BC Fish Farms

The Watershed Salmon Watch Society is reporting an alarming increase in wild fish dying in B-C’s open-net salmon farms. The society has released a report based on numbers from the fish farming industry that finds about 100-thousand wild fish were killed in salmon farms in 2017 — nine time higher than the numbers in 2011. Science Advisor Stan Proboszcz says many species are attracted to fish farms — exposing them to pathogens and parasites, contamination from pesticides and medications, predation by farm fish — or they could simply be killed by farm operations. But he says there’s little data on the problem and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans needs to start examining the issue more closely.