The Uncertain Future of BC's Fish Farms

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - The future of fish farms in British Columbia is uncertain. On June 7, Judge Paul Favel supported the Ministry of Fisheries decision to not renew the licenses of 15 fish farms in the Discovery Islands, and denied a joint application by industry and the Laich-kwil-tach Nation for a judicial review. At the end of this month the licenses of the remaining 66 fish farms still operating in this province will expire. 

It has been a month since the current  Fisheries Minister, Dianne Lebouthillier, reassured the industry that, “In the mandate letter, I’m asked to put in place a transition plan. It doesn’t say that we have to close everything, that we have to close all the aquaculture centres. It really means working to put in place measures to protect wild salmon. I’ve confirmed that there will be no closure of aquaculture centres in 2025.”

Independent biologist Alexandra Morton explained,  “The  recent decision by Judge Favell was a big surprise because DFO staff appear to have worked quite actively in support of the salmon farming industry, particularly the aquaculture management division.  That's why there's an ethics commission, right now, that was launched into how they're handling the science. They made it difficult for the minister to win this lawsuit.  They offered the companies the opportunity to pay for their licenses before the minister had made her decision. So in court, the industry lawyers brought up that the companies had paid for their licenses, they expected them.”  

“For reasons like that, and many others, the lawyers cautioned us that we probably would lose this judicial review. We lost the last one as well. So the minister had to go back and make a new decision.  The companies launched a judicial review on the new decision and  we won. The industry is  almost certainly going to appeal the decision.”  

“This is going to drag on and on and on, but what the decision did was it alerted the Canadian government to the fact that they can close the salmon farms. They do have what is needed. Their concerns are valid.”  

When Judge Favel made his decision about the Discovery Island fish farms, he weighed the opposing concerns of two groups of First Nations. 

Seven of the closed fish farms are within traditional territories of the Wei Wai Kum First Nation, We Wai Kai Nation and Kwiakah First Nations, collectively known as the Laich-kwil-tach Nation. Another of the closed farm sites, Raza Island, is off the northern tip of Cortes Island. 

In a press release last year, Wei Wai Kai Chief Councillor Ronnie Chickite declared, “This court challenge is not about whether we support fish farming or not – it is about our inherent right as title holders to decide how our territory is used, and determine for ourselves if, when, and how fish farms could operate in the future. We strongly believe the minister’s decision to not reissue licences in our territories was a political decision heavily influenced by nations who do not have title in our territory.” 

Yet many Indigenous Nations are dependent on sockeye salmon that pass through the Discovery Islands en route to the Fraser River.

Judge Favel reasoned, “The Minister owed a deep level of consultation to Indigenous peoples outside the Discovery Islands since the right and potential infringement is of high significance to the Aboriginal peoples and the risk of non-compensable damage is high. Fraser River salmon play a significant role in the exercise of Aboriginal rights by many Indigenous peoples and the risk to the health of the Fraser River salmon posed by fish farms in the Discovery Islands is unacceptably high. In contrast, the risk of non-compensable damage to the Laich-kwil-tach and Klahoose is low because the impact of a decision not to reissue licences is the loss of economic benefits from their territories, which is quantifiable and compensable.”