VIDEO: Diseased, Deformed Salmon in B.C. Fish Farms

Details: Published on Thursday, 24 August 2017 09:15; Written by editor

We love to take a walk (or dive) on the wild side at DeSmog Canada. I spent the past weekend diving one of Vancouver Island's most celebrated salmon runs in the Campbell River (that's me in the picture!). That's part of the reason why news this week that up to 305,000 farmed salmon escaped a U.S. fish farming operation near Victoria alarmed us and many of our readers. That story was made all the more concerning by news that Canada's Department of Fisheries and Oceans isn't monitoring most of B.C.'s wild salmon populations. On top of that we received disturbing footage this week that documents diseased and severely disfigured salmon at two fish farms near Broughton Island, B.C.

We hope you enjoy this week's story roundup and, as always, would love to hear your thoughts on our coverage.

Carol Linnitt, Managing Editor

Forward

Disturbing New Footage Shows Diseased, Deformed Salmon in B.C. Fish Farms

By Carol Linnitt

New footage released to DeSmog Canada shows deformed and disfigured salmon at two salmon farms on the B.C. coast — just as British Columbia reels from news of the escape of up to 305,000 Atlantic farmed salmon from a Washington salmon pen.

Wild salmon advocate and fisheries biologist Alexandra Morton said she was shocked by the footage.

“I was shocked and frankly disgusted,” Morton told DeSmog Canada. “These fish have open sores, sea lice, blisters all over their skin and a disturbing number of them are going blind.” Read more.

What You Need to Know About NAFTA’s Investigation into Oilsands Tailings Leaks

By James Wilt

For years environmental organizations have called on the federal government to do something about the leakage of billions of litres of toxic chemicals from Alberta’s oilsands tailings ponds into the Athabasca River every year.

And for years they’ve been ignored — until now. NAFTA is reviewing a submission by Environmental Defence, the Natural Resources Defense Council and Daniel T’seleie.

Here’s a primer on why this process matters. Read more.

Amid Closure of B.C. Salmon Fisheries, Study Finds Feds Failed to Monitor Stocks

By Carol Linnitt

Canada has failed to monitor and gather data on 50 per cent of all managed salmon populations on B.C.’s north and central coasts, according to a study released Monday in the Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences.

Researchers from Simon Fraser University found the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) is monitoring fewer streams now than before the introduction of a wild salmon policy in 2005 that was designed to assess the health of wild salmon populations and aid those deemed at risk.

“Our knowledge of salmon populations in B.C. is eroding,” study co-author and Simon Fraser University researcher Michael Price told DeSmog Canada. “And it’s really frustrating.” Read more.

‘Stop the Losses’: Former BC Hydro CEO Calls for Cancellation of Site C Dam

By Sarah Cox

The decision to proceed with the Site C dam was “reckless and irresponsible” and continuing the project will result in a “series of devastating high electricity rate increases” that will lead to job losses and business failures, the former President and CEO of BC Hydro has told the B.C. Utilities Commission in a formal submission.

Marc Eliesen, who was at the helm of BC Hydro from 1992 to 1994, outlined why he believes the only financially responsible course of action is to cancel the $8.8 billion project and remediate the Peace River site in order to minimize Site C’s negative impact on BC Hydro customers and taxpayers. Read more.

Kamloops City Council Urge B.C., Ottawa to Re-Think Ajax Mine Environmental Assessment

By Carol Linnitt

A group of Kamloops city councilors are asking the provincial and federal governments to consider concerns about the Ajax Mine they say were unaddressed by B.C.’s environmental assessment.

The proposal for the gold and copper mine by the Polish firm KGHM Polska Miedz has been controversial, with concerns including mining dust, air quality impacts, tailings pond management, slope stability and watershed safety.

“We feel our concerns as a city, as councilors and staff, have been completely ignored and it feels like the Environmental Assessment Office has been in bed with KGHM,” Kamloops city councilor Tina Lange told DeSmog Canada. Read more.

The Massey Bridge: A Boondoggle Bought by Big Money?

By Arie Ross

Why did the BC Liberals prioritize a project that could harm local communities, the Fraser River and farmland?

On the 601 bus to my hometown of Tsawwassen, I watch as bulldozers uproot the evergreens adjacent to the farmland along Highway 99, making way for a costly ten lane bridge built in the interests of industry. I imagine dredgers forcing themselves on the river bed, scraping at the sediment and defiling the critical salmon habitat.

The colossal pet project of the BC Liberal party — the controversial $3.5 billion Massey Bridge forced upon unwilling municipalities — is just another reason why we need a corruption inquiry in B.C. Read more.

Embattled Taskeo Mine Permits Show Why B.C. Needs an Environmental Assessment Overhaul

By Gavin Smith

B.C.’s new government is already seeing proof that it made the right move when it committed to reform environmental assessment and implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

Taseko Mines’ New Prosperity mine proposal, back in the spotlight again for another round of litigation, is a poster child for the failings of B.C.’s environmental assessment regime — and the need for change. r34