Vancouver Island gets new government aquaculture offices
Under the previous regulatory system for aquaculture in B.C., the Province and the federal governments shared responsibility for the oversight of the industry. Under the new, court-imposed regime, the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) will manage some issues that the Province previously looked after, like licensing, waste and fish health. The Province will retain control over the regulations governing use of crown land (including ocean-covered crown land) and the associated land tenuring process. The City of Campbell River had been lobbying hard to get some of the benefits associated with the anticipated hiring of up to 50 new DFO staff.
As the Campbell River Mirror reports, this is about to happen;
The Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada will soon oversee B.C.’s aquaculture industry from offices in Campbell River, Courtenay and Nanaimo. After Dec. 18 — when a federal regime will be in place to ensure aquaculture operations can obtain licences to operate lawfully under the Fisheries Act — DFO will locate a number of new staff members at upper Island locations.
The news was greeted with open arms by Roberta Stevenson, executive director of the Comox-based B.C. Shellfish Growers Association. “It’s going to be better,” Stevenson said. “Our industry will be more reliant on good science and good research, rather than the politics.” “Clearly, this is a big transition for the department, so we’re trying to provide whatever support we can,” said Mary Ellen Walling, executive director at the Campbell River-based B.C. Salmon Farmers Association.
DFO’s provisional plan is to add 22 new staff members to the Campbell River area, 13 in Nanaimo and eight in Courtenay, says Andrew Thomson, director of aquatic management for DFO’s Pacific region. The idea is to cut down travel time to fish farm sites, and to better interact with existing DFO staff. There will also be communications and program staff added to DFO’s Vancouver office to help co-ordinate regional programs. Thomson said the department will likely need to re-evaluate the new cabinet-approved provincial aquaculture program, and shift some resources to achieve the proper mix.
In Courtenay, he said the primary function will concern fish health at farm sites. Staff members will include veterinarians, fish health technicians and shellfish biologists. “The centre, really, for shellfish aquaculture in the province is the Courtenay/Comox area,” Thomson said, noting DFO is looking to assume under lease a provincial fish health lab in Courtenay. “We’re delighted to see these positions come to the Comox Valley because 53 per cent of shellfish grown in the province is grown in Baynes Sound, so having shellfish biologists working out of an office in Courtenay will serve our industry well,” Stevenson said. “This is really the area that has embraced aquaculture so it makes sense they would be located near the farms.” She is confident DFO will help ensure the health of animals and cleanliness of water. “It’s a good working relationship that we have with them,” Stevenson said, noting DFO’s mandate to protect fish habitat. “We consider ourselves excellent stewards of the marine environment.”
DFO will place a large component of its conservation protection staff in Campbell River, along with biologists to monitor finfish sites. There will also be staff involved in licensing of the sites, Thomson said. “We have three large, international companies that have their head offices in Campbell River,” Walling said, noting other farm operations in Tofino and Port Hardy. “I think it makes sense to, as much as possible, have some centralized office locations.” The Nanaimo office will consist mostly of resource management staff, along with conservation protection and information management personnel.
