friendly’ flood infrastructure in its place.

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Arts, Rivers & Oceans, Youth

Reel Youth – Youth and Seniors Programs

In the third instalment of Cortes Currents Reel Youth series, Mark Vonesh and Erica Køhn talk about Youth and Seniors programs. 

“Our youth and senior film programs, or youth and elder film programs, are probably about 30% – 40% of the work we do. It’s one of the most powerful projects that we’ve done,” said Vonesch.

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