DFO Taking Morton to Court for Protecting Wild Salmon
- Thread starter Whole in the Water
- Start date
OldBlackDog
Well-Known Member
VANCOUVER — Scientists have detected a potential disease in farmed Atlantic salmon for the first time in British Columbia, but say more research is needed to determine if it could affect wild populations of the fish.
Dr. Kristi Miller, head of the molecular genetics research program in the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, says pathologists found lesions on salmon on one farm in Johnstone Strait indicating they had heart and skeletal muscle inflammation.
Miller says the lesions were present for at least eight months.
She says the disease has been found in several countries, including Norway in the late 1990s, where it has been linked to low levels of mortality, with some farms showing no salmon deaths, while up to 20 per cent of fish die in others.
The disease is not considered reportable by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency or the Paris-based World Organization for Animal Health.
The research using new technology and scientists from several countries was done between 2013 and 2015 on four Vancouver Island fish farms using over 2,400 live and dying salmon.
Dr. Kristi Miller, head of the molecular genetics research program in the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, says pathologists found lesions on salmon on one farm in Johnstone Strait indicating they had heart and skeletal muscle inflammation.
Miller says the lesions were present for at least eight months.
She says the disease has been found in several countries, including Norway in the late 1990s, where it has been linked to low levels of mortality, with some farms showing no salmon deaths, while up to 20 per cent of fish die in others.
The disease is not considered reportable by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency or the Paris-based World Organization for Animal Health.
The research using new technology and scientists from several countries was done between 2013 and 2015 on four Vancouver Island fish farms using over 2,400 live and dying salmon.
GLG
Well-Known Member
http://news.gc.ca/web/article-en.do?mthd=tp&crtr.page=1&nid=1069579
Potential Diagnosis of Heart and Skeletal Muscle Inflammation in Atlantic Salmon at a B.C. Fish Farm
May 20, 2016
Vancouver, British Columbia - Applying newly introduced and integrated technologies, a team of international researchers, led by Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s (DFO’s) Dr. Kristi Miller, has diagnosed a potential Heart and Skeletal Muscle Inflammation (HSMI) in farmed Atlantic salmon samples collected from a B.C. aquaculture facility in 2013-2014. This research was undertaken as part of the Strategic Salmon Health Initiative (SSHI), a collaboration between DFO, the Pacific Salmon Foundation and Genome British Columbia to better understand the distribution of microbes and diseases in wild and cultured (hatchery and aquaculture) salmon in B.C.
HSMI is a disease that affects fish; there is no risk to human health. In Norway, it can be a significant production challenge to an affected farm and can be associated with generally low mortality on farms, generally between 0 to 20%. To date, HSMI has not been diagnosed in wild Pacific salmon and has only been observed in farmed Atlantic salmon. DFO will continue to work collaboratively with the SSHI and the aquaculture industry to learn more about this disease and its potential impact on salmon in B.C.
Quick Facts
“Dr. Miller and her team’s research helps to provide yet another piece in the complex puzzle of salmon health on the Pacific coast. These findings are important for fish health and the scientific community because they help us to better understand certain conditions that are affecting fish.”
Hunter Tootoo, Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard
Potential Diagnosis of Heart and Skeletal Muscle Inflammation in Atlantic Salmon at a B.C. Fish Farm
May 20, 2016
Vancouver, British Columbia - Applying newly introduced and integrated technologies, a team of international researchers, led by Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s (DFO’s) Dr. Kristi Miller, has diagnosed a potential Heart and Skeletal Muscle Inflammation (HSMI) in farmed Atlantic salmon samples collected from a B.C. aquaculture facility in 2013-2014. This research was undertaken as part of the Strategic Salmon Health Initiative (SSHI), a collaboration between DFO, the Pacific Salmon Foundation and Genome British Columbia to better understand the distribution of microbes and diseases in wild and cultured (hatchery and aquaculture) salmon in B.C.
HSMI is a disease that affects fish; there is no risk to human health. In Norway, it can be a significant production challenge to an affected farm and can be associated with generally low mortality on farms, generally between 0 to 20%. To date, HSMI has not been diagnosed in wild Pacific salmon and has only been observed in farmed Atlantic salmon. DFO will continue to work collaboratively with the SSHI and the aquaculture industry to learn more about this disease and its potential impact on salmon in B.C.
Quick Facts
- These findings are presently limited to a single farm. DFO is now taking steps to better understand what these findings mean and to map a way forward.
- HSMI is found in farmed Atlantic salmon and was originally reported in Norway in the late 1990s. The specific causes of HSMI have not been established.
- HSMI is not a condition that causes high mortality in fish and is not considered a “reportable disease” by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency or the World Organisation for Animal Health.
- A relationship between Piscine Reo-Virus (PRV) and HSMI is being investigated but any role of PRV in the development of HSMI remains unclear.
- Recent testing of archived samples has revealed that PRV has been present in salmonids on the Pacific coast of North America since at least 1988.
- The Department has supported research that has examined the role of PRV as a causative agent of HSMI or other disease in wild sockeye and farmed Atlantic salmon. To date these laboratory studies have shown no evidence of HSMI or other disease.
- The study examined 45 pathogens across more than 500 hearts from farmed salmon and no reportable pathogens were detected.
“Dr. Miller and her team’s research helps to provide yet another piece in the complex puzzle of salmon health on the Pacific coast. These findings are important for fish health and the scientific community because they help us to better understand certain conditions that are affecting fish.”
Hunter Tootoo, Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard
Cuba Libre
Well-Known Member
Oh Gee-- what a suprise !! NOT!
cuttlefish
Well-Known Member
Atlantic Salmon eggs were being imported from Scotland between 1985-1988 the same timeframe that PRV has been detected in historical samples from BC.
HSMI was first diagnosed in Scotland in 2005.
http://trination.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/TriNation-2015-Sutherland.pdf
HSMI was first diagnosed in Scotland in 2005.
http://trination.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/TriNation-2015-Sutherland.pdf
OldBlackDog
Well-Known Member
A reminder of who to blame. The province has a huge responsibility as well as the Feds.
History in BC
Commercial finfish aquaculture in BC began in the mid 1950s when the BC government licensed the first rainbow trout farms. Salmon farming started in BC in the early 1970s with small, locally owned farms, mainly on the Sunshine Coast. Poor environmental conditions, diseases and market challenges forced many small operators out of business. By 2000, consolidation had put the entire BC industry into the hands of a few large corporations.
In the 1980s, First Nations, local communities, fishermen and environmentalists began to voice concerns about fish farms and their impact on the ocean and communities. Today, the industry is tightly consolidated and production has vastly increased while little has been done to address the concerns voiced since the industry’s inception.
Salmon Farming Licenses by Region
There are currently 137 salmon farming tenures in BC:
1985–90: BC’s salmon farming industry expands from 10 to over 180 sites;1
1986: The first environmental review of the fish farming industry, the Gillespie Inquiry initiated by the Social Credit government.
1991: First report of non-native Atlantic salmon attempting to spawn in a Pacific stream;
1995: Provincial government moratorium prevents new fish farms, and caps the number of tenures at 121. However the size of farms and intensity of production is allowed to increase. Fish production increases during the moratorium;
1995–97: A second environmental review of the fish farming industry (the Salmon Aquaculture Review—SAR) is initiated by the Provincial NDP government to address public concerns;
1997: The SAR’s 49 recommendations are made public. The provincial government and the BC Salmon Farmers Association support the findings, and announce plans to implement them; 2
2000: Federal Auditor General’s audit identifies a conflict of interest between the Department of Fisheries and Oceans’ promotion of salmon farming and its mandate to protect wild fish and wild fish habitat; 3
2001: Standing Senate Committee on Fisheries’ report reveals that DFO disregards its mandate to protect wild fish stocks; 4
2001: The Leggatt Inquiry, a review and critique of the aquaculture industry sponsored by the by the David Suzuki Foundation, is conducted; 5
2002: The Liberal government lifts the 1995 moratorium on new tenures;
2002: Broughton Archipelago pink salmon stocks crash. Fewer than 5% of the expected run returns. Both DFO and the Pacific Fisheries Resource Conservation Council (PFRCC) agree that the low numbers are exceptional. 6 Academic and independent scientists, First Nations, environmental groups, and local communities suspect sea lice infestations are responsible;
2002: The PFRCC releases an advisory to federal and provincial fisheries ministers, urging the immediate removal of Broughton Archipelago salmon farms in order to protect outward bound juvenile pink salmon in 2003; 6
2003: Broughton Archipelago salmon farms remain open despite widespread media coverage on the issue and increasing public opposition to salmon aquaculture.
2007: BC Government’s Special Committee on Sustainable Aquaculture delivers a report with a long list of recommendations, including “A rapid, phased transition to ocean-based closed containment” that should be in place within 5 years.
Learn More
Rosella Leslie and Betty Keller (1996). Sea Silver: Inside British Columbia’s Salmon Farming Industry, Horsdal & Schubart.
Stephen Hume, Alexandra Morton, Betty Keller, Rosella M. Leslie, Otto Langer & Don Staniford (2004). A Stain Upon the Sea: West Coast Salmon Farming. Harbour Publishing. (Winner of the 2005 Roderick Haig-Brown BC Book Prize and shortlisted for the 2005 George Ryga Award for Social Awareness.)
References
1 Rosella Leslie and Betty Keller (1996). Sea Silver: Inside British Columbia’s Salmon Farming Industry, Horsdal & Schubart.
2 EAO, The Salmon Aquaculture Review: Final Report. 1997, Environmental Assessment Office: Victoria, BC.
3 AGC, Chapter 30 – Fisheries and Oceans – The Effects of Salmon Farming in British Columbia on the Management of Wild Salmon Stocks. 2000, Auditor General of Canada: Ottawa. P. 42
4 SSCF, Aquaculture in Canada’s Atlantic and Pacific Regions. 2001, Standing Senate Committee on Fisheries: Ottawa.
5 Leggatt, S.M., Clear choices, clean waters – the Leggatt inquiry into salmon farming in British Columbia. 2001, The David Suzuki Foundation: Vancouver, BC. P. 1-35.
6 PFRCC, 2002 Advisory: The Protection of Broughton Archipelago Pink Salmon Stocks. 2002, Pacific Fisheries Resource Conservation Council: Vancouver, BC. P. 90.
History in BC
Commercial finfish aquaculture in BC began in the mid 1950s when the BC government licensed the first rainbow trout farms. Salmon farming started in BC in the early 1970s with small, locally owned farms, mainly on the Sunshine Coast. Poor environmental conditions, diseases and market challenges forced many small operators out of business. By 2000, consolidation had put the entire BC industry into the hands of a few large corporations.
In the 1980s, First Nations, local communities, fishermen and environmentalists began to voice concerns about fish farms and their impact on the ocean and communities. Today, the industry is tightly consolidated and production has vastly increased while little has been done to address the concerns voiced since the industry’s inception.
Salmon Farming Licenses by Region
There are currently 137 salmon farming tenures in BC:
- 84 tenures (61%) – Eastern Vancouver Island and Mainland Coast
- 48 tenures (35%) – Western Vancouver Island
- 6 tenures (4%) – Central Coast
1985–90: BC’s salmon farming industry expands from 10 to over 180 sites;1
1986: The first environmental review of the fish farming industry, the Gillespie Inquiry initiated by the Social Credit government.
1991: First report of non-native Atlantic salmon attempting to spawn in a Pacific stream;
1995: Provincial government moratorium prevents new fish farms, and caps the number of tenures at 121. However the size of farms and intensity of production is allowed to increase. Fish production increases during the moratorium;
1995–97: A second environmental review of the fish farming industry (the Salmon Aquaculture Review—SAR) is initiated by the Provincial NDP government to address public concerns;
1997: The SAR’s 49 recommendations are made public. The provincial government and the BC Salmon Farmers Association support the findings, and announce plans to implement them; 2
2000: Federal Auditor General’s audit identifies a conflict of interest between the Department of Fisheries and Oceans’ promotion of salmon farming and its mandate to protect wild fish and wild fish habitat; 3
2001: Standing Senate Committee on Fisheries’ report reveals that DFO disregards its mandate to protect wild fish stocks; 4
2001: The Leggatt Inquiry, a review and critique of the aquaculture industry sponsored by the by the David Suzuki Foundation, is conducted; 5
2002: The Liberal government lifts the 1995 moratorium on new tenures;
2002: Broughton Archipelago pink salmon stocks crash. Fewer than 5% of the expected run returns. Both DFO and the Pacific Fisheries Resource Conservation Council (PFRCC) agree that the low numbers are exceptional. 6 Academic and independent scientists, First Nations, environmental groups, and local communities suspect sea lice infestations are responsible;
2002: The PFRCC releases an advisory to federal and provincial fisheries ministers, urging the immediate removal of Broughton Archipelago salmon farms in order to protect outward bound juvenile pink salmon in 2003; 6
2003: Broughton Archipelago salmon farms remain open despite widespread media coverage on the issue and increasing public opposition to salmon aquaculture.
2007: BC Government’s Special Committee on Sustainable Aquaculture delivers a report with a long list of recommendations, including “A rapid, phased transition to ocean-based closed containment” that should be in place within 5 years.
Learn More
Rosella Leslie and Betty Keller (1996). Sea Silver: Inside British Columbia’s Salmon Farming Industry, Horsdal & Schubart.
Stephen Hume, Alexandra Morton, Betty Keller, Rosella M. Leslie, Otto Langer & Don Staniford (2004). A Stain Upon the Sea: West Coast Salmon Farming. Harbour Publishing. (Winner of the 2005 Roderick Haig-Brown BC Book Prize and shortlisted for the 2005 George Ryga Award for Social Awareness.)
References
1 Rosella Leslie and Betty Keller (1996). Sea Silver: Inside British Columbia’s Salmon Farming Industry, Horsdal & Schubart.
2 EAO, The Salmon Aquaculture Review: Final Report. 1997, Environmental Assessment Office: Victoria, BC.
3 AGC, Chapter 30 – Fisheries and Oceans – The Effects of Salmon Farming in British Columbia on the Management of Wild Salmon Stocks. 2000, Auditor General of Canada: Ottawa. P. 42
4 SSCF, Aquaculture in Canada’s Atlantic and Pacific Regions. 2001, Standing Senate Committee on Fisheries: Ottawa.
5 Leggatt, S.M., Clear choices, clean waters – the Leggatt inquiry into salmon farming in British Columbia. 2001, The David Suzuki Foundation: Vancouver, BC. P. 1-35.
6 PFRCC, 2002 Advisory: The Protection of Broughton Archipelago Pink Salmon Stocks. 2002, Pacific Fisheries Resource Conservation Council: Vancouver, BC. P. 90.
OldBlackDog
Well-Known Member
VANCOUVER -- Scientists have detected a potential disease in farmed Atlantic salmon for the first time in British Columbia, but say more research is needed to determine if it could affect wild populations of the fish.
Dr. Kristi Miller, head of the molecular genetics research program in the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, said pathologists found lesions on salmon on one farm in Johnstone Strait indicating they had heart and skeletal muscle inflammation.
"These lesions were present for an extended period of time, at least eight months, on this farm," Miller said Friday.
The disease has been found in several countries, including Norway in the late 1990s, where it has been linked to low levels of mortality, with some farms showing no salmon deaths, while up to 20 per cent of fish die in others, she said.
The Piscine Reo-Virus has been associated with all outbreaks of heart and skeletal muscle inflammation, as it was on the single B.C. farm, but it's not known if it causes the disease, Miller said, adding scientists around the world are investigating how the virus could be linked to the disease.
However, many fish can carry the virus without having the disease, Miller said.
"This has been one of the difficulties in understanding the role of this virus in HSMI development. The single farm on which we discovered HSMI didn't experience unusual levels of mortality. In fact, the growth and production on this farm was considered excellent."
The virus likely originated in the marine environment, she said.
"We know that this virus, in other parts of the world, can be observed in fresh-water origin fish and we believe we know that here in B.C. in Atlantic salmon. But in Norway, while the virus can be observed in fish in hatcheries the prevalence of the virus can become much, much higher in the marine environment."
Heart and skeletal muscle inflammation in fish does not impact human health, and the disease has never been found in wild Pacific salmon.
"But DFO will continue to monitor the health of wild and farmed salmon in Canada and to track and collaborate with international research teams to more fully establish the risk factors associated with this disease," Miller said.
The research using new technology and international scientists was done between 2013 and 2015 on four Vancouver Island fish farms using more than 2,400 live and dying salmon.
Brian Riddell, president of the Pacific Salmon Foundation, which participated in the research along with Genome British Columbia, said the latest technology will allow scientists to analyze 45 microbes for the first time, leading to "revolutionary" diagnostics in wild populations.
"We are currently in the second phase of the analyses and we really just started this so I really have to emphasize the real concern that many people have in B.C. about the risk of wild salmon.
"We cannot comment on that yet," Riddell said, adding more findings will be revealed in the next two years.
He said research of the fish throughout their life cycle involved collaboration with the BC Salmon Farmers Association as part of the Strategic Salmon Health Initiative that began in 2013.
"Government and industry should expedite the science, provide necessary funding and work collaboratively for the sake of the aquaculture industry and for wild salmon," the association said in a news release.
That's the 1st law/rule/response that PR Firms and government officials use for embarrassing data/reports/queries - ignore it and hope it goes away soon - real soon. Don't feed the monster....
bigdogeh
Well-Known Member
yes, sure seems like that's what they're doing. I have a feeling though, this won't be going away any time soon....
bigdogeh
Well-Known Member
I hope some of these private prosecutions start to take off. I found this link when looking at a similar link posted by AA on a private prosecution case involving Mount Polley. maybe it was posted earlier and appologies if so. but don't think it will hurt posting it again here. maybe this type of public response will deserve its own thread. I found the 1st reader submitted comment quite interesting....
big thank you to Alexandra Morton and West Coast Environmental Law...
http://wcel.org/resources/environme...morton-breathes-new-life-private-prosecutions
big thank you to Alexandra Morton and West Coast Environmental Law...
http://wcel.org/resources/environme...morton-breathes-new-life-private-prosecutions
Thanks for that link, Bigdogeh. Unfortunately, most of the web links from that 2010 article don't work now. Google to the rescue!:
Public Prosecution Service of Canada Deskbook
http://www.ppsc-sppc.gc.ca/eng/pub/fpsd-sfpg/fps-sfp/tpd/d-g-eng.pdf
The Citizens Guide to Environmental Investigation and Private Prosecution
https://ebi.probeinternational.org/citizens-guide/
Public Prosecution Service of Canada Deskbook
http://www.ppsc-sppc.gc.ca/eng/pub/fpsd-sfpg/fps-sfp/tpd/d-g-eng.pdf
The Citizens Guide to Environmental Investigation and Private Prosecution
https://ebi.probeinternational.org/citizens-guide/
For Immediate Release
Oct 12, 2016
Minister of Fisheries and Oceans sued for putting wild salmon at risk
Government failure to test farmed salmon for disease illegal, lawsuit alleges
http://www.ecojustice.ca/pressrelea...-oceans-sued-for-putting-wild-salmon-at-risk/
http://www.ecojustice.ca/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/2016-10-12-Notice-of-Application-Filed.pdf
Oct 12, 2016
Minister of Fisheries and Oceans sued for putting wild salmon at risk
Government failure to test farmed salmon for disease illegal, lawsuit alleges
http://www.ecojustice.ca/pressrelea...-oceans-sued-for-putting-wild-salmon-at-risk/
http://www.ecojustice.ca/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/2016-10-12-Notice-of-Application-Filed.pdf
Ecojustice Blog
FAQ: Why we’re taking the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans to court. Again!
Posted in Wilderness & Wildlife on October 27, 2016 (updated: October 27, 2016)
http://www.ecojustice.ca/faq-taking-minister-fisheries-oceans-court/
FAQ: Why we’re taking the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans to court. Again!
Posted in Wilderness & Wildlife on October 27, 2016 (updated: October 27, 2016)
http://www.ecojustice.ca/faq-taking-minister-fisheries-oceans-court/
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