Tuesday 19 June 2018

Retiring Broughton Archipelago Fish Farm Tenures on June 20, 2018

Hi John et al

Well, June 20 has finally arrived and it is time for you to make 75% of BC residents happy by taking fish farms out of the water by ending tenures in the Broughton Archipelago. Here is the survey that proves the figure:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/british-columbia/bc-residents-consider-salmon-a-cultural-touchstone-survey-finds/article1998476.

Wild Salmon Plan

I suggest you make it one part of an overall plan to bring back wild salmon. Here is my plan: https://fishfarmnews.blogspot.com/2018/02/wild-bc-salmon-plan-contact-your-mla.html. It makes moving fish farms to land only one part of a much larger project to bring back wild salmon.

The biggest part is putting more money into freshwater habitat restoration and placing the money with the Pacific Salmon Foundation an NGO that leverages money 4 to 7 times and has proven itself over the years.

Wild Salmon Advisory Secretariat

I agree with Adam Olsen's Wild Salmon Secretariat, and am glad that you have set one up. It is good that it isn't science bound which, ironically, never gets fish farms out of the water. I follow fish farm global press in almost 20 countries every day, and it is my opinion that asking for science is a trap.

It is also good that it pays attention to aboriginal rights. The Tsilhquot'in decision and the current court case may well set the same conditions in ocean regions.

Fish Farms Are Small

I reconfirm to you that your own statistics show that fish farms are far smaller than they say they are. Their current figures are: 6,000 jobs and $1.5B revenue; however, your own BC Stats figures are better and show that fish farms are only 1,700 multiplier jobs and only $469 million for all of aqua revenue.

That means fish farms over estimate themselves more than 300% for both figures. And the actual number of jobs is a very small 820, and this makes the job of retraining people a much easier proposition, as it is only about 1 in ten of the jobs fish farms erroneously claim.

Free Land Licence

Give fish farms a free licence to set up on land. Their own country, Norway, does the same thing, and the subsidy of so doing, is $9- to $12-million based on their former in-ocean auction price. A good deal in both countries. For the 20 tenures, that is a $180- to $240-million subsidy! Pretty darn good.

And BC residents will no longer have to be embarrassed that we are the only jurisdiction that allows fish farms on the Pacific coast of this continent.

Let's Move On

The fish farm issue needs to be in our past. It is time to get on with bringing back wild Pacific salmon, something DFO has been remiss about for more than 40 years. Let's move on.

Thanks

DC Reid

Please everyone. Send a note to our MLAs:

Melanie Mark: melanie.mark.mla@leg.bc.ca



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