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British Columbia fish farms - Interview Opportunity - Environmental Communication Options/Huff Strategy

British Columbia fish farms - Interview Opportunity

Mar 28th, 2008 11:25 AM

Interview Opportunity: Alexandra Morton, Director of the Salmon Coast Field Station - Echo Bay, British Columbia North coast farm-free, south coast more farms On March 27, 2008, Pat Bell, British Columbia's Agriculture Minister, announced that there would be an immediate moratorium on any finfish farms north of Aristazabal Island, 150 kilometres south of the mouth of the Skeena River. The Minister also indicated that the BC government would cease issuing new licenses and tenures for salmon farms in areas of the North Coast while it examines a new approach to managing the controversial industry. However, at the same time he approved two new finfish farms on the south coast. The decision to suspend fish farms on the North Coast is an extremely good first step and is an acknowledgement that sea lice generated by fish farms pose a direct and urgent threat to the survival of juvenile wild salmon and herring along the coast. Ms. Morton is available for interviews regarding the science behind the decision and what remains to be done to ensure that wild salmon and herring stocks exposed to fish farms on the south coast survive. -30- To arrange an interview, contact: Alexandra Morton 250-949-1664 Echo Bay