Fewer than 270,000 wild Fraser River salmon are expected to return to spawn this year, down from the many millions that used to return on an annual basis a decade ago. The chair of the First Nations Wild Salmon Alliance says the consultation announcement is a good first step but it should include First Nations on the Fraser River who depend on wild salmon. Monday's announcement was triggered by a deadline in the 2012 Cohen Commission report into declining Fraser River salmon stocks. According to Jordan, nine peer-reviewed DFO risk assessments conducted into nine separate Discovery Islands fish farm pathogens found evidence that aquaculture operations should be considered safe for Fraser River salmon. Chamberlin says DFO should be expediting the move from open-net fish farming to closed-containment land-based operations to protect wild salmon.

Source: CBC News September 28, 2020 19:23 UTC