I am starting to sound like a broken record here, but?
Viewing "Fraser Sockeye Lice Infection: Response by Marine Harvest", which by the way is just a remake of the same thing published about a year ago?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k56NuDs7eOg&feature=related
I found it kind of interesting, but it left me with more questions than answers concerning their "Managing for Sea Lice" and Marine Harvest Canada's sea life management program"
The inspection of 60 farmed salmon over 30 days?
Since 2004 have been posting monitored sea lice data?
If required a treatment (SLICE, I assume?)may be added?
Treatments are rare and occur over a 2 year cycle. This is HUGH, was there a treatment in 2007?
All inspected during this period were well below the threshold?
So, off to the website, I go to find my answers and this is where I got a little surprised! Yep, found the government mandated inspection, monitoring, and documentation requirements. Now the film shows a time frame between January 2008 and June 2008? Nothing addressing the 2007 outgoing migration of the Fraser Sockeye could be found anywhere. So still on my quest, I opened almost all the data pages. The oldest data found was one page dated in 2006. (There could be more as I did not open all the data pages!), but most were showing data started in 2008 or 2009. What happened to the older data of 2004 as claimed in their film?
This is strictly my belief, as I cannot find any documentation or answers anywhere?
I am of the opinion SLICE was not used "as needed" to control sea lice during the Sockeye outgoing migration. Had it been I do not believe there would have been the collapse to such an extent? "I believe", due to the lack of SLICE the Sockeye were highly infected with sea lice was the main contributing factor? I certainly would be asking to see the records for 2007 and when and where SLICE was used.
Given the choice between a complete devastation of our "entire" Northwest salmon fishery or using SLICE? I chose SLICE!
The Chile collapse was/is being caused by a virus called “infectious salmon anemia (ISA)”. I did find this statement interesting, "The factory farm raised salmon from Chile are suffering the same inevitable fate as other unsustainable confinement raised animals dependent on antibiotics" and there is a link below from PEW to FDA addressing that. When I was reading about Chile, it bought back memories of Campbell River. Here are a couple of articles and links on Chilean salmon farming:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infectious_salmon_anemia_virus
http://www.grist.org/article/2009-07-24-chilean-salmon-industry-plunges-pesticide-antibiotic-abyss/
http://www.byebyebeef.com/2009/07/salmon-cafos-collapse-chilean-salmon.html
http://www.pewtrusts.org/uploadedFi...s/Protecting_ocean_life/FDA_Letter_Salmon.pdf
SLICE is nothing more than "Emamectin Benzoate Pesticide", and is currently in use and being used here in the States, as we speak. It just has not received final FDA approval, but it has gone through just about every other Federal and State Governmental agency, for one reason or another. The FDA is currently doing its research.
This is a profile and Q&A concerning SLICE and the use with "Fish Farms":
http://www.spaquaculture.com/assets/fishfarm/SPAH FAQ,Final.pdf http://www.fws.gov/fisheries/aadap/misc/sliceEA.pdf
This will save you some time on your adventures! When I run across something I think is interesting I usually bookmark it. Here is a list of my bookmarks to various links on SLICE, have fun:
http://www.emeraldashborer.info/treeage.cfm
http://pmep.cce.cornell.edu/profile...amectin-benzoate/Emamectin-Benz_tol_1299.html
http://www.reeis.usda.gov/web/crisprojectpages/203939.html
http://pmep.cce.cornell.edu/profile...mamectin-benzoate/emamectin_benzoate_300.html
http://msds.chem.ox.ac.uk/EM/emamectin_benzoate.html
http://www.fcla.edu/FlaEnt/fe80p425.pdf
I just know it is going to be brought up, "the main reason for the collapse was due to temperature increases in the sea surface and warmer currents"… AND I DO NOT BELIEVE THAT TRUE! However, I really do believe had SLICE been used, there would NOT have been a Fraser River Sockeye collapse to the extent it was!
I am neither pro nor con on "fish farms", but we do need to protect our salmon! That is what this is about!
First off, BC is not going to do away with "fish farms"! It is a growing industry and it will continue to grow and Canada DOES NOT want to lose its market share of the World or U.S. markets, especially with what just happened to Chile, in fact, they want an increase share!
Secondly, MHC has already stated "closed containment" is not going to happen at this time! I am quite sure everyone knows that! To include, the studies all ready done and that MHC just opened a project in China, due to cost and "lack of government interference"?
Thirdly, yes there is a lot of things that affect the wild salmon runs, both natural and manmade. We all know that. Some things we can change… some things we cannot! At this time... sea lice, we can!
Fourthly, United States has this really neat thing; it's called the "Freedom of Information Act"!
Let me give you a scenario? As a fish farmer and government wanting to increase U.S. market share, I see the largest supplier of salmon to the U.S. (Chile) suddenly infested with ISA. Chile is also under pressure for NOT COMPLYING with FDA requirements. Now, again we all know the U.S. is a MAJOR importer! The FDA is under pressure NOT to allow import of salmon NOT complying with FDA requirements The FDA advises, if you do not comply; you cannot import your product. Look at the time frame? 2006/2007 Chile infected with ISA, import opportunity to the U.S. increases (but again) FDA has not approved the use of SLICE, so if you use... you can't import to the U.S. Now, the only thing that prevents an increase market share of one of the largest markets in the world, is the use of SLICE? What would you do?
YEP! YOU GOT IT! YOU DON'T USE SLICE!
My opinion… It appears this was nothing more than a trade off - WILD SALMON vs. U.S. MARKET SHARE! And I also believe this is just flat out both criminal and gross negligence! "They" know, but are dancing around the issue, as there is not enough proof?
BTW... the first use of SLICE in the U.S. that I could find was in 1999. The first time used in a U.S. fish farm was in Maine in 2006?
Just my opinion! It might be worth 2 cents!