Deadly Fish Farm Lice Infest 90% of Wild Salmon Near Campbell River

Breaking news! The First Nations Leadership Council joined biologist Alex Morton today to release shocking findings about this year’s wild salmon outmigration: over 90 percent of the fish travelling through the Discovery Islands area near Campbell River were infested with parasitic lice from salmon farms.

This is alarming: Factory fish farms can’t control the parasites on their farms anymore and this epidemic is spreading and killing baby wild salmon as they migrate by. 

We’re seeing horrible infections--tiny fish, the size of a finger, with an average of 8-12 lice. These fish won’t survive the journey that nature intended for them.

Factory fish farms knew this was happening and they tried to reassure everyone they had the solution: shiny new boats that would power-wash parasites away! Except they don’t work. In other countries all this technology, and even more pesticides and chemicals did not solve the farmed salmon lice problem [1]. Now it’s happening in B.C. coastal waters and our wild salmon are paying the price!  

This is the last straw!

Justin Trudeau promised to follow the recommendations from the $37 million Cohen Commission that said salmon farms in the Discovery Islands should be removed by Sept 30, 2020 at the latest. We need everyone to call their Member of Parliament and tell them to follow through with getting these farms out. 

Fraser River salmon have to migrate through the Discovery Islands, near Campbell River, to get to the safety of the open ocean, but factory fish farms are peppering them with parasites! 

The fish farm companies aren’t the only ones failing our wild salmon. The federal government just changed the lice management rules. 

Now, when a factory fish farm’s parasite levels get too high, they have a whopping 42 days to correct things! FORTY-TWO DAYS! That’s long enough to infect millions of baby wild salmon as they migrate through the Discovery Islands.

Factory fish farms across our province are failing to control salmon lice and they’re killing wild fish. Once and for all, it’s time to stand up and tell the federal government factory farms need to go, starting with the Discovery Islands!

We’ve come a long way. Two years ago we came together and you sent thousands of emails to provincial MLAs in support of First Nations fish farm occupations in the Broughton Archipelago. And those factory farms are currently being removed. 

Now, we have to act again and get the rest of this disease and parasite-ridden mess off this coast, starting with the Discovery Islands! Can we count on you to take a minute of your time to take action? 

Sincerely, Stan.  

Ps. Here’s that action link again. 

[1]https://www.seafoodsource.com/news/aquaculture/the-sticky-problem-of-sea-lice-and-what-s-being-done-to-stop-them

http://www.safesalmon.ca/

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