Canada looks for a sea change in salmon farming
Canada’s federal government has announced measures to “change the way aquaculture is done” in the country by establishing a more holistic approach to the management of aquaculture, creating more jobs and protecting the environment.
Key initiatives include:
- A study on the alternative technologies for aquaculture, including land and sea-based closed containment technology.
- Moving towards an area-based approach to ensure that environmental, social and economic factors are taken into consideration when identifying potential areas for aquaculture development – including considerations relating to migration pathways for wild salmon;
- Developing a framework for aquaculture risk management, based on the precautionary approach;
- Creating a single comprehensive set of regulations, the General Aquaculture Regulations.
The initiatives come after Canada’s chief science advisor, Dr Mona Nemer, led an expert panel in examining how aquaculture science could be strengthened and how it informs decision-making. The panel’s members included Heather Jones, chief executive of the Scottish Aquaculture Innovation Centre.
The Canadian government announcement follows last week’s meeting of the Canadian Council for Fisheries and Aquaculture Ministers (CCFAM) in St John’s, Newfoundland, where federal and provincial ministers agreed to the development of a federal Aquaculture Act.
Alternative technologies
The study into alternative technologies will be led and funded by Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO), the provincial government of British Columbia and Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC), a foundation created by the government to support companies with efforts to develop and demonstrate new environmental technologies.
It will be guided by an independent steering committee which will include indigenous partners, industry, environmental non-governmental groups and governments.
A key focus will be potential ways in which technologies can reduce interactions between aquaculture and the environment.
Collective planning
Area-based aquaculture management will “enhance collaboration between federal, provincial and indigenous partners through improved information sharing, collective planning and ongoing monitoring and management of aquaculture activities”.
The government is targeting northern Vancouver Island as the general location to pilot this approach. Discussions are under way with the provincial government, indigenous peoples and communities.
On the subject of risk management, the DFO said it was seeking to “clearly outline and explain how we make decisions on aquaculture including how we use the precautionary approach specifically for aquaculture decision-making when there is scientific uncertainty”.
Comprehensive regulations
The DFO is also moving forward in creating a single, comprehensive set of aquaculture regulations, called the General Aquaculture Regulations, which it said “would bring more clarity for industry, stakeholders and the Canadian public about how aquaculture is managed for responsible growth in Canada”.
Separate to that, it said the development of a new federal aquaculture act will provide enhanced certainty to businesses and improve sector transparency, while appropriately recognising provincial and territorial jurisdiction.
More information on the initiatives can be found here.
