To: Minister Dominic Leblanc, Fisheries Minister
Fish farms pollute the ocean, and expose wild salmon to deadly viruses. It is time to Legislate the removal of salmon farms from the ocean.
Why is this important?
Deadly diseases and viruses from fish farms are spreading to wild salmon, putting at risk thousands of jobs, entire First Nations cultures that rely on the wild salmon, the economy of BC and over 100 species that depend on wild salmon to survive.
Safer alternatives are available. It’s possible to farm fish on land, using closed-containment farming techniques that don’t pollute the ocean or jeopardize wild salmon stocks.The companies say it is too expensive for them to deal with their own wastes, but allowing them to pollute our oceans with disease is too expensive for society.
Prime Minister Trudeau gave Fisheries Minister LeBanc a mandate to use the best science to protect wild fish in Canada. Minister LeBlanc ignored this mandate by granting the industry long term licences on July 1, 2016 despite legal and scientific evidence that salmon farms are dangerous to wild salmon. Many scientists worldwide are raising alarm about open-net fish farms, but the multi-national fish farming companies have convinced government their dirty industry is safe.
If enough of us sign this petition, we can make our voices louder than the multi-national fish farming companies, and win a legislated ban on open-net salmon farming. This would force the salmon farming industry to grow up and clean up and it would allow us to restore wild salmon. This benefits everyone.