Times Colonist Newspaper Not interested in the Environment

A week has gone by since my sending the following note to the TC. They have not responded, so I guess they don't care about the aguatic environment in BC and wild salmon. Hmm. I'm surprised. I would not have thought they would pass up the opportunity to learn more about the movement to on-land that has been happening for the past five years. BC is really behind the global movement to farm salmon on land.

Read this note, and I think you will agree with me. I read the TC every day, and am very surprised they are not interested in the future for fish farming and wild salmon. Hmm:

HI TC

I read your article by Dennis Dugas on fish farming in the Islander yesterday.

Do you want me to write an article featuring the other side, meaning on-land fish farms?

See my website: https://fishfarmnews.blogspot.com/.

I have been on the environmentally sound side on this issue for the past ten years, and have written more than 600 posts on the various subjects. I read 30 global fish farm/seafood industry newsletters every week.

Here are several things to consider:

1. Fish farm stats are hugely overstated. For example, while fish farms and DFO have been using the figure of 7,000 jobs for years, the reality is the BC Government’s own BC Stats Report shows only 1800 jobs, meaning fish farms overstate jobs by almost 400%. See: http://fishfarmnews.blogspot.com/2019/03/mar-21-2019-bc-stats-report-2016.html.

2. In-ocean fish farms are old tech, and the world is moving on to on-land fish farms. My list is now at 338 on-land fish farms around the globe. See: http://fishfarmnews.blogspot.com/2016/05/152-different-on-land-fish-farm-systems.html.

3. The growing US on-land industry is heading toward being five times the size of the BC industry, and is where 85% of BC product is sold. US on-land will likely wipe out the BC in-ocean industry, unless they move to on-land. Consumers don’t want damaging in-ocean product. See: https://fishfarmnews.blogspot.com/2020/11/on-land-fish-farms-in-usa.html.

Note that Whole Oceans, among those opening large plants in the US, has picked up a long-term lease for the on-land Kuterra plant on the Nimpkish River, BC. They only have to put one on-land farm in Port Hardy, and a new era of fish farming can begin. Dennis Dugas might become keen once he sees them operate in a highly environmentally-sound way.

I wrote an essay on how to calculate the sewage cost of in-ocean. It is conservatively estimated at $10.4B in BC. In Norway, the home of the BC fish farmers, the government gives out free licences to set up on land. In-ocean licences auction for $32- to $40-million because of the high environmental cost. We should do the same here. $5000 is too cheap.

One final thing, I wrote reports like the BC Stats Report when I worked for government in Finance, and thus have good number-crunching skills.

Would you like me to write you an op-ed on on-land fish farms?

DC (Dennis) Reid

Note: I was doubly surprised as I wrote the fishing column for the paper for a decade.

On Land Fish Farms in the USA

Looking to back up the prime movers in the US move to on-land fish farms for their environmental and sustainability reasons, and consumers who want ethical food, I ran through my post on the 338 on-land fish farms I have found aroung the world.

It is here: https://fishfarmnews.blogspot.com/2016/05/152-different-on-land-fish-farm-systems.html. And the move will grow far beyond the million metric tonne visions at present.

From that list and my GOOD NEWS POST, on on-land, I have put together the movement in the US: https://fishfarmnews.blogspot.com/2020/09/good-news-post-links-to-on-land-closed.html.

The major projects are Atlantic Sapphire in Florida, aiming at 150,000mt, and 260,000mt in the long run, along with Nordic Aquafarms 33,000mt, AquaBanc 10,000mt, and Whole Oceans, the latter having also taken a long-term lease with the on-land Namgis project on the Nimpkish River, BC. In other words, the US on-land industry is heading to 5 times the output of BC's in-ocean farms.

But there are many more, Aquacon, for instance that is ultimately looking at 45,000mt.

"Zohar has been working on aquaculture research and technologies for nearly two decades. He said with this new partnership, AquaCon can seize on a huge economic opportunity in farming Atlantic salmon in the U.S. About half a million tons of Atlantic salmon is consumed in America annually, and about 95% of that salmon is imported from overseas, he explained. That accounts for about $3.4 billion annually in seafood imports. Now that land-based aquaculture technologies are mature enough to enable major domestic farming operations, many states and corporations are looking to offset that trade deficit with their own production efforts, Zohar said."

From: https://www.bizjournals.com/baltimore/news/2020/07/06/auqucon-to-invest-1-b-in-md-fish-farming-effort.html.

But there are more in the US, numbered from my on-land fish farm post:

See my list of 338 on-land fish farms: https://fishfarmnews.blogspot.com/2016/05/152-different-on-land-fish-farm-systems.html:

37. Building Integrated Aquaculture - aims to put a farm in every city whree they would purchase fish.

42. Urban Fish Farms - consumers are gowing tiliapia in their apartments, so no need to buy fish.

60. CNN Sustainable Blue, and also number 85, with the aim for hundreds of on-land farms.

155. Inland Sea, to raise 5.3M pounds of salmon.

163. Whole Oceans, 10,000MT and aiming for 50,000MT

176. Atlantic Sapphire - 150,000mt, then to 250,000mt

179. Superior Fresh, 120,000 lbs of salmon and 40,000 lbs of trout.

187. Aquabounty

211, and 212. Nordic Aquafarms - building three farms, 33,000mt.

213. Aquabanc.

216. Aquabanc, 10,000mt.

219. Kingfish Zeeland.

235. Pure Salmon aiming for 260,000mt in all its projects, with 20,000mt for its US on-land farm, Project Jonah, Virginia.

Added to this are more than 25 other projects in the US from 50- to 500mt fish.

And the world of on-land fish farms is heading to over 1 million MT in the next five years. Let me remind you that BC's output is a measely 85,000MT.

In-ocean is a dinosaur that is dying. BC needs to be on the crest of the movement to land, not stuck polluting our ocean to the conservative tune of $10.4B sewage damage. The reality is that BC in-ocean will be wiped out by US on-land, as 85% of its product goes there, and the massive move to on-land will wipe out BC sales to the US.

See: http://fishfarmnews.blogspot.com/2017/02/fish-farm-sewage-huge-cost-to-bc.html.

***********

And here is an update article on cost comparisons around the world, on-land and in-ocean for selling in the US where BC salmon goes:

666. AKVA Says On-land Competitive at NOK 51 to 65-kg - also, 1M to 2M increase in on-land by 2030 could be absorbed by the market. Note that the US market could absorb 50% more fish, meaning BC in-ocean is doubly likely to fail: https://www.undercurrentnews.com/2020/12/01/akva-land-based-salmon-farms-competitive-at-nok-51-65-kg-region-depending/?utm_source=Undercurrent+News+Alerts&utm_campaign=23cb3f0300-Americas_briefing_Dec_01_2020&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_feb55e2e23-23cb3f0300-92426209.

Costs to compete are a bit lower in the USA, at NOK 51- to 54-k to compete with Chilean salmon; and NOK 53- 56-kg from Norway. This is a very good post on comparisons, and shows that on-land is competitive.

And another operation coming closr: 733. Aquacon Hires New CFO - USA, Maryland, for plant climbing to 15,000MT, to first harvest in 2024, on its way to three plants, the others to begin harvest in 2026 and 2028: https://www.undercurrentnews.com/2020/12/31/norways-aquacon-hires-skinderhaug-as-cfo/?utm_source=Undercurrent+News+Alerts&utm_campaign=98cee23e06-Americas_briefing_Dec_31_2020&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_feb55e2e23-98cee23e06-92426209.

DFO Is Biggest Threat to Wild BC Salmon

I have long argued that DFO has been managing salmon into extinction for the past 50 years.

I am glad to hear that others feel the same way. Tony Allard, who did a good job on stating what the Precautionary Principle means (he is a lawyer), has now come to the same realization as I and others have about DFO.

See: https://ipolitics.ca/2020/10/30/the-biggest-threat-to-wild-pacific-salmon-is-fisheries-and-oceans-canada/?fbclid=IwAR0c9AKUWV6SHqFNzS94MJy_3OmduQBGHHNbTaL2ZcKNLKp6C3D8FQWm52M&mc_cid=ac81828f2c&mc_eid=5777c92bcd.

Here is a quote: "Today, DFO does whatever is necessary to support Atlantic salmon farming along B.C.’s coast — to the significant threat of wild Pacific salmon. Only Canada allows the farming of Atlantic salmon on the migration routes of wild Pacific salmon. And, just like 30 years ago, DFO continues to rig science so it can skirt its primary duty to protect B.C.’s iconic keystone species."

The policy paper I put together as part of a Green Party committee argues that the big problems for wild salmon are: prevention of habitat destruction and restoration of habitat; DFO; fish Farms; and climage change. If you want the paper, let me know.

And here is a long post on the problems with fish farms in BC: http://fishfarmnews.blogspot.com/2019/07/dfos-public-consultation-on-framework.html.

Here is Allard's post on the PP: https://fishfarmnews.blogspot.com/2018/10/precautionary-principle-has-defined.html.

Now, more from the current article in iPolitics: "In 2015, the Federal Court found DFO had not adhered to the precautionary principle — the law of our land — when regulating the foreign Piscine orthoreovirus [PRV], saying DFO’s “arguments with respect to the precautionary principle are inconsistent, contradictory and, in any event, fail in light of the evidence.” Four months later, DFO reinstated the same policy, adopting a risk threshold that prohibited only risks that could sterilize entire populations, species, or ecosystems." And PRV is present in 90% of farmed fish.

And, of course, you should know that DFO has gone back to court to argue against the PP, when they have already lost that argument twice.

And DFO said that Discovery Island fish farms posed no threat, but failed to test for sea lice one of the most killing parasites of migrating juvenile salmon. Note that in the early 1900s, 100,000,000 - yes, that's 100 million - sockeye returned to the Fraser. In 2020, the pitiful number is 285,000 sockeye or a quarter of one percent, that is .25%.

John Reynolds, aquatic ecologist at Simon Fraser University, and chair of the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) said: “We have an overwhelming weight of evidence from research coming at this from all different directions. The current open-net-pen fish-farm model that we have is not compatible with protecting wild fish.”

If you have Tony Allard's email address, let me know. He is not hard to find on the net, but his email address is.

Most Popular Posts - October, 2020 - Published Nov 2, 2020

The October list of most popular posts on this site has a few perennially popular entries and some otheres. An example is the 'Stinging Endictment of Farmed Fish as Food.' Take a look.

1. BAD NEWS BITES - it surprises even me that I am getting close to 6,000, yes 6,000, problems in the past three years in the global fish farm/seafood industry. Here is one from 2017: https://fishfarmnews.blogspot.com/2017/12/bad-news-bites-salmonseafood-idustry.html.

2. BAD NEWS BITES = yet another popular post on problems in the industry, also from 2017: https://fishfarmnews.blogspot.com/2017/08/bad-news-bites-salmonseafood-industry.html.

3. 338 On-land Fish Farms - around the world. Yes, there are that many and lots of people want to look at this gateway to the future - : https://fishfarmnews.blogspot.com/2016/05/152-different-on-land-fish-farm-systems.html.

4. BC Stats Report - the best stats on the BC sectors of the seafood industry, including sport, the highest revenue, employment, GDP and so on, not fish farms: http://fishfarmnews.blogspot.com/2019/03/mar-21-2019-bc-stats-report-2016.html.

5. Stinging Indictment of Farmed Fish as Food - Mercola: https://fishfarmnews.blogspot.com/2018/04/stinging-indictment-of-farmed-salmon-as.html. Just how bad is farmed fish? Worse fat content than pizza. More Chemicals than you can shake a stick at. And more.

6. Cooke a Litany of Complaint - you won't believe that Cooke is this bad until you read this post: http://fishfarmnews.blogspot.com/2016/04/cooke-aquaculture-typical.html.

7. GOOD NEWS BITES - in on-land fish farms. Closing in on 600 posts. Who says on-land isn't a tsunami of popularity? https://fishfarmnews.blogspot.com/2020/09/good-news-post-links-to-on-land-closed.html.
This is the proof that in-ocean fish farms are dinosaurs.
8. Wild BC Salmon Plan - https://fishfarmnews.blogspot.com/2019/03/report-made-in-bc-wild-salmon-strategy.html.
Now move along to talk to John Horgan, Sonia Furstenau and Adam Olsen. And read the long comment after the post, as it has much to say.