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Howe Sound Chinook Program

May 17, 2013

Filed under: Community Support — Tags: aquaculture, Campbell River, Chinook, First Nation, Hatchery, Howe Sound, Ian Roberts, marine harvest canada, Porteau Cover, salmon conservation, seine net, Squamish, Tenderfoot Creek — marineharvestcanada @ 2:44 pm

Submitted by Jordan Uittenbogaard, Operations Manager, Tenderfoot Creek Hatchery

Marine Harvest Canada was pleased to donate this 15 metre pen system to the Howe Sound Chinook program to assist in salmon enhancement efforts

The Howe Sound Chinook program is a unique program based out of Tenderfoot Creek Hatchery which supports various fisheries in British Columbia. Some of these fisheries include a recreational fishery in Howe Sound, a First Nations fishery in the Cheakamus River, and the program is also know to contribute to the conservation of the depleting Chinook salmon stocks in the Squamish watershed. The original brood stock for this program comprised of Chinook sub-stocks from the Squamish River. These stocks included the Squamish, Ashlu, Mamquam, and Cheakamus Rivers.

These white fleshed Chinook are captured via seine nets at various locations throughout Howe Sound. The Chinook are then transferred from their salt water habitat to the hatchery groundwater ponds where they are held until maturity and then spawned.

In recent years 400,000 to 1,000,000 juvenile Chinook are reared in fresh water and released into sea pens located at Porteau Cove Park just off the Sea to Sky highway.

Before the sea pen rearing, the juvenile Chinook are raised to approximately 3 grams and are vaccinated against Vibrio. Once the fry reach an average of 7.5 grams in size they are transferred to sea pens and reared to 9-15 grams. The juveniles react well to the low salinity levels in Howe Sound and thrive with the plankton blooms in the marine environment. Once the juveniles are released they migrate to the north Pacific and when they return as adults to Howe Sound, they stage for a period of time before dispersing to the Squamish River system.

The pen system was moved from Marine Harvest’s Conville Point site to Squamish in January. It was reassembled at Porteau Cove Park and put to sea this spring just in time for delivery of Chinook smolts

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Donation Tote-ally Appreciated!

April 24, 2013

Filed under: Community Support — Tags: Campbell River, Coastline Towing, Community Support, compost, Donations, fish, gardening, Green City, Ken & Murray Forde House, marine harvest, reuse and recycle, Terry Fulton, totes, Willow Point Supportive Living Society — marineharvestcanada @ 1:21 pm

Submitted by Terry Fulton, Manager, Willow Point Supportive Living Society

It is wonderful how our local businesses are so generous and supportive of our local non-profit organizations and the people they serve.

Marine Harvest was pleased to donate 12 fish totes to the Willow Point Supportive Living Society in March. The totes will be used for gardening and provide an ideal height for residents to care for vegetables and flowers. Coastline Towing & Transport delivered the totes free of charge.

The totes will never need replacing, contributing to the Forde House philosophy of being environmentally conscious while contributing to Campbell River’s Green City initiative by people raising their own garden food.

Our sincere THANK YOU to all of the Marine Harvest Staff and to Coastline Towing & Transport for making this opportunity a reality from the Board and Staff of Willow Point Supportive Living Society and the residents of Forde House.

Pictured: Terry Fulton, Roger King (Marine Harvest), Cathy White, Charlotte (resident), Mike Hammond (Coastline Towing and Transport), Paul Kendrick (Marine Harvest) and his mom and resident Vivian.

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Dear Graham Auger, “Please get your facts straight”

March 29, 2013

Filed under: Letters to editor — Tags: Alexandra Morton, Campbell River, closed containment, diseases, environmentalist, fish, Graham Auger, letter to editor, Marc Wouters, Mirror, muzzle, newspaper, salmon, salmon farming, taking pressure off, wild salmon — marineharvestcanada @ 9:24 am

As published in the Campbell River Mirror on March 29, 2013:

Re: “Plenty of evidence” (Mirror, March 27)

I have to say that I am glad that we live in a society that allows us public expression of our opinion without fear of ridicule.

However, if you are going to accuse industry operators of issues such as contributing to the extinction of wild salmon then I would please ask you to make sure you have your facts straight.

I have been working in the industry for over 25 years (in the field), and have seen first hand that these “diseases” you speak of were endemic to the environment, meaning that they were always there.

As far as “muzzling,” any time that we bring forward empirical scientific data to support our position Ms. (Alexandra) Morton refuses to acknowledge it. It makes for a hostile environment when one side of the debate is not even willing to hear scientific evidence brought forward by leading authorities.

I personally have no issue with members of the general public voicing concerns over issues of environmental impact. As a matter of fact, I see it as an excellent opportunity to gain a different perspective which may help us to improve/modify our practises to lessen our impact on the environment.

I do take offence however, with the minority of malcontents that want to generate an atmosphere of hostility through emotional appeal and rhetoric.

As mentioned earlier, I have been working in the industry for over 25 years and have seen it constantly evolving, improving practises to lessen environmental impact.

I also think that it is entirely possible to be a salmon farmer and an environmentalist.

I am proud to say that I contribute to providing a safe, healthy alternative to wild salmon.

Can Ms. Morton make that claim?

Marc Wouters, Campbell River

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Coho salmon may benefit from aquaculture science

January 21, 2013

By Ian Roberts

Can a flu shot that is commonly used for farm-raised salmon help improve the survival of native coho salmon? It’s a question that’s about to be answered, thanks to the collaboration of a group of researchers, aquaculture companies and Campbell River businesses.

Over the past 30 years, Strait of Georgia coho returns have declined significantly and researchers are keen to find out why.

One factor believed to have a negative effect on salmon survival is increasing water temperatures – a concern highlighted as a major factor in the recent Cohen Commission Report that investigated the decline of Fraser River sockeye.

Because an increase in water temperature can trigger disease in fish, juvenile salmon entering the marine environment in the warming spring become quite susceptible.

Vaccinating a Coho salmon

So a group of fisheries biologists and veterinarians put their collective heads together and hypothesized that the occurrence of vibriosis, a naturally occurring bacterial disease found in fish in the marine environment, may be amplified by warming water temperatures and negatively affecting coho survival.

Fisheries and Oceans Canada, which operates dozens of salmon enhancement and conservation hatcheries in British Columbia, uses bath vaccination against vibriosis for Chinook salmon, but has never injection vaccinated coho to help protect against the disease.

Dave Ewart, manager at Campbell River’s Quinsam River Hatchery, was aware of the major success that salmon farmers have using injection vaccination to protect their fish from common diseases such as vibriosis, and was keen to trial Quinsam River coho with a similar vaccine.

So this past December about 40,000 coho salmon (weighing 12 grams each) were injected with a vibriosis vaccine. The trial includes a control group – another 40,000 salmon injected with an innocuous saline solution. All 80,000 salmon have been tagged with a coded wire so when the salmon return as adults (some early maturing males will return in the fall of 2013 and the rest in the fall of 2014), the survival rates of the two groups can be compared.

“Typically, Quinsam Hatchery produces up to 800,000 Coho smolts per year with a current survival rate of only 2%. If vaccinating increased this to 4%, it would double the adult return,” says Ewart. “By increasing survival

Coho receive a vaccine and coded tag

rate we could decide to keep smolt releases the same and provide fishers with many more adult salmon to be caught, or decrease releases and maintain the same number of adult returns, thus saving significant dollars and reducing competition in the Strait of Georgia.”

The trial will run for three consecutive years and is funded by the Campbell River Salmon Foundation ($9200 cash), Centre for Aquatic Health Sciences ($8000 of in-kind support for fish health monitoring services), Fisheries and Oceans Canada ($8000 for in-kind services), and Northwest Marine Technology ($4000 for coded wire tags). Donations were also presented to the Campbell River Salmon Foundation in support of this project by Mercury Marina and Trailer Park ($2000 cash), Marine Harvest Canada ($1000 cash), Novartis Animal Health ($700 for vaccine) and Syndel Labs ($200 for anesthetic).

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Outdated salmon research leads to confusion

Filed under: Letters to editor — Tags: 2004, 2013, atlantic, Australia, british columbia, Campbell River, Canada, Chile, Dietary Guidelines for Americans, doctor, eat fish, Europe, farm raised, farmed salmon, healthy eating, Ian Roberts, Jerome Solomon, junk-science, letter to editor, low in mercury, M.D., marine harvest, Monterey Bay Aquarium, Napa Valley, Omega-3, Pacific, PCBs, seafood, Seafood Watch, South America, United States, wild-caught — marineharvestcanada @ 5:10 pm

The following letter was published in the Napa Valley Register on January 19th, 2013.

Dear Editor,

In a recent letter to the Napa Valley Register, Jerome Solomon, M.D., expressed his concern regarding the nutritional value of farm-raised salmon from British Columbia (“Reader weighs in on wild vs. farmed salmon debate,” Jan. 17).

While I can appreciate that he is entitled to his opinion, I’m concerned his negative opinion of farm-raised salmon is not based on today’s facts. His patients deserve up-to-date information about healthy eating.

To clarify for your readers, farm-raised salmon are generally Atlantic species (Salmo salar) and wild-caught salmon are mainly the five Pacific species (Oncorhynchus). Salmon are farmed in Europe, Australia, South America, Canada and the United States.

Mr. Solomon states that wild-caught salmon are high in healthy long-chain omega-3 fatty acids and low in mercury. He is correct, but this is also true of farm-raised Atlantic salmon. In fact, studies have shown Atlantic salmon are naturally higher in omega-3s and lower in mercury than their Pacific cousins.

Mr. Solomon’s concern about PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) in farm-raised salmon may be born from a well-publicized study in 2004 that suggested farm-raised Atlantic salmon were higher in PCBs than some species of wild Pacific salmon.

The fact is, while salmon species vary slightly in levels of PCBs, all salmon (wild and farmed) contain less than 1 percent of acceptable PCB levels according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Since 2004, salmon farmers have continually improved the diet of farm-raised salmon to ensure these PCB levels have continued to drop. North American health agencies recommend the consumption of oily fish, such as salmon, twice weekly.

The 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans set no consumption limits for farm-raised salmon, not even for pregnant and breast-feeding women, and rank it as one of the healthiest seafoods you can eat, with high omega-3 content and low mercury content.

The fact is: Both wild-caught and farm-raised salmon are very low in unwanted contaminants and very, very high in nutritional benefits.

Lastly, Mr. Solomon is not correct to state that the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Guide is “up to date.” Farm-raised salmon was last reviewed in 2003 — a decade ago.

The aquarium is now working to update this guide to reflect today’s business of salmon aquaculture. I would suggest that Mr. Solomon also update his files about the nutritional benefits of eating salmon — farmed and wild.

To learn more about how salmon are raised on farms in British Columbia, please see BCSalmonFacts.ca.

Ian Roberts is a salmon farmer from British Columbia, Canada.

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Getting a charge out of aquaculture

January 3, 2013

Filed under: What We Do — Tags: Baseball, BC, Big Tree Creek, camosun college, Campbell River, Campbell River Curling Club, Canada, Courtenay, electrician, Gina Forsyth, golf, Hatchery, hockey, Joe Johnson, Joe Johnson Electric, maintenance, marine harvest, Mexico, mining, Port Hardy, Quinsam Coal, Sayward, Susan Johnson, Upchucks, Vancouver Island, Vanier High School, Victoria, welding — marineharvestcanada @ 10:46 am

By Gina Forsyth

For more than 11 years Joe Johnson has been responsible for Maintenance and Electrical work at Big Tree Creek Hatchery near Sayward. “My job is to keep everything maintained and running and to do anything to make the staffs’ lives easier, better, or safer,” Joe says.

“I’ve got an old shop on-site with just about every tool and machine a guy could want, including welders, table saws and a drill press. If it’s made from wood, aluminum stainless, steel, or plastics, I can build it or fix it,” he adds.

He was born and raised in Victoria and finished grade 12 at Vanier High in Courtenay. After graduation, Joe completed his four year electrical apprenticeship at Camosun College in Victoria.

Joe Johnson, Hatchery Electrician, Marine Harvest

“I’m happy to say I’ve spent my entire life on Vancouver Island,” says Joe.

Joe has worked in construction all over the Island. His father was an electrician and Joe is very proud to follow his dad’s career path. From Victoria to Port Hardy, he has wired hospitals, pulp mills, mines, apartment blocks, and even refitted a cruise ship. Even after 30 years of work, Joe still enjoys doing side jobs on nights and weekends through Joe Johnson Electric.

Along the way, Joe worked for four and a half years at Quinsam Coal. “I was underground and really enjoyed it – it’s a whole different world down there,” he says. “My great grandfather was a coal miner and that connection meant a lot to me.,”

He made the successful transition to aquaculture after his wife saw an ad for the maintenance position at the hatchery. Until then, electrical work had been contracted out, and the managers and Joe chose to take a chance and have an electrician on staff. “We decided on a three month trial to ensure everybody was happy. I think it has worked out well for all of us.”

Joe met his wife Susan while at a construction job in Port Hardy. They’ve been married for 19 years and have raised three wonderful kids. The family built a house four years ago – a task that was on Joe’s “bucket list”. Joe enjoys his home and gets great satisfaction from the simple things, such as cutting grass.

Joe is active all year round, whether it be golfing, baseball (he’s a long standing member of team ‘Upchuck’), camping in the summer or floor hockey in the winter. “I’ve been playing sports with the same group for more than 25 years,” said Joe, adding that he’s enjoying it as much as ever.

“Susan and I have also been lucky enough to enjoy many trips to Mexico. Life is good.”

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The dream of a four year old comes true

December 19, 2012

Filed under: What We Do — Tags: Alberta, aquaculture, british columbia, Calgary, Campbell River, career, Craig Sherman, Diane Sherman, fish and Wildlife Technologist, fishing, fly fishing, four years old, Gina Forsyth, Klemtu, marine harvest, New Brunswick, Ontario, salmon farming, Saltspring Island, Sault St. Marie, Sunshine Coast, Vancouver, working with fish — marineharvestcanada @ 2:38 pm

Craig Sherman

By Gina Forsyth

Craig Sherman was only four years old when he knew what his future would hold. He and his family were living in New Brunswick when he went fishing with his dad. “That experience made me realize I wanted to work with fish,” said the Site Manager of Potts Bay.

Although Craig was born in Calgary, Alberta, “I was raised all over Canada,” he explained. After high school in Ontario, Craig enrolled in the three-year Fish and Wildlife Technologist diploma program in Sault St. Marie. Craig made the move to BC in 1986 and began his aquaculture career on the Sunshine Coast, just north of Vancouver.

“The aquaculture industry was on fire then,” he said. Craig’s first industry job was at Aquarius Seafarms. He also worked for the former BC Packers, and other companies, eventually settling on Saltspring Island from 1993 to 2005 for Marine Harvest. “We did a lot of community outreach and changed a lot of minds on the island about salmon farming.”

In the summer of 2004, Craig worked on the north coast, in Klemtu, as the first manager of Goat Cove. He was also instrumental in the start up of Kid Bay. The following year, Craig made the move to the Campbell River region, managing Young Pass and Brougham. In the last couple of months, he’s started at Potts Bay, which he’s really enjoying.

“Most of all I enjoy helping people learn and develop and move onto management positions.”

Craig and his wife Diane have two adult children, both girls. Not surprisingly, Craig loves fly fishing in his leisure time, and has been tying his own flies for more than 35 years.

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Farmed fish an efficient source of food

November 30, 2012

Filed under: Letters to editor — Tags: aquaculture, british columbia, Campbell River, coldblooded, conservation, cultured fish, Dean Trethewey, diet, efficient, farmed fish, farming, farms, fish farmers, fish food, fish meal, food woes, Freshwater, gravity, Harvey Williams, Jacques Cousteau, letter to editor, Lloyd Erickson, marine, ocean, population, salmon, sea, sustainable, Times Colonist, Victoria — marineharvestcanada @ 9:54 am

The following letter was published in the Victoria Times Colonist in response to letters penned by Lloyd Erickson and Harvey Williams, both of Victoria.

By Dean Trethewey, Times Colonist, November 30, 2012

The two letter-writers perhaps don’t appreciate the benefits of raising fish for food.

Putting aside the obvious health and conservation benefits of cultured fish, freshwater and marine fish are coldblooded, so unlike land animals, they don’t require energy to heat their core. Also, water provides neutral buoyancy so they don’t fight against gravity. Both of these key energy-saving facts mean fish are one of the most efficient converters of feed to edible meat at a ratio of about 1: 1. This is important as we search to find efficient ways to feed more than seven billion of us.

I agree with the writers that farmed fish must be fed a sustainable diet and encourage them to learn more about how B.C. fish farmers are leading the way in using sustainable ingredients.

The benefit of raising fish for human consumption is not a new revelation, as ocean conservationist Jacques Cousteau wisely stated decades ago: “We must plant the sea and herd its animals using the sea as farmers instead of hunters.”

Dean Trethewey
Campbell River

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Cohen findings should not be misrepresented

November 15, 2012

Filed under: Letters to editor — Tags: aquaculture, banjo jim, Bruce Cohen, Campbell River, Cohen, Cohen Report, conservation, Fraser River, Ian Roberts, Inquiry, Jim Erkiletian, letter to editor, marine harvest, musician, Nanaimo Daily News, salmon farms, sockeye, wild salmon — marineharvestcanada @ 3:25 pm

The following letter, published in Nanaimo Daily News, is in response to a letter published November 3rd by Jim Erkiletain of Nanaimo titled “Salmon farms should be outlawed and removed”.

Dear Editor,

It’s a shame that some have chosen to misrepresent the recommendations of the Cohen Report – a $26 million study looking at the recent decline of Fraser River sockeye.

Jim Erkiletian is wrong to suggest the study states that “salmon farms decimate wild salmon populations.”

Judge Bruce Cohen actually states he found no evidence that salmon farms have a negative impact on Fraser River sockeye – but suggests that research continue to prove minimal risk. B.C. salmon farmers support this recommendation.

The three-year study does clearly state that there is “no smoking gun” and that a myriad of issues including rising water temperatures, habitat loss, implementation of the wild salmon policy and salmon enhancement require attention.

Salmon aquaculture takes fishing pressure off wild salmon – an important part of salmon conservation.

It’s therefore important that people don’t misrepresent the findings of a study that can help us focus on what is important to the long term sustainability of wild salmon.

Ian Roberts

Marine Harvest

Campbell River

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Site Manager treasures tranquility at home and cooperative colleagues

Filed under: What We Do — Tags: Alberta, aquaculture, british columbia, Campbell River, Chinook, Curtis Resler, cutthroat, farming, fishing, Gina Forsyth, Lake Cowichan, marine harvest canada, salmon, St. Albert, trout, Vancouver Island, Youbou — marineharvestcanada @ 12:10 pm

By Gina Forsyth

On the shores of Lake Cowichan in the small community of Youbou, west of Duncan on Vancouver Island, BC, a small cabin is undergoing major renovations. It’s the home of Site Manager Curtis Resler. For more than a decade, this Alberta native has made salmon aquaculture his career and this serene community his home.

Curtis Resler

From his beginnings with salmon aquaculture in 2000, when Curtis hadn’t even seen pictures of salmon farming and knew nothing about it, to now, as manager of Larsen Island in the Broughton Archipelago, he has built a solid career in the industry he has come to love. “It’s a really good fit for me,” he said.

After finishing high school in St. Albert, Alberta, Curtis entered a business program at Camosun College. “I like my numbers and this area of study made sense for me.” After moving permanently to Vancouver Island in the late 1990s, Curtis was hired by what is now Marine Harvest at their Saltspring Island site, pulling nets. The job he found by chance, through word of mouth, led to a management position in the Campbell River region, first with Chinook and then with Atlantics in 2006. He made the transition to the Broughton area recently.

Curtis appreciates the myriad of training opportunities Marine Harvest offers him. “The leadership courses have given me insight into what makes people tick.” He appreciates the opportunity to be outside and part of a crew that has developed a sense of camaraderie both at work and socially. “We work hard for each other.”

When off-shift, Curtis appreciates the nearby lake and river fishing his home offers. “The river is a challenge because of the changing water levels and fishing from shore is tough, but the cutthroats are a great reward,” he said.

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