The BC Salmon Farmers Association hopes the federal liberals consider the impacts of their salmon farm announcement.
In June of this year, fisheries minister Diane Lebouthillier says net-pen salmon farms had until June 30, 2029 to fully transition to closed-containment systems or to get out of the ocean altogether.
In a letter to the Liberal Caucus, who are in a retreat in Nanaimo, the Association says that announcement has caused global impacts.
“The draft plan detailing the transition has not been released, missing your own deadline of July 31,” said the Association.
“The timeline to transition to closed containment by 2029 is unachievable and risks significant negative impacts on our sector and the communities that depend on it.”
They say the five-year-timeline isn’t possible because it doesn’t account for the current limitations in infrastructure, and the lack of a scientific assessment of how modern salmon farm technology can impact the environment.
Other concerns for the plan include the increase of food prices, loss of jobs, investment uncertainty from some global farm companies, and the protection of wild salmon.
They say that it isn’t too late to chart the course, and are asking the Liberal government to work with them on a science-based strategy, with hopes it can support the salmon farming sector and the communities in need.
