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Fisheries & Oceans Canada (DFO)'s current transition planning process is designed to protect the salmon farming industry NOT wild Pacific salmon

In the transition planning process, DFO has recharacterized 'transition'. Rather than 'transition from open-net pen salmon farms in coastal BC waters', as originally mandated by the federal government, DFO is operating at the direction of industry in recharacterizing 'transition' as 'progressive minimization'. 'Progressive minimization' allows for open-net pen salmon farms to stay in BC waters and calls for 'progressively minimizing' the interaction between farmed and wild salmon. There are currently no proven technologies effective at achieving this 'progressive minimization'.

Below are key issues apparent in DFO's transition planning process:

 

  • The strategy of 'progressive minimization' allows the industry to maintain the status quo, removing any incentive to transition from open-net pens and creating the worst-case scenario for wild Pacific salmon.

  • Consultation has prioritized First Nations supportive of salmon farms in their territory, while burying the fact that the majority of First Nations in BC oppose open-net pen salmon farms.

  • DFO plans to issue five-year licence extensions for open-net pen salmon farms in BC waters. This would handcuff the federal government, severely limit its decision-making options, and compromise its ability to execute on the Prime Minister's mandate. Additionally, there is no specific timeline for retirement of open-net pens within the five-year licence terms and this needs to be addressed.

  • The process includes a plan for 'stronger regulation', however DFO has a long history of not effectively enforcing regulation as described in federal court rulings.

Wild Pacific salmon do not have the luxury of time to endure 'progressive minimization' or the expectation that 'stronger regulation' will prompt the industry to transition on its own.

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“The FNWSA position, which is consistent with the federal government’s, is based upon court rulings, it’s based upon the Auditor General Report, it’s based upon the Standing Committee of Fisheries and Oceans, it’s based upon true peer-reviewed science, globally and within this country."​

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– Bob Chamberlin, Chair, FNWSA

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