Watch this video from Global TV, interviewing Dr. Craig Orr on the recent report card put together by his organization, Watershed Watch, evaluating governments' follow-through on the recommendations of Justice Bruce Cohen's Inquiry into disappearing Fraser River sockeye. (March 1, 2013)

Watch video: http://www.watershed-watch.org/2013/03/global-tv-coverage-of-new-cohen-report-card/

 

The federal agency embroiled in the recent XL Meats tainted beef scandal is at it again - this time leading efforts to cover up a potentially catastrophic farmed salmon flu-like viral outbreak on BC's coast. Charged with ensuring your food is safe to eat, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) increasingly appears to be acting as a political arm of the Harper Government and an inept custodian of Canadian trade which will do our export business far more harm than good in the long run.

After three years of evidence, study and writing, Justice Bruce Cohen has finally submitted his $26 million Report on the disappearance of the Fraser River sockeye salmon. Despite being written in the restrained language of the judiciary, it is explicitly and implicitly explosive, condemning of the federal government's environmental policies, scathing in its assessment of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO), and critical of the salmon farming industry.

Read this story from the Campbell River Mirror on the BC Salmon Farmers Association's attempts to downplay the chilling implications of Justice Bruce Cohen's damning findings in his recently-released final report from the public inquiry into disappearing sockeye. (Nov. 1, 2012)

The Campbell River-based B.C. Salmon Farmers Association (BCSFA) is putting a brave face on the chilling findings of the Cohen Commission, while environmentalists celebrate what they see as a significant blow to fish farming in the area of the Discovery Islands.

BCSFA board member Clare Backman told the Mirror Thursday the association “does not see the report as investment chilling.”

“There is a big difference between what we read and what the commentators are saying,” he said. “There is no science of fish farm harm, but there is a lot of evidence of public concern. We see this as an opportunity to work with the federal government, the regulators and the NGOs (non-governmental organizations) to satisfy those concerns.

“Our members are committed to farming responsibly and that commitment will continue as we move forward in light of these recommendations,” Backman added. “It’s important that we continue with the important social and economic role we play in the coastal communities of B.C. while protecting our natural environment.”

Another BCSFA board member, Stewart Hawthorn, said: “We know that the fish on our farms are healthy and Justice Bruce Cohen has acknowledged the impressive data we made available. We are committed to protecting the marine environment and our iconic wild salmon and we support the call for further research in this small farming area.”

But the recommendations in the final report of the Commission of Inquiry into the Decline of the Fraser River Sockeye go way beyond a call for more research. Former B.C. Supreme Court Justice Cohen has called for a freeze on new salmon farms in the Discovery Islands.

Even though celebrity biologist Alexandra Morton described her testimony before the  commission more than a year ago as “a depressing experience,” it appears that Justice Cohen agreed with the position she espoused that precaution should trump evidence.

In a blog blast to her followers Thursday, she shared the “good news” and “incredibly strong wording” in the report. She wrote: “The Cohen report (states that) salmon farms have the potential to import exotic viruses and amplify endemic ones. There should be an immediate freeze on farm salmon production on the Fraser sockeye migration route. DFO should be relieved of their duty to promote salmon farms.”

During the Cohen hearings more than a year ago, Morton maintained that “the pattern of the Fraser sockeye collapse...is so stark I do not know how anyone could avoid applying the precautionary principle to this situation immediately. Only the sockeye that closely passed salmon farms collapsed.”

In her blog Morton warns: “The Province of B.C. is in the process of renewing many salmon farm leases. If B.C. offers this industry long term leases, Justice Cohen’s recommendations and our $26 million (commission budget) will be wasted.”

Campbell River Mayor Walter Jakeway is not amused. “You don’t learn anything from a moratorium,” he told the Mirror. “It is not the answer. Salmon farming is a huge part of our economic base. We need to let the industry grow and if there are problems solve them.”

The Campbell River Chamber of Commerce was taking a more cautious approach. President Colleen Evans said: “This is such an important sector. We need to better understand the implications of the report. It’s all about finding a balance.”

Read more: http://www.campbellrivermirror.com/news/176857421.html

There are several things that jumped out at me with the Cohen Commission Final Report, released yesterday. The first is that my faith in Bruce Cohen as expressed on CBC's Early Edition right after his name was announced has been fully justified. I said then that I knew the man, had fought in court with the man, that he was a superb lawyer and judge and that those who thought he could be pushed around just because he happened to be a very nice guy to boot would be pleasantly surprised. Hell of a good job, Bruce, I’m proud of you.

Video from the press conference on the release of the final report from the Cohen Commission into disappearing sockeye. Justice Bruce Cohen highlighted several key recommendations to protect wild salmon from open net pen aquaculture operations, including: removing the promotion of aquaculture from DFO's mandate, prioritizing the health of wild salmon over suitability for aquaculture when siting farms, and even removing some farms if more research into diseases shows they cannot safely coexist with wild fish.

I often noted half way through the Cohen Commission hearings in Vancouver in 2011 that I would not hold my breath for the Cohen Commission to make any real impact on changing DFO and if we do not rehabilitate DFO we cannot rehabilitate the fishery...I did my best to be a witness to get a number of issues before them but was told they “did not want anyone that was critical of DFO”, even though they gave me and ENGOs legal standing and hundreds of thousands of dollars to have legal representation. In one case they wanted one of my studies on Fraser River gravel mining but asked another expert to take my study and rewrite and remove all comments critical of DFO and put his name on it as though he was the author of the study. That was unethical!

Justice Cohen ruled today that he will not reopen his Inquiry into the Decline of the Fraser Sockeye citing the amount of work the commission team is faced with to meet the twice-delayed September 30, 2012 delivery date. The Commission notes that they have heard evidence on disease. The application to reopen the Inquiry was made by the Aquaculture Coalition (Alexandra Morton) after discovery that nearly 100% of BC farm salmon are testing positive for the Norwegian piscine reovirus. Research published as recently as April 12, 2012 confirms association between this virus and a disease called Heart and Skeletal Muscle Inflammation (HSMI).

Read this story from The Province on the confirmation of piscine rheovirus in farmed salmon sold in BC supermarkets. (April 14, 2012)

A newly identified Norwegian virus that affects salmon has made its way into Canadian markets, with test results confirming the presence of the virus in 44 out of 45 farmed salmon bought from Vancouver supermarkets.

The piscine reovirus, which causes heart and skeletal muscle inflammation in salmon, was found in fish bought by advocacy group SalmonAreSacred.org. The stores' seafood departments told the group the fish were B.C.-raised farmed salmon, SalmonAreSacred said in a news release.

Alexandra Morton, the biologist who discovered the infected fish, questioned if that information from store staff was accurate.

The virus is considered a "major challenge" in Norway, infecting more than 400 farms since its first appearance in 1999. Since then, it has also spread to the U.K, and as of last year, Chile.

"If they were imported, that is a huge concern," said Morton.

The origin of the infected fish, which has yet to be confirmed, will dictate whether the Canadian fish industry is at risk or if imports need a more thorough scanning process. The virus has not yet been found in Canadian farmed or wild fish populations, Morton suggested, but she is fearful it will show up.

Based on the diversity in the shape and size of the fish, Morton's impression is that they're coming from different farms.

"I bought these fish from several different stores on several different days and they all are coming up positive with the virus," she said. "They also looked different — long and skinny in some stores and quite large in others."

She said the salmon could have come from a number of places, including Norway, Chile and Eastern Canada, although there is no proof of the virus' existence there.

Morton explained that identifying the source of the salmon, whether imported or not, is "very important," as the disease itself could live in just an egg.

"These are questions that the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and Department of Fisheries and Oceans should be answering, and potentially the supermarket."

She said the solution that the industry should be imposing is to identify the source of the disease, temporarily contain it, then kill off the infected fish — all in a transparent process.

The mystery of the disappearing wild salmon may be closer to being solved due to the reconvened Cohen Commission and the extraordinary three days of hearings held in December, 2011. As earlier testimony revealed, many environmental factors affect the survival of wild salmon but imported diseases from the aquaculture industry may be the largest single cause of their decline...Evidence now confirms that government policy supports the salmon farming industry, and that the industry has been willing to exploit this advantage to win regulatory concessions for its economic gain - in the words of one Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) official, the industry seemed "to dictate" policy.