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Wild Game Fish Conservation International (WGFCI): Established to
advocate for wild game fish, their fragile ecosystems and the cultures and economies that rely on their robust populations.
LEGACY – The Journal of Wild Game Fish Conservation: Complimentary,
no-nonsense, monthly publication by conservationists for conservationists
LEGACY, the WGFCI Facebook page and the WGFCI website are utilized
to better equip fellow conservationists, elected officials, business owners and others regarding wild game fish, their contributions to society and the varied and complex issues impacting them and those who rely on their sustainability.
LEGACY features wild game fish conservation projects, fishing adventures,
accommodations, equipment and more. Your photos and articles featuring wild game fish from around planet earth are welcome for possible inclusion in an upcoming issue
of LEGACY. Your “Letters to the Editor” are encouraged.
Successful wild game fish conservation efforts around planet earth will ensure existence of these precious natural resources and their ecosystems for future
generations to enjoy and appreciate. This is our LEGACY.
LLeeggaaccyy
Wild Game Fish Conservation International
Wild Game Fish Conservation International founders:
By Wild Game Fish Conservation International volunteers
Contents CO HO HO… Merry Christmas ......................................................................................................................6 Robust populations of wild game fish are good for local economies .......................................................7 Everyone Loves Wild Salmon; Don’t They? - Video ...................................................................................8 Conservationists strive to restore robust populations of wild salmon game fish ...................................9 Special Feature: Recommendations resulting from Cohen Commission - The inquiry to identify causes of Fraser River sockeye salmon .................................................................................................... 10 Commission of Inquiry into the Decline of Sockeye Salmon in the Fraser River - Final Report .. 10 Video: Justice Cohen Gets Tough on Fish Farms - Inquiry Report Released Featured ... 11 BC's salmon farmers support continued research in fish health ................................................. 12 Sign this petition today - Premier Clark: Do not renew salmon farm Leases .............................. 13 Halt salmon farm development in sensitive spawning area, Cohen report urges ........................ 14 Government attention to Cohen report could also protect wild Atlantic salmon ......................... 15 Opinion: Salmon inquiry spawns opportunity .............................................................................. 16 Salmon catch provisions extended pending fishery inquiry report .............................................. 17 Cohen commission report must be acted upon ........................................................................... 18 Cohen Commission Report Follow-up – Get open pen salmon feedlots out of wild salmon
migration routes – NOW! ............................................................................................................ 19 Comment: Halt fish-farm growth until more studies are in .......................................................... 20
Impacts of open pen salmon feedlots ........................................................................................................ 21 B.C. urged to not renew leases for open-net salmon farms ........................................................ 21 Open pen salmon feedlot petition delivered to BC Premier, Christy Clark - 12,000 signatures and
counting ...................................................................................................................................... 23 Closed containment is low tar salmon farming! ........................................................................... 24 Salmon farming comes ashore ................................................................................................... 25 Don’t be duped by story .............................................................................................................. 26 Why I am standing with signs again - Dr. Alexandra Morton ....................................................... 27 Atlantic salmon succumbing to parasite in huge numbers .......................................................... 28 Parasites have big impact on salmon ......................................................................................... 29 Intermediate hosts of fish parasites and vectors of fish diseases ............................................... 31 Video nasty from Loch Duart - The Toxic Salmon Company! ..................................................... 32 All Ireland's 166 TD's Contacted by Campaigners ...................................................................... 33 Atlantic Salmon Trust Highlight Three Key Salmon Survival Issues ........................................... 34 Fish Farms – Get Out of Scotland ............................................................................................... 35 Flesh-eating lice spread by fish farms kill 39 per cent of wild salmon ......................................... 36 Underneath Scotland’s open pen salmon feedlots - Video ......................................................... 37 Scottish Sea Farms staff walk out over sickness ........................................................................ 38 Scotland’s open pen salmon feedlot industry kills thousands of seals (video) ............................ 39 Jefferson County commissioners hear from experts on salmon net pens ................................... 40 Fish farms, beach access controversies continue ....................................................................... 41 Salmon issues go north .............................................................................................................. 42 Impacts of Chilean Salmon Farms On Coastal Ecosystem Discovered Accidentally .................. 43 United Nations summary - impact of salmon farms in different regions ...................................... 44 Follow the money – Top 20 shareholders of Cermaq stock ........................................................ 45
Seafood consumption: Food safety and health ........................................................................................ 46 Enjoy seasonal wild Pacific salmon dinners at these fine restaurants: ....................................... 46 Wild Salmon Supporters – View entire list here .......................................................................... 47 Alexandra Morton Receives Two Academic Honours, Forces Farmed Salmon Recall ............... 48 Fish Farmers defend Atlantic salmon after recall ........................................................................ 49 In her own words - Is Truth a Tactic? – Dr. Alexandra Morton .................................................... 50 Sobeys pulls whole Atlantic salmon - Response from Atlantic Canada Fish Farmers Association52 One in four seafood packages include illegally substituted products or are intentionally
mislabeled ................................................................................................................................... 53 “Organic” Label on Fish Doesn’t Mean it’s Wild .......................................................................... 54 Costco, Safeway & Loblaws: Please stop selling diseased farm salmon .................................... 55 Sea lice in salmon poses no health risk: aquaculture expert ...................................................... 56
Energy production and wild game fish: Oil, Coal, Hydropower ............................................................... 57 Oil.......................................................................................................................................................57 Welcome to Canada: a new subsidiary of ChinaCorp ................................................................. 57 Alberta Tar Sands Illegal Under Treaty 8, First Nations Charge ................................................. 58 Environment Canada Report: Tar Sands Leaching Into Snow, Harming Fish ............................ 59 Super Natural or Super Tanker? ................................................................................................. 61 Defend our coast – Eddie Gardner (Video) ................................................................................. 63
Legacy – December 2012
Wild Game Fish Conservation International Thousands gather in Victoria to protest oil pipeline ..................................................................... 64 Big Ideas: Jeff Rubin and Andrew Nikiforuk on the Future of Oil - Video .................................... 65 Battle lines drawn on Canadian tar sands coming to the EU ...................................................... 66 ‘Unprecedented’ top Fisheries job puts focus on Northern Gateway .......................................... 68 Earthquake zones & Tar Sands pipelines – a very dangerous combination ............................... 69 Supertankers, Earthquakes, and Tsunamis, Oh My: Enbridge Has No Spill -Response Plan
for Northern Gateway Pipeline ................................................................................................. 70 Tar sands oil project bad for our natural resources ..................................................................... 71 Coal ................................................................................................................................................. 72 Chinese villagers clash with police in protests over environmental issues .................................. 72 Negatives of Mid-Valley coal trains outweigh positives ............................................................... 73 NW coal port traffic raises worry about huge marine spill ........................................................... 74 Hydropower .................................................................................................................................... 75 Put a stake in the heart of the Chehalis River dam proposal ...................................................... 75 Quinault Indian Nation opposes dams in Chehalis River basin ................................................... 77 B.C. urged to block planned run-of-river project in globally significant inland rainforest ............. 78 Now open after 100 years: the White Salmon River ................................................................... 80
Mining and wild game fish .......................................................................................................................... 82 Pebble can't dismiss sport fishing: Bristol Bay lodges and guides are important for our lifestyle,
economy ..................................................................................................................................... 82 America’s Fish Basket Could Be Destroyed By Mining ............................................................... 83 Alaska's Clash Over Salmon and Gold Goes National ............................................................... 84 Save Bristol Bay campaign – 38,000 and growing ...................................................................... 85
Wild game fish management ....................................................................................................................... 86 Tribal hatchery transports first fish of fall to Elwha tributaries ..................................................... 86 Austerity measures threaten to sink salmon biologist jobs .......................................................... 88 Adams River salmon run low in 2012 (audio interview) .............................................................. 89 Salmon Stocks Declining ............................................................................................................ 90 Atlantic salmon, cod and sea trout on conservation list .............................................................. 91
Special Recognition ..................................................................................................................................... 92 Fish researchers net Sterling prize ............................................................................................. 92 Shout out to the brave men and women of the US Coast Guard ................................................ 93 “Pants on Fire” Recognition: Hugh Mitchell, MS, DVM – Fish Health Manager / Owner at
AquaTactics Fish Health ............................................................................................................. 94 Local Conservation Projects ....................................................................................................................... 95 Volunteer groups count thousands of salmon coming up Eel River ............................................ 95 Fish hide from heavy sediment flow in newly freed Elwha River ................................................. 96
Youth Conservation: .................................................................................................................................... 97 Engaging Students in Wetland Science ...................................................................................... 97 No means No – Stop salmon feedlots ......................................................................................... 98 Artist Response Team ................................................................................................................ 99 2013 Northwest Youth Conservation and Fly Fishing Academy ............................................... 100
Attention Conservation-minded Business Owners ................................................................................ 104 WGFCI endorsed conservation organizations: ....................................................................................... 104 Featured Artist: .......................................................................................................................................... 105 Cohen Taylor Hart (7 years old) - Quadra Island, British Columbia, Canada. ........................... 105 The Elders are Watching – David Bouchard and Roy Henry Vickers video .............................. 106 Art for an Oil-free Coast ............................................................................................................ 107
Featured Fishing Photos: .......................................................................................................................... 108 Fishing for trophy striped bass .................................................................................................. 108 Chehalis River fall chinook ........................................................................................................ 109 Primo steelhead trout ................................................................................................................ 110 Gorgeous rainbow trout caught by Vlasta Štefanič while fishing the Soca River in Slovenia .... 111 King among the Chinooks....... .................................................................................................. 112 West Virginia Golden (Rainbow) Trout - Pipestem State Park .................................................. 113 Playing the biggest Danubian Salmon that was caught while fishing the Sava Bohinjka River in
Slovenia last year. ..................................................................................................................... 114 Peacock bass caught by David Maynard while fishing in the Amazon River – smiles all around!115 Pennsylvania Steelheading … “Combat Fishing” (video) .......................................................... 116 Not all fishermen have two legs ................................................................................................ 117
Community Outreach: ............................................................................................................................... 118 Float fishing for steelhead ......................................................................................................... 118
Conservation Video Library – “Why we’re involved” ............................................................................. 119 The Size of the Fish Doesn’t Determine the Size of the Memory ........................................................... 120
Legacy – December 2012
Wild Game Fish Conservation International
LLeeggaaccyy
Forward The December 2012 issue of Legacy marks fourteen consecutive months of our web-based publication - Legacy. The December issue introduces Legacy’s new topical organization especially for those following specific issues no matter where in the world they occur. Legacy is published each month to expose current and planned actions that impact the future of wild game fish and their ecosystems around planet earth to our growing audience. Please feel free to share this publication with others. Our hope is that those who read Legacy will come to understand that what is good for sustainable wild game fish is also good for humans. Similarly, what is bad for our planet’s wild game fish is also really bad for humans! It’s exciting that a growing number of recreational anglers and conservationists around planet earth are passionate about conserving wild game fish and their continued availability for this and future generations to enjoy and appreciate. Just as exciting is that growing numbers of consumers and retailers are paying close attention to the impacts each of us have on global resources through our daily activities and purchases. We continue to urge our global audience to speak out passionately and to demonstrate peacefully for wild game fish and their ecosystems; ecosystems that we are but one small component of. As recreational fishermen, conservation of wild game fish for future generations is our passion. Publishing “Legacy” each month is our self imposed responsibility to help ensure the future of these precious gifts that have been entrusted to our generation.
Bruce Treichler James E. Wilcox Wild Game Fish Conservation International
Legacy – December 2012
Wild Game Fish Conservation International
CO HO HO… Merry Christmas
Merry Christmas, wild salmon warriors
These are my 5 Christmas card designs for 2012. They are blank inside
but have a message on the back.
Packages of 5 cards sell for $15 plus shipping. Payments (Canadian
Halt salmon farm development in sensitive spawning area, Cohen report
urges
October 31, 2012
B.C. Supreme Court Justice Bruce Cohen is calling for a freeze on salmon farm development in a key area on the West Coast and is highly critical of the federal government in his long-awaited report on the disappearance of sockeye salmon on the Fraser River.
In his massive three-volume document, released Wednesday, Judge Cohen said he was unable to find “the smoking gun” in the mystery of what caused a catastrophic collapse in Fraser River sockeye stocks in 2009, following decades of steady decline. But he learned enough in 18 months of judicial hearings to hand the government a blueprint calling for major changes in salmon management.
Judge Cohen said predation, infectious diseases, contaminants, climate change and other factors contributed to the collapse of the Fraser’s sockeye runs. But he said much more scientific research is needed, and he called on the government to start that work now, and not put it off because of budget concerns.
“Some individuals, I suspect, hoped that our work would find the ‘smoking gun’ – a single cause that explained the two-decade decline,” Judge Cohen writes.
“The idea that a single event or stressor is responsible for the 1992-2009 decline in Fraser River sockeye is appealing but improbable,” he states. “Throughout the hearings I heard that sockeye experience multiple stressors that may affect their health and their habitats. ... DFO should develop and carry out a research strategy to assess the cumulative effects of stressors. ...
Regrettably, that is as far as the evidence takes me. Filling the knowledge gaps will be a major endeavor.”
B.C. urged to not renew leases for open-net salmon farms
November 14, 2012
Aboriginals and environmentalists on Wednesday urged the B.C. government not to renew leases for open-net salmon farms on the B.C. coast.
VANCOUVER - Aboriginals and environmentalists on Wednesday urged the B.C. government not to renew leases for open-net salmon farms on the B.C. coast.
The groups say they are planning to hold a peaceful demonstration outside Premier Christy Clark's constituency office in Point Grey at noon and deliver an 11,000-signature petition expressing opposition to the renewal of salmon farm leases in B.C.
In a statement, Molina Dawson of the Dzawada'enuxw First Nation from Kingcome Inlet said: "I know without a doubt that the cost to our wild salmon — and everything that relies on them — isn't worth it. So, as long as the government and fish farm companies are actively endangering our fish they will not be getting any support from me."
The Cohen Commission report last month suggested that salmon farms "have the potential to introduce exotic diseases and to exacerbate endemic diseases which can have a negative effect on Fraser River sockeye."
Cohen said that Fraser sockeye could suffer "serious or irreversible harm" if exposed to disease and that the federal fisheries department needs to recognize the possible risk of disease transfer between wild and farm fish.
However, he declined to quantify the scale of risk, saying it "requires further study."
As a result, Cohen is recommending that federal fisheries undertake a decisive study of the risks to wild salmon from Discovery Islands fish farming operations, north of Campbell River, with conclusive results by 2020, as well as an annual cap on salmon production.
If by that year the DFO "cannot confidently say the risk of serious harm is minimal," then the area should be closed to salmon farming, Cohen said. That should happen sooner if research confirms a link, he added.
Said Alexandra Morton, an independent salmon researcher: "Cohen states that if salmon farms have more than minimal risk of serious harm, they should cease operations. We are well past minimum risk."
Opponents argue that while much of the oversight for salmon aquaculture is managed by the federal government, the province issues sea-floor tenures for salmon farms and a number of leases are up for renewal, including 18 in the Broughton Archipelago.
A salmon jumps out of the water while feeding as sports fishermen cruise by at the
mouth of Capilano River in West Vancouver, British Columbia. Salmon have been migrating up the river to spawn.
Legacy – December 2012
Wild Game Fish Conservation International
Open pen salmon feedlot petition delivered to BC Premier, Christy Clark - 12,000 signatures and counting
November 14, 2012
A day of to be remembered – Watch raw video here
Thank you Wild Salmon Warriors from Wild Game Fish Conservation International
November 06, 2012 Re: “Salmon farmers put brave face on chilling report” (Mirror, Fri., Nov. 2, 2012)
I hope none of your readers are actually duped by the pathetic sob story you’ve published about the poor Salmon farmers.
As the environmental movement has been maintaining for years and is now suggested by the $26 million Cohen Commission the Salmon farming industry has caused untold and likely irreversible destruction to our wild fish stocks and environment. Unfortunately, our wild salmon and environment are priceless and cannot simply be replaced with money or other wise.
Contrary to Campbell River Mayor Walter Jakeway; quoted as saying “We need this industry.” I beg your pardon Mr. Jakeway but we did just fine before the salmon farming industry came. It’s like the salmon farming industry has created a situation that we’re now dependent on. This sounds like the relationship between a drug addict and his pusher in a feeble scenario where the addict eventually dies from use of the pusher’s product. Has Mayor Walter Jakeway forgotten how vibrant a city Campbell River and many other coastal communities were before the salmon decline?
The jobs created by the salmon farming industry are but a fraction of what the commercial wild salmon industry used to provide to the economy before salmon farming appeared and began destroying it. And that’s just the commercial fishery. The sport sector and tourism is touted by B.C. as paramount and world class and contributes significantly to our economy. Why not give tourists something to boast about instead of us having to give embarrassing whining excuses about our stocks in decline?
Mayor Jakeway says, “We need to let the industry grow and if there are problems solve them.”
READ ENTIRE CAMPBELL RIVER MIRROR ARTICLE HERE
Editorial Comment:
Marine mammals such as this magnificent orca
whale rely on robust populations of wild Pacific
salmon to survive. Hundreds of species within
British Columbia are tied directly to the uniquely
Why I am standing with signs again - Dr. Alexandra Morton November 11, 2012
If you had evidence that a flu-like virus, known to kill salmon, was seeping into the ocean, that government was turning a blind-eye and the industry involved had hired the same strategic advisor as Exxon, the tobacco industry, China and the US government, could you quietly accept the denial and just hope everything will turn out OK?
The ISA virus is a salmon flu-type virus with a nasty reputation of spreading everywhere Atlantic salmon are held in net pens. It has been known to simmer quietly for years, barely detected and easily ignored until the feedlot environment gives it enough freedom to mutate into high virulence and kill millions of salmon. This is the first time this scenario is playing out among wild Pacific salmon. While the outcome is uncertain, we all know feedlot, influenza viruses are not a good thing to loose into the wild.
My work with ISA virus started when 100 of us got into canoes in October 2010 and paddled for 8 days down the lower Fraser River to greet the opening of the sockeye inquiry. We did this to let Justice Bruce Cohen of the Cohen Commission known how important it was to us that he release the Provincial farm salmon disease records.
READ DR. MORTON’S ENTIRE ENTRY HERE
Don Staniford:
"These floating factory fish farms are a blight on our environment and cause pollution of the seabed, infestations of sea lice on the migratory routes of sea trout and wild salmon plus the deliberate killing of seals"
Atlantic salmon succumbing to parasite in huge numbers
November 9th, 2012
Researchers have found that about 40% of Atlantic salmon are being infected and killed by the parasitic salmon louse. They say that the actual number in the wild could be as high as 55%. The parasite embeds itself just under the skin of the fish and lives off of the skin, mucus, and blood of the host.
In a study the researchers tagged and released thousands of salmon young into the wild. Half had been treated with a parasiticide and half were not. After a year in the wild some of the fish were recovered and examined. It was then that they discovered that nearly 40% of the salmon were infected and dying from the lice.
Although the parasiticide was able to significantly reduce the number of fish infected and increased the survival rate, a significant number were still killed. Since salmon return to their home rivers, there is concern for the fish to spread the parasite to other population groups. This concern also extends to the smaller gene pool created by the deaths will weaken the genetic diversity of the fish, leaving them more susceptible to environmental changes.
“Just another result off the impact the open net salmon farms has on the environment. This
is a picture off wild fish feeding on pellets from under the open net salmon farms. It’s
estimated that 10 tons of the wild fish in Norway gets their food from under this open net
salmon farms every day.”
Robert Corlett:
“Juvenile black cod (sablefish) is one of many wild fish species I have seen attracted
then trapped in net pens. I recently purchased a black cod. No matter how I cook it it
turns to mush. I have cooked black cod for years with no problem. I wonder if that
black cod had swallowed a diseased smolt dumped in the ocean. The industry has had
the blessing of the DFO and the Province to ocean dump their waste, including
mortalities. Co-mingling contaminates. Do you enjoy the wait room at your Doctor’s
office as much during flu season?”
Legacy – December 2012
Wild Game Fish Conservation International
Intermediate hosts of fish parasites and vectors of fish diseases
September 5, 2011
Another unfavorable impact of copepods on aquaculture facilities is that they may serve as intermediate hosts of important fish parasites such as tapeworms or nematodes.
The presence of parasites may lead to fish mortalities or adversely affect the market value of the fish or fish products when parasites are present in fish muscle. Some important human parasites utilize copepods and fishes as intermediate hosts.
A number of parasitic diseases can affect humans, when an infected copepod is accidentally ingested with water. One of the better known and the most spectacular parasites are representatives of the genus Ligula.
They commonly occur in Europe, Asia, and North America in temperate zones. The final hosts are piscivorous birds. The first intermediate hosts are planktonic copepods of the genera Cyclops, Eucyclops, Megacyclops, Acanthocyclops, and Eudiaptomus.
The 2nd intermediate hosts for these parasites are fishes, mainly of the family Cyprinidae. This tapeworm occurs in the peritoneal cavity of fish in the form of larvae known as plerocercoids. Plerocercoids are usually between 10 cm and 1 m long (Dubinina 1966). Infection leads to cachexia, impairment of fish growth, arrested reproduction, and death (Bryli´ nski 1972).
Bream infect themselves in their 1st years of life when they feed on plankton. The infection is fatal. All large, market-size bream are those fortunate individuals which avoided infection in their early life. Once they grow up and change the planktonic copepods in their diet to benthic macrofauna, their chances of becoming infected with Ligula spp. decrease. Large plerocercoids can occur in the muscles of fishes (Je ewski and Karbowiak 2002).
In the US, ligulosis is a sporadic problem in fathead minnows, but given the small size of the host and the large size of the parasite, outbreaks can be quite severe. Another interesting tapeworm transmitted by planktonic copepods is Triaenophorus nodulosus (or T. crassus). Its scolex is armed with 4 characteristic anchors. The final hosts are predacious fishes such as pike.
The 1st intermediate hosts are copepods representing Cyclops, Eucyclops, Mesocyclops, Paracyclops, Acanthocyclops, Orthocyclops, Diaptomus, and Eudiaptomus. In the intestine of the final host, the adult tapeworms are no longer than 30 cm and are not pathogenic.
Atlantic Salmon Trust Highlight Three Key Salmon Survival Issues
October 24, 2012
Melfort Campbell and Tony Andrews, the Atlantic Salmon Trust's Chairman and CEO, recently visited New Brunswick, discussing alternatives to the destructive and unsustainable open cage method of salmon farming currently used in Scotland and Canada. Details will be released soon of the outcome of their discussions.
In the meantime we can report on a conversation Tony had with Canadian local anglers and fishery owners. He was asked about the Atlantic Salmon Trust's three most important issues to ensure the survival of the Atlantic salmon. Read on to see what he said.
“I think everyone involved in salmon management recognises the importance of each river producing the maximum possible number of naturally generated smolts. Rivers as productive smolt factories are everyone’s top priority and should remain so. In the last few years our management of the freshwater environment has improved by leaps and bounds. While I wouldn’t want to crow about it, I think we are well on the way to doing the best we can to ensure our rivers are producing optimum numbers of smolts. We mustn’t be complacent, especially with the big changes in fresh water quality and availability, temperature and habitats resulting from climate change. But I think all fishery managers understand that there are problems, and that they have to stay on the case – a relentless round of measuring, recording, and taking practical steps to deal with the problems.”
Tony explained that for AST the main issue is the extraordinarily high mortality rate of salmon at sea. “Some people say to me ‘but there’s nothing you can do about the loss of salmon at sea, so why waste precious resources chasing a problem you will never resolve?’ And I reply that there are three priorities for AST as it homes in on areas of study and action where results can be achieved.
Jefferson County commissioners hear from experts on salmon net pens
October 11, 2012
Jefferson County commissioners have begun discussing what happens when native fish become infected with lethal viruses and parasites as a result of net pens, even though no pens are currently planned for the county. During an Oct. 8 workshop at the Cotton Building in Port Townsend, the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) asked state experts in fish health and husbandry how net pens might impact native salmon if introduced into county waters.
The county is working on including a conditional-use permit for net pens in an update to the Shoreline Master Program. The state Department of Ecology is requiring that some provision for aquatic net pens be included.
Jefferson County commissioners have begun discussing what happens when native fish become infected with lethal viruses and parasites as a result of net pens, even though no pens are currently planned for the county. During an Oct. 8 workshop at the Cotton Building in Port Townsend, the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) asked state experts in fish health and husbandry how net pens might impact native salmon if introduced into county waters.
The county is working on including a conditional-use permit for net pens in an update to the Shoreline Master Program. The state Department of Ecology is requiring that some provision for aquatic net pens be included.
The experts were asked if raising Atlantic salmon in net pens increased the risk of viruses making their way into the environment.
John Kerwin, with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), said a virus known as infectious salmon anemia (ISA) was detected in Canadian waters in October 2011. He said Washington state labs have samples, but haven't fine-tuned the testing process.
Hugh Mitchell, a fish veterinarian, said wild populations are actually the ones that pass parasites and viruses onto the more vulnerable farm populations, not the other way around.
"The thing about viruses, bacteria and parasites, they are in the wild populations of fish. Usually, there's a nice balance in place ... what happens with farm populations is, a lot of time immune systems are naive. They can be like canaries; they pick up everything.
"Every disease comes from the wild," Mitchell added. He said he has numerous private and public clients, and serves as the contract veterinarian for the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission. "I do not believe ISA is here," Mitchell said.
Kerwin cautioned that it's difficult to predict viruses among fish populations because the diseases mutate year to year.
"We get a flu shot every year because that virus mutates," he said.
Robert Hrycenko, a Greenbank resident, speaks against farming Atlantic salmon during a hearing in Coupeville on Monday concerning Island County’s shoreline master program update. Public beach access and aquaculture were two issues discussed at the meeting.
The first of two scheduled public hearings concerning a long-range shoreline planning document update for Island County was held in Coupeville this week but how public beach access will be addressed remains unclear.
It’s been one of the most talked about issues since drafting of the shoreline master program update began in 2010 — a process required by the state every eight years — and it continued to be a point of disagreement for the public during Monday’s meeting with the Island County commissioners.
On one side, proponents lobbied for stiffer rules that would require future developments to incorporate public beach accesses, no matter how small or seemingly insignificant.
“We need those areas for public access. Period,” said Steve Erickson, legal coordinator for the Whidbey Environmental Action Network. “I don’t think it should be discretionary at all.”
Property rights advocates such as Jeff Lauderdale, a Coupeville resident and Island County commissioner candidate, maintained that regulations which force people to hand over private land to the public is nothing short of a government “taking.”
A thorough investigation in British Columbia has failed to identify any single “smoking gun” that explains the collapse and erratic patterns of sockeye salmon returns to the Frasier River, but suspicion clearly centers on coastal salmon farms playing some role.
U.S. agencies and fisheries managers have taken a more conservative approach toward allowing fish farms, in which huge numbers of Atlantic salmon are corralled together in net pens in open but protected waters in coastal inlets, estuaries and channels. But dozens of such farm sites line the sockeye migration route through the Discovery Islands leading to the Frasier.
But for several reasons, problems on the Frasier are of more than passing interest here. For one thing, farmed Atlantic salmon raised in B.C. are sold in the U.S. and may take on even more importance in grocery stores as Oregon and Washington foolishly move toward destroying much of what is left of our domestic salmon fishing fleet.
For another, the flaws and dangers associated with farm net pens may also apply to some extent to the salmon-rearing net pens preferred by Oregon Gov. Kitzhaber as a source of supply for whatever remains of the Columbia gillnet fishery. Columbia net pens differ from those in B.C. in significant ways — most notably, they don’t keep salmon penned up all the way to adulthood — but some of the same issues of crowding, waste concentration and exposure to disease vectors are possible in net pens of any type.
Beyond net-pen issues, problems on the Frasier highlight just what a challenge it will be to keep salmon runs of any kind healthy and dependable in this changing and ever-more-crowded world. If any north Pacific river should continue to succeed as a home to salmon, it ought to be the Frasier. Its main flow has never been dammed and it is less industrialized by far than the Columbia. It used to produce enormous salmon runs regular as clockwork.
But runs have instead disappointed in most recent years. The investigation was sparked in 2009 by a return of 1.4 million, when 10 million were expected. In 2010, 35 million came back, in 2011 there were 4.5 million and in 2012 there were just 2.3 million. This has been disastrous for commercial fishing, and signals deep problems for sockeye — perhaps at several points in their lifecycle.
If this sounds familiar, it should. Led by the Columbia, U.S. rivers and salmon runs have had similar or worse results, though there have been signs of modest recovery in recent years.
Piecemeal efforts by “Lone Ranger” governors, states or even individual nations are unlikely to get to the real systemic issues confronting salmon. We need to all work together.
American Gold Seafood's ocean pens in Port Angeles
Impacts of Chilean Salmon Farms On Coastal Ecosystem Discovered
Accidentally
ScienceDaily (June 23, 2010) — Until recently, the disastrous scale of the threat posed by salmon farms to the fauna and National Park of the Aysén region of southern Chile was entirely unknown. The unexpected discovery was made by researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization and the University of Göttingen, who were studying acoustic communication among the native whales in the region. The researchers not only discovered that the salmon industry is rapidly spreading to the hitherto largely unspoiled south of the region; they also documented the previously unknown threat to the region's native sea lions.
International environmental organisations have expressed their surprise at this accidental discovery.
The Göttingen researchers report their observations in the "Correspondence" section of the current edition of the journal Nature.
With an export volume in excess of two billion US dollars, Chile is one of the world's main producers of farmed salmon. The aquaculture, which is carried out on a massive scale, is mainly concentrated on the ramified fjords of the province of Aysén in Patagonia. While parts of the province are classified as a National Park, the protection does not extend to the surrounding sea. The salmon farms, which are entirely legal from the government's perspective, have, in part, devastating impacts on the region's entire ecosystem -- not least because Atlantic salmon is an alien species in Chile, introduces diseases and therefore poses an additional risk to already threatened native species. Moreover, the use of medication on the farms and the waste they produce also burden the ecosystem.
The ISA (infectious salmon anaemia) virus, which causes anaemia and death in salmon, has forced many aquaculture operators to close down their farms in northern Chile in recent years. "The farms, however, are now spreading further south," reports Heike Vester from the Norwegian research institute Ocean Sounds, who is currently completing her doctorate at the Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization and the University of Göttingen. Because the region's ramified fjords are difficult to access from land, the full scale of the impact of this development only became clear to her when she was carrying out research from the water. Vester's photographs document, among other things, the threat posed to the South American sea lion. The animals get caught in the protective nets surrounding the salmon farms when young and, even if they manage to free themselves, parts of the nets often remain stuck to the sea lions and suffocate them as they grow (Image 1).
The salmon farms also incur other negative effects on the ecosystem: large volumes of excess feed for the farmed fish and their faeces can be seen floating in the water, and the crowded conditions under which the salmon are kept necessitate the use of medication and pesticides. Measurements taken by other participants in the Göttingen researcher's expedition prove that no forms of life now exist in direct proximity to the farms. "The air there smells like bleach," says Vester.
The Atlantic Canada Fish Farmers Association says sea lice is not a risk to human health after it was found on whole Atlantic salmon at Sobeys.
The grocery chain pulled the fish from shelves Thursday after anti-fish farming activist Alexandra Morton posted a photo of lice on the fish on Facebook.
In response, the Fish Farmers Association issued a release touting the benefits of Atlantic salmon.
It said sea lice are found only on the outside of fish so it does not affect the quality of meat.
"Our salmon farmers make every effort to ensure any sea lice are removed from fish during processing," the release said. "However, sometimes not all can be detected."
The Association added that dealing with sea lice is a top priority.
A spokesperson from Sobeys estimated that 84 fish were taken out of its Maritime stores Thursday.
Editorial Comment:
We at Wild Game Fish Conservation International and our associates around planet Earth
question the points made by the Atlantic Canada Fish Farmers Association in their
statement. Their points do not come close to passing the tried and true “straight face” test:
sea lice are not a risk to human health
1. Chemical treatments to control sea lice is known to impact human health
2. Sea lice are potentially harmful to those who are allergic to shellfish
sea lice are found only on the outside of fish so it does not affect the quality of meat
1. The quality of salmon flesh is in fact reduced by sea lice. The more lice there are and the longer they are
on salmon, the poorer quality the meat.
Our salmon farmers make every effort to ensure any sea lice are removed from fish
during processing
1. Quality control is lacking if two volunteers found dozens of sea lice on each of several pen-raised Atlantic
salmon they purchased from local markets.
dealing with sea lice is a top priority
1. Why is dealing with sea lice a top priority if sea lice have no human health impacts?
2. Why then were dozens of sea lice found on each of several pen-raised Atlantic salmon purchased in local
In her own words - Is Truth a Tactic? – Dr. Alexandra Morton
October 22, 2012
This blog is dedicated to Ransom Myers, RAM 1952- 2007
On October 15, 2012, Anissa Reed and I purchased an Atlantic salmon from Sobeys supermarket in Truro, Nova Scotia, we had no idea what series of events would follow.
When we examine salmon we always count the number of sea lice, but there were so many on this fish that we began pulling them off and onto a plate to get an accurate count.
We took a picture. We were in a parking lot, working from a shopping cart and a previously purchased salmon from Superstore was on the lower level of the cart awaiting processing. That is why, as some have noted, there is an Atlantic Superstore shopping bag visible in some of the images.
Most of the lice were hiding under the gill flap of the Sobeys salmon, not a usual place for lice.
Many of the 28 parasitic crustaceans were gravid females full of eggs. When Anissa posted an image of the paper plate covered in lice on Facebook people began to “share” the image widely. Within 24 hours there were 270 shares, we don’t know how many “shares,” there were from other people’s Facebook pages. We have never seen anything like that before. The image had “gone viral.” The next day, we bought another farmed Atlantic from Sobeys - it had 33 sea lice.
A few days later, on October 18, when tried to purchase a farm salmon from Sobeys in St. John, New Brunswick, they told us whole Atlantic salmon had been recalled due to sea lice, and that 84 stores had pulled the product from their shelves. We went to a second Sobeys and heard the same thing, so we went to Lord's Lobster in the Saint John City Market and bought several more Atlantic salmon. The three fish had 24, 29, and approximately 100 sea lice.
Sobeys pulls whole Atlantic salmon - Response from Atlantic Canada
Fish Farmers Association
October 19, 2012
The decision by Sobeys to pull whole farmed Atlantic salmon from its stores yesterday in the Maritimes has prompted questions about sea lice, if they have any impact on the quality of the product and how our salmon farmers manage sea lice. Below are important facts:
Sea lice are naturally occurring in the marine environment and found on a variety of both wild and farmed fish stocks around the world. Their populations vary from area to area.
Sea lice do not pose a human health risk.
Farmed salmon enter the net pen lice free; however, because lice travel on wild fish, ocean currents and even in zooplankton they can move freely between both wild and farmed fish.
Sea lice are found only on the outside of fish and not in the flesh; therefore, they do not affect the quality of the meat.
Our salmon farmers make every effort to ensure any sea lice are removed from fish during processing; however, sometimes not all can be detected. Sea lice can also be found on wild-caught salmon. Sea lice do not pose a human health risk.
Avoiding sea lice is a top priority of Atlantic salmon farmers. They have developed a variety of management practices to reduce the likelihood of sea lice on their fish.
The fact of the matter is, Atlantic salmon is one of the most nutritious foods you can eat. One of the world’s best sources of heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids, Atlantic salmon is high in protein, low in saturated fat and loaded with vitamin D and E. Our region produces 30 per cent of Canada’s farmed salmon, which is sold around the world. Our farmers are proud of the industry they have built over the past 30 years and are committed to continuing to produce high quality and nutritious salmon. Pamela Parker Executive Director Atlantic Canada Fish Farmers Association Ph: 506-755-3526 Email: [email protected]
Sabra Woodworth: “Who are the "farmers"? the owners? or the workers? Why do the workers have to sign agreements NOT TO SPEAK OF CONDITIONS on the farms? = pride of product? Not.”
One in four seafood packages include illegally substituted products or are
intentionally mislabeled
Legacy – December 2012
Wild Game Fish Conservation International
“Organic” Label on Fish Doesn’t Mean it’s Wild
Do you know the true origin of the fish you purchase? You might think you do when you see phrases like, “Enjoy our ocean-free fish!” or “No wild contaminants, completely organic!” But these are actually examples of misleading information increasingly popular with wholesalers, grocery stores and restaurants wanting to hide the origin of the fish they sell.
One-third of the fish sold today are raised in tanks and cages. This “aquaculture” is one of the fastest-growing sectors of animal food production, and like inhumanely raised chickens, farmed fish harm the environment and our health.
Farm-raised salmon eat an unnatural diet of fish oil from limited species, soy beans, canola oil and red dye. This produces flabby, bright pink meat with less omega-3 fats (associated with decreasing inflammation), more omega-6 fats (associated with inflammation) and elevated levels of mercury. Wild salmon get lots of exercise and enjoy a varied diet including shrimp and krill, which gives salmon its famous pinkish color.
Like any animal kept in close quarters, disease, sewage and parasites are a major problem for the fish and its surroundings. Farm-raised fish receive large doses of antibiotics to keep them alive until adulthood, the same forms used to treat human illnesses. Waste from fish pens generates high levels of mercury, nitrogen and sea lice, all of which threaten neighboring wildlife and the whole ecosystem. Farmed fish have significantly higher levels of pollutants, including dioxins and PCB’s, which can cause reproductive failure, hormone imbalances and cancer in humans.
Sea lice in salmon poses no health risk: aquaculture expert
October 19, 2012
An anti fish farming activist’s campaign that coaxed Sobeys to pull whole Atlantic salmon from its stores in response to concerns over sea lice is an unjustified scare tactic, says an expert in fish health. Alexandra Morton launched a campaign to get salmon pulled from store shelves. Morton started buying whole salmon at local grocery stores across the Maritimes and posting images of what she says are salmon infected with sea lice. CBC reported that when an image was posted to Sobeys Facebook page on Wednesday, the company responded by removing all whole salmon from all 84 of its Maritime stores. Sobeys spokeswoman Cynthia Thompson says its move was a proactive measure while Sobeys investigates. Larry Hammell, a professor of aquaculture health management at the Atlantic Veterinary College in Charlottetown, says the action was not necessary. “There is absolutely no human health concern associated with them (sea lice)…there is no reason scientifically to remove these salmon from the shelves,’’ said Hammell. He says since food safety is not affected by sea lice Morton’s campaign amounts to nothing more than fear mongering. “It’s a scare tactic,’’ he said. “I have to admit it is a pretty effective one.’’
Atlantic Veterinary College
ALEXANDRA MORTON: “Dear Dr. Hammell, Your statements above must be misquotes. I have never stated sea lice are a human health issue. The drugs used to kill the sea lice, however, are a concern to the communities of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. Both sea lice and lobster are crustaceans. It is not surprising, therefore, that lobsters appear impacted by the drugs used to kill sea lice. Lobster fishermen feel strongly that drug treatments in salmon farms sited on their lobster grounds are killing lobster. And that, in turn, has impact on many communities. I hope to hear from you directly so that we can clear this up. All the best. Alexandra Morton”
Editorial Comment:
There is little doubt that open pen salmon feedlots must be removed from our oceans to remove
their negative impacts from marine life while protecting human health from the many known and
unknown chemicals associated with ongoing open pen salmon feedlot industry practices around
the world.
To allow this offensive industry to continue is illogical as we as a society spend billions of dollars
to restore and protect these very same ecosystems.
Alberta Tar Sands Illegal Under Treaty 8, First Nations Charge
October 20, 2012
Fort Chipewyan is a small indigenous community on the edge of vast Lake Athabasca in Alberta’s remote north, accessible only by plane in summer and by snow road in winter. The town is directly downstream from the Alberta tar sands—Canada’s wildly lucrative, hotly debated, and environmentally catastrophic energy project.
Residents say that tar sands mining is not only dangerous but illegal because it violates the rights laid out in Treaty 8, an agreement signed in 1899 by Queen Victoria and various First Nations. Their legal challenge to the tar sands project could have a powerful impact on the legal role of treaties with First Nations people.
It should come as no surprise that Fort Chip’s relationship to the tar sands industry is a contentious one. Being first in line downstream means that residents are the first to feel the effects of pollution: poisoned water, air, and animals. The deformed fish with bulbous tumors that residents pull from Lake Athabasca are legendary, as are the stories of Fort Chip’s abnormally frequent cases of rare forms of cancer.
Environment Canada Report: Tar Sands Leaching Into Snow, Harming Fish
November 14, 2012
Toxic substances found in snow near Alberta tar sands is dangerous to fish eggs, a new report by Environment Canada says.
(Photo: Todd Korol / Reuters) The contaminants, including various metals such as mercury, leave the melting snow and run into lakes in an area scientists say "is four times bigger than we found," University of Alberta biologist Davis Schindler said.
The study "confirms my worst fears," Schindler told CBC News, and lends credence to a 2009 study by Schindler that found contaminants in snow near tar sands and, later, a fish with a tumor they
believed was linked to tar sands contamination. He added that the increase in toxins "seem to parallel the development of the tar sands industry.
Environment Canada was expected to present the results of its study Wednesday at a meeting of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry in Canada.
A team led by federal scientist Jane Kirk of Environment Canada found that snow within 50 kilometers of tar sands operations is contaminated with many "priority pollutants" including a methyl mercury, a neurotoxin that "bioaccumulates" in food webs, PostMedia reports.
Another study to be presented Wednesday found that hydrocarbons in lakes near the tar sands have risen by two to 23 times since the beginning of exploration of the tar sands 60 years ago.
The contaminants are collecting on the bottom of lakes up to 100 kilometers away, according to the report, indicating that pollution is spreading further than expected.
The sediments are "“quite distinct in all the lakes,” Derek Muir, a senior Environment Canada scientist, told PostMedia News.
Environment Canada exposed fathead minnows—which Joanne Parrot of Environment Canada described to PostMedia News as "the lab rat of the fish world— to melt water from snow, and "The larval fish didn't do well at all."
That may explain why fish numbers in the Muskeg River, a tributary of Lake Athabasca, have "plummeted" in recent decades, Schindler said, and why deformed fish are now found in a nearby lake.
Schindler continued:
I think what could happen is that the few embryos that manage to survive, deformed as they are, struggle down to Lake Athabasca. While the deformed fish may not have a high load of contaminants, the fish look so horrible people won’t eat them. I think that’s fair enough, they wouldn’t sell in Safeway.
Not only fish are affected, but more than 130 species of migratory birds and other habitat.
In October, US and Canadian environmental groups including Earthjustice and Ecojustice submitted a letter to the Canadian environmental Assessment Agency asking for review of Shell Canada's proposed Jackpine Mine Expansion project because it would harm at least 130 migratory bird species.
They also pointed to data from Shell itself that indicated there would be severe impacts on wildlife habitat if tarsands operations were expanded as planned.
The Environment Canada work is part of the Joint Canada-Alberta Implementation Plan for Oilsands (tar sands) Monitoring, PostMedia reports. The federal and Alberta governments have billed it as a “transparent and accountable” system designed to improve understanding of the long-term cumulative effects of tar sands development.
But environmentalists including Chelsea Flook of the Prairies at the Sierra Club don't expect the research to get much attention, because scientists have been told to refer all questions to media liaisons.
Schindler said he would like the expansion delayed at least until the environmental impacts of existing tar sands operations are understood.
Northern Resident Killer Whale R12 (male born in 1967) in Caamano Sound – part of the proposed tanker route that would carry bitumen crude along B.C.’s fragile coast. Photo by James Pilkington taken during the time he spent 3 seasons at a remote outpost documenting the biodiversity of the area for the North Coast Cetacean Society. http://www.cetacealab.org/
Last night and this afternoon concerned Northern Vancouver Islanders resolutely, passionately, creatively, eloquently and unequivocally said “NO” to the Enbridge Northern Gateway Project.
Below, is the text that I used to guide my testimony to the Joint Review Panel but how I wish I could share with you a compilation of highlights of the oral statements provided by my fellow North Islanders. You can find their full testimony at this link.
I have never before felt such respect, gratitude and kinship for a group of people – bonded by the knowledge of what is at risk, the integrity to speak our truth . . . and by the salt water in our veins.
I walked into the hearings with a sense of deep desperation and disempowerment, thinking – why am I investing such effort when it appears that the government is only clearing the way for a runaway train?
I left with a glowing sense of hope and a further intensified love for the place I have the extraordinary privilege to call my home.
_____________________________________________
The notes that guided my testimony to the Joint Review Panel:
My name is Jackie Hildering and I speak from the perspective of a marine educator who has lived in this area for 13.5 years. I moved here after a 14-year international teaching career choosing B.C.’s Coast specifically because of its extraordinary marine biodiversity and what I perceived to be the potential to leverage this biodiversity to motivate people to undertake positive environmental change.
In my years here:
• I have worked as a whale watching naturalist for a company serving some 10,000 guests a year of which a conservative estimate is that 65% come from outside British Columbia;
• For 8 years, I was DFO’s Education Coordinator for this area; • I am a humpback whale researcher; and • I am a very avid cold-water scuba diver using my underwater experiences and photographs, in
addition to the marine mammal engagers, in my education and conservation efforts. • I am the 2010 recipient of the Vancouver Aquarium’s Murray A. Newman Award for Excellence
in Aquatic Conservation and have received written commendation for my work from DFO’s Director of Oceans, Habitat and Enhancement.
Northern Resident Killer Whale R12 (male born in 1967) in Caamano Sound – part of the proposed tanker route that would carry bitumen crude along B.C.’s fragile coast. Photo by James Pilkington taken during the time he spent 3 seasons at a remote outpost documenting the biodiversity of the area for the North Coast Cetacean Society. http://www.cetacealab.org/ See end of the blog for how you can submit a statement to the Joint Review Panel before August 31, 2012.
Last night and this afternoon concerned Northern Vancouver Islanders resolutely, passionately, creatively, eloquently and unequivocally said “NO” to the Enbridge Northern Gateway Project.
Below, is the text that I used to guide my testimony to the Joint Review Panel but how I wish I could share with you a compilation of highlights of the oral statements provided by my fellow North Islanders. You can find their full testimony at this link.
I have never before felt such respect, gratitude and kinship for a group of people – bonded by the knowledge of what is at risk, the integrity to speak our
We should be capitalizing on this being Super Natural British Columbia, not Super Tanker British Columbia.
I share this depth of personal background with you to fortify my testimony:
• On how extraordinary the marine biodiversity of this area is; • The value of the resources being put at risk; and • That this risk is simply too great to allow the marine transport of bitumen in the proposed area.
It is an inescapable conclusion that the transport of bitumen crude along our Coast constitutes a massive gamble where human ingenuity is being pitted against the resilience of Nature and our dependence on it.
I can testify that this marine ecosystem is extraordinary on a global scale. I have photographed invertebrates that were previously unknown to science, and have participated in documenting rare organisms such a corals and glass sponge reefs at depths much shallower than what had been previously documented.
I acknowledge however, that when there is such absence of knowledge, it is more difficult to make the case for how the life hidden below the surface may be impacted by this Project.
Therefore, I will use the marine mammals and what we do know about them as ambassadors for the fragility of the other life below the surface.
The marine mammals that have been acknowledged to be at risk in the area are the:
Species of Special Concern – the harbour porpoise, gray whale, Steller sea lion, and sea otter;
Species recognized as being Threatened – humpback whale, fin whale, northern resident, and transient killer whales; and
The Endangered southern resident killer whales and potentially, blue whales and sei whales.
In fact, bitumen transport would take place through what has been acknowledged by government to be critical habitat for humpback whales, and what is candidate critical habitat for northern resident killer whales and fin whales.
The marine mammals, to varying degrees, have survived culling and whaling but continue to experience the treats of reduced prey availability, bioaccumulation of toxins, ocean acidification and further impacts of climate change, noise, vessel strike, entanglement, and more.
The anthropogenic impacts on these species’ survival would indisputably be amplified further by this Project due to chronic noise and increased risk of ship strike.
As a humpback researcher, I can attest to how oblivious this species can be to boats. I have watched them surface directly in front of motorized vessels after previously having been 400 plus meters away. When one considers the size of the tankers, how narrow the inlets are, the difficulty in adjusting the course of these large vessels, the density of humpback whales, and the potential weather conditions – vessel strike of humpbacks is a very real risk and one that cannot be mitigated by the presence of marine mammal observers. The humpbacks are going to be there. Then what?
Battle lines drawn on Canadian tar sands coming to the EU
November 9, 2012
Environmental concerns about Canadian tar sands and EU discussions on its Fuel Quality Directive mean there is a fight ahead for the fossil fuel industry – writes campaigner The Canadian tar sands industry has been criticised for its widespread deforestation, high levels of greenhouse gas emissions, use of huge amounts of water and natural gas, and the resultant toxic pollution that has disproportionate impacts on local indigenous communities. The European Union Fuel Quality Directive, legislation that will cut emissions from transport fuels by 6 per cent before 2020, could discourage tar sands imports to the EU.
To be effective, the legislation must specifically label fuel from tar sands as highly polluting, but this point has been the subject of intense lobbying by the fossil fuels industry and Canadian government. As a result - the document currently hangs in limbo, awaiting a member state vote in 2013.
The county of Pembrokeshire in west Wales has a long history of accommodating the fossil fuel industry. For many years, a refinery was owned by Chevron and then a year ago was purchased by Valero, a United States company that refines tar sands oil and has alluded to plans to use Pembroke as a gateway for importing oil originating from the tar sands.
Within the last 12 months, the local branch of Friends of the Earth - FoE Cymru - stimulated by the work and support of the United Kingdom Tar Sands Network has mobilised volunteers to gather information about Alberta tar sands extraction, processing, export and progress on the FQD; in order to promote an awareness-raising campaign locally.
This involved talking to Valero staff at the local refinery and with our local MEP, Jill Evans, and contacting the Department of Transport for briefing material. Our growing realisation is that the European Fuel Quality Directive is a key battleground in the attempt to avoid tar sands coming into the EU and the Pembroke refinery in particular.
Our work resulted in a UK Tar Sands Network and Corporate Watch report being launched on October 30, in Narberth. It was called Tar Sands Coming to Town. This launch event was managed by Pembrokeshire FoE with the support of the local network for environmental groups and attended by many environmental campaigners, county councillors and experts. While Valero were invited to attend, they declined, but their comments on the report – which did not deny the claim that they could bring increasing amounts of tar sands-derived fuel to the UK - were made available and discussed.
The meeting recognised the immense lobbying power of Valero and the Canadian Government and of the ability of the UK government to delay and dilute the FQD in order to ensure that oil originating from the tar sands might be able to supply the European market for diesel. While the EU may be receptive to direct lobbying and governments are expert in delay and prevarication, it is cause for hope that the European Parliament and the European Commission - through Connie Hedegaard, the Commissioner for Climate Change - have consistently insisted that tar sands must be specifically recognised as highly polluting in the FQD.
The battle lines are drawn and it is for European citizens to lobby their MEPs in order to enable them to ensure that European policy reflects a public opinion, which is morally outraged by the extraction and export of this dirty, high-carbon emissions fuel. In this regard, Pembrokeshire and Wales is in a unique position - which is hugely encouraging for our campaign. The devolved administration for Wales has been committed to sustainable development since 1999, when it was written into its constitution. More recently, the sustainable development scheme for Wales 'One Wales One Planet' has a commitment to the nation living within its environmental limits. In other words, a far lower ecological footprint.
Now, in 2012, the principles of sustainable development are about to be embedded in a Sustainable Development Bill which, once passed into legislation in 2013, will place a duty on all organisations delivering public services in Wales to adopt sustainable development as it 'central organising principle'. This fundamental principle defines a new development path for the nation and is consistent with our campaign objectives and the view of the European commissioner.
The imports of tar sands, which will prop up one of the most polluting industries abroad, are clearly contrary to sustainable development principles and to the principled position being adopted by the Welsh Government. Therefore, we will take steps to lobby not just our MEPs but also our MPs, our assembly members and our county councillors; to encourage them to make it clear to the British government that Wales is united in favour of the FQD - which the European Commission is advocating.
Chinese villagers clash with police in protests over environmental issues
October 22, 2012
BEIJING — An environmental protest in a small fishing town in southern China has turned into a protracted, violent nine-day clash between villagers and police, with stones thrown, tear gas deployed, and dozens injured and arrested, witnesses said Monday.
The confrontation is just the latest in recent years, as citizens have become increasingly incensed at the environmental toll brought on by three decades of unbridled and often rapacious economic and industrial growth.
In recent months, at least two other large-scale environmental protests have forced local authorities to back down and, at least temporarily, suspend planned projects. But as the country’s ruling Communist Party approaches a sensitive and rare transition of leadership, officials are increasingly worried about such mass demonstrations.
The most recent incident began with a plan by local officials to build a coal-fueled power plant and a harbor for receiving the shipped coal in the village of Yinggehai, on Hainan island at the southern tip of China.
Fearing that such a plant could devastate the environment, residents, who mostly depend on fishing as their livelihood, began to protest the project Oct. 13. On that first day, it was mostly older women demonstrating in front of the local government’s fishery department, according to one witness, who owns a fishing business and like others spoke on the condition of anonymity because of an ongoing crackdown by authorities. Town officials did not return calls seeking comment.
The women decided to confiscate as evidence of local officials’ lies and ill intent a sign for the harbor project that referred to it as a “fishing harbor” rather than a “coal-shipping harbor,” said the business owner.
When armed police tried to snatch back the sign, one of the women was hurt, which touched off widespread anger among the village’s men. That night, men turned out by the thousands and began throwing stones and bricks at police, who, in return, fired tear gas.
For days afterward, the protest followed a pattern of women protesting by day in front of the armed police and men clashing with authorities at night, when it is more difficult to photograph and identify violent protesters.
The Information Center for Human Rights and Democracy, based in Hong Kong, said in a statement that it estimates more than 10,000 villagers and 3,000 armed police have been involved in the clashes, with more than 100 injured and 50 arrested.
The bulk of the arrests were made Sunday after authorities, in an attempt to stop the protests, according to one villager, announced on television a long list of citizens wanted by police. A second most-wanted list has been announced, and it seemed to be working Monday.
“Almost every night, you could hear the glass being broken, the shouting and fighting, said the villager. “But since yesterday, the town has been quiet.”
As we now know, the OFM disregarded the recommendation and approved a $900,000 study that
has since been deemed by many to be woefully lacking to the point it has no benefit.
At this point, if you can believe it, this new list of recommendations includes a feasibility study to see
if the upper Chehalis River dam is even feasible - again, we're starting from square one.
One benefit from all of this is the longer these talks and studies continue, the less likely this dam will
ever be constructed.
With or without the dam, Chehalis River basin residents and business owners will face the real
possibility of increased flood related damage each and every year.
I say put a stake in the heart of the Chehalis River dam proposal. Instead focus on modifying landuse
practices including floodplain development and steep slope clear cut logging in order to reduce risks
to property and lives within the flood way known as the Chehalis River basin.”
Legacy – December 2012
Wild Game Fish Conservation International
Quinault Indian Nation opposes dams in Chehalis River basin
February 25, 2011
The Quinault Indian Nation opposes the construction of two dams proposed for the Chehalis River basin and has requested government-to-government consultation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to discuss potential environmental impacts. “We fear that constructing the dams would add to the sad legacy of problems caused by decades of neglect and damage to ecological processes that are vital to the salmon resources protected by our treaty with the United States,” QIN President Fawn Sharp said today.
“We have a duty to protect the fish, wildlife and other natural resources that have sustained our culture and economy for countless generations,” Sharp said. “We want to work collaboratively with state and local governments, private organizations and others to meet our collective needs to the extent possible. It’s time for everyone to work together to sustain an environment that’s healthy for fish as well as ourselves.”
Tribal scientists question the dams’ ability to prevent flooding in the river system and are concerned that the structures would impede salmon passage, inundate important spawning habitat and harm natural river functions necessary both for flood control and fish habitat.
“We’ve learned from the lessons of the Columbia and Elwha rivers that dams kill salmon,” said Quinault Fisheries Policy Spokesperson Ed Johnstone. “The dams would cost the public millions of dollars to construct and operate. That’s just the start of the bleeding.
“While the financial costs of building the proposed dams are high, the costs to the natural resources of the Chehalis River basin are even greater,” Johnstone said. “Nearly every aspect of the river’s function and the many species that depend on the river for their survival will be harmed. Once dams are in place, we can expect it to cost millions upon millions of dollars to contend with the aftermath and try to protect the health and productivity of the salmon resource and the ecosystem. It’s simply not a risk we’re willing to accept.”
“It’s time that we stand up for the fish,” Johnstone said. “The evidence is clear that dams can be among the worst environmental insults to fish and wildlife. There are many less expensive and damaging solutions to flood control on the Chehalis, including further restricting development in the river’s floodplain.
B.C. urged to block planned run-of-river project in globally significant inland
rainforest
Alberta’s TransAlta considers run-of-river installation on the upper Incomappleux River
November 13, 2012
TransAlta’s proposed run-of-river power project in the upper Incomappleux River near Revelstoke is raising concerns for at-risk bull trout and other species in the biologically diverse watershed. Courtesy Craig Pettitt
An Alberta company is proposing to build a run-of-river power facility in a globally significant interior temperate rainforest near Revelstoke renowned for its grizzly bears, ancient trees and rich biodiversity including rare lichens and at-risk bull trout.
Environmentalists fought logging plans in the upper Incomappleux River several years ago and are now asking the B.C. government to stop TransAlta’s hydro proposal in its tracks and declare the area a park to complement adjoining Glacier National Park to the north.
“The very proposal … in this area suggests that either TransAlta is a corporation with no environmental conscience that cares for nothing but its profits, or else it hasn’t seen the area,” charged Craig Pettitt, a director of the Valhalla Wilderness Society.
A B.C. forests ministry report in 2004 confirmed the upper Incomappleux as a “biodiversity hotspot” and a “rare forest type of global significance.” Since then, there has been no logging, even though the area does not enjoy formal protection.
Calgary-based TransAlta is seeking an investigative licence in an area of about 17,000 hectares in the upper Incomappleux to further its proposal for a 45-megawatt run-of-river hydro power plant.
TransAlta describes itself as Canada’s largest publicly traded power generator and marketer of electricity and renewable energy.
TransAlta spokeswoman Stacey Hatcher said the company would be speaking with “stakeholders” soon and would not comment until then.
Only hydro projects exceeding 50 megawatts require a formal assessment by the province’s Environmental Assessment Office. That leaves TransAlta’s application process to the province’s Integrated Land Management Bureau (ILMB).
The company’s application states that the project’s intake would be located about 37 kilometres above Upper Arrow Lake and would divert water some 8.8 kilometres to a powerhouse. Up to 75 kilometres of 69-kilovolt transmission line would connect with the BC Hydro grid.
In a letter to the Land Management Bureau, lichenologist Toby Spribille, with the Institute of Plant Sciences at the University of Graz in Austria, describes the Incomappleux as “one of the last intact virgin forests in inland B.C. below 700 metres (altitude)”
The area between the proposed water intake and powerhouse “has yielded no fewer than seven new species of lichens for science,” he added, including one species “still known worldwide only from a single locality in the proposed transmission corridor.”
As a result of scientific studies in the Incomappleux since 2002, the area has achieved a “reputation that reaches far beyond British Columbia,” he said, noting that scientific specimens “are distributed amongst scientists all over the world and are still under study.”
Spribille said that the future of Incomappleux’s rare species “would be directly threatened by development activities” such as the proposed power facility.
The Incomappleux River flows into Upper Arrow Lake about 42 kilometres east of Revelstoke.
Anne Sherrod of the Valhalla Wilderness Society said she is concerned about the effect of the power plant’s infrastructure, including transmission lines, on the biological integrity of the forest and its waters, including cedar trees estimated at 1,800 years old, as well as at-risk bull trout.
Other run-of-river power projects, including those on Ashlu Creek and the lower Mamquam River near Squamish, have resulted in fish kills.
In his submission to the Land Management Bureau, Pettitt states: “The discovery of a truly virgin forest with an unexpected level of biodiversity, and a concentration of rare species, catapulted the Incomappleux into recognition in international scientific circles.”
He criticized TransAlta for even thinking of putting a power facility “within the very heart of a remnant of a rare forest type, antique inland temperate rainforest.”
A total of 10 environmental groups are asking that the Incomappleux be part of a proposed 156,461-hectare park in the central Selkirk Mountains. Such a park would connect with Goat Range Provincial Park and Glacier National Park and help to protect threatened mountain caribou herds that rely on lichen for food.
Almost 5,000 people have also signed a petition seeking declaration of the park.
Legacy – December 2012
Wild Game Fish Conservation International
Now open after 100 years: the White Salmon River
November 9, 2012
PacifiCorp announced this week it has lifted all access restrictions on the White Salmon River, after having fully completed its removal of Condit Dam and its restoration of the area.
White Salmon river, looking upstream toward former Condit Dam site.
The restoration got under way just more than a year ago, when the utility detonated a hole in the bottom of the dam. The reservoir drained within hours. Since then, the utility has been removing the dam.
The last remnants of the structure are gone, and access to the river is open, with all restrictions lifted, but for a few riverbank locations recently replanted with native vegetation.
Revegetation work is still underway, and the equipment and work zones for the job are being demobilized. But the river is already back. So are the fish.
Steelhead jumping at BZ Falls, upstream of breached Condit
Condit was the third-largest dam removal ever, after Elwha and Glines Canyon Dams on the Elwha River. The 125-foot high, 471-foot long dam was built 3.3 miles upstream from the Columbia River and lacked fish passage. Taking it down opens 33 miles of new spawning and rearing grounds for steelhead, and 14 miles for salmon in the White Salmon River basin.
In the summer of 2011 fish biologists moved more than 500 salmon upstream of the dam, which spawned in their new habitat that fall. Outmigrating juveniles, and returning adults already have been seen utilizing the new habitat.
Whitewater paddlers will be next: "The restoration of a free-flowing river is an exciting event for the whitewater boating community," said Thomas O'Keefe, Pacific Northwest stewardship director for American Whitewater. "Paddling the restored reach will be a treasured, yet challenging experience."
See what their excitement is about on this video. Thanks Tom O'Keefe, for providing.
Dam removal on the White Salmon was the work of many people, through a settlement agreement undertaken instead of seeking to re-license the dam. The settlement agreement was signed in 1999, and involved a diverse group, from long time volunteers in the local community to the Yakama Indian Nation, recreational and wildlife and conservation and fisheries groups, and state and federal agencies.
Olympic National Park officials estimate that between 5,000 coho and 200 chum salmon will return to
the Elwha during the November/December spawning season.
Removal of the Glines Canyon and Elwha dams were the cornerstones of a $325 million federal
project to restore the Elwha River and its legendary salmon runs.
Lake Mills, the man-made reservoir formed by the 210-foot Glines Canyon Dam when it was built in
1927, now is gone, with the river flowing over the top of the remaining 60 feet of the edifice.
Some 20 million cubic yards of sediment remains behind what’s left of Glines Canyon Dam.
The river’s turbidity has spiked seven-fold since summer, and experts expect sediment to remain
high in the river west of Port Angeles for a couple of years, Robert Elofson, river restoration director
for the Lower Elwha Klallam tribe, has said.
Last week, the river’s turbidity — the measure of water cloudiness caused by suspended particles
and measured in formazin nephelometric units — topped out at 1,500 fnu, or roughly 2,000 fnu
[Formazin Nephelometric Units] down from a peak of 3,500 fnu the previous week, said Rainey
McKenna, Olympic National Park spokeswoman.
The lower levels of turbidity from the past week are not surprising, McKenna said, since the previous
week saw the fall and winter seasons’ first big rain falls and a corresponding spike in sediment loads.
The Elwha Dam, which was built without fish ladders 5 miles from the river mouth, was dismantled in
fewer than six months from September 2011 to early March.
Plants are sprouting in what used to be Lake Aldwell, the reservoir formed by the Elwha Dam when it
was completed in 1913.
Nine miles upstream, removal of Glines Canyon Dam is more than a year ahead of schedule.
Barnard Construction of Bozeman, Mont., expects to be finished by summer, at which time 70 miles
of pristine habitat within the national park will be available for migrating salmon.
Right now, crews are working only on taking down the remains of the intake tower, McKenna said.
They halted blasting work on the once-210-foot Glines Canyon dam last week to comply with a two-
month “fish window” to keep even more sediment from cascading down the Elwha and protecting
migrating and spawning fish.
Legacy – December 2012
Wild Game Fish Conservation International
Austerity measures threaten to sink salmon biologist jobs
October 26, 2012
DFO biologists, who work at the front line of B.C. salmon resource, may soon find themselves out of work.
Fisheries and Oceans Canada is considering significant cuts to the ranks of the workers who protect fish habitat on the Pacific Coast, according to internal federal documents obtained by The Globe and Mail.
These biologists are the front-line protectors of the province’s salmon resource. They study the fish for signs they are suffering from disease, pollution or overfishing and monitor their habitats.
The cutbacks come as the federal public service struggles to implement the government’s deficit-fighting austerity program, which is forcing managers to rethink long-established programs in an attempt to do more with less.
In the department of Fisheries and Oceans, employees have been told that “a national staffing process” – which will lead to staff reductions and office closings – will begin on Nov. 16 and is to be fully operational by January.
While the nationwide details aren’t yet clear, a Pacific region organization chart for DFO approved on Oct. 19 by deputy minister Claire Dansereau shows the fisheries protection branch in British Columbia will be reduced to 60 positions from 90.
READ ENTIRE GLOBE AND MAIL ARTICLE HERE
Don Fowler:
• “Problem: Government scientists speaking
out against governmental policies.
• Solution: Get rid of the scientists.
Canada should be a world leader in environmental leadership and protection. “
Atlantic salmon, cod and sea trout on conservation list
October 24, 2012
Atlantic salmon are also on the recommended list
Fish such as cod, Atlantic salmon, mackerel and lamprey have been recommended for inclusion on a list of priority Scottish marine species.
Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) is identifying wildlife and habitats that require conservation action.
Cold-water coral reefs and horse mussel beds are also listed.
SNH expects the list to be put out for public consultation before being considered for adoption by the Scottish government.
It contains 36 habitats and 46 species drawn from an original list of 324 species and 151 habitat types.
Other creatures listed for the Priority Marine Features project include sea trout, anglerfish, ling, whiting, common skate, sand goby and basking shark.
Selecting species went through a process of four stages, which included assessments by scientists and experts at National Museums Scotland.
A report commissioned by SNH said fish species formed "a significant proportion of the recommended list".
The reported added: "However, the decisions as to which species to include were not straightforward, particularly in relation to commercial fish species considered to be threatened or to have suffered severe decline.
"The recommended list took into account decisions made at a joint workshop with scientists from Marine Scotland Science."
Sterling Prize winners Richard Routledge and Alexandra Morton
Fish researchers net Sterling prize
October 25, 2012
SFU fish statistician Rick Routledge and independent biologist Alexandra Morton have won the university’s Nora and Ted Sterling Prize in Support of Controversy for their research documenting potential threats to B.C.’s wild salmon from coastal fish farms.
The pair received their prize during an evening ceremony Oct. 24 at SFU’s Morris J Wosk Centre for Dialogue before delivering their Sterling lecture, Salmon Farms and Disease: The Importance of Both Academic Freedom and Community-Engaged Research.
The Sterling award honours work that provokes and/or contributes to the understanding of controversy, but the two researchers say the recognition does nothing to mitigate the damage caused by the debate surrounding fish farms.
“The controversy has been very counterproductive,” says Routledge, who coastal fish farmers have labeled an activist.
“It has delayed vitally important regulatory changes that are needed if we are to reduce the currently unacceptable risks to the preservation of abundant runs of wild Pacific salmon.”
Morton agrees, but notes government and industry ridicule of their research has had an ironic impact on public support.
“What they don’t understand is the more we get attacked the higher our credibility rises,” says Morton.
“I simply remain dedicated to using science to measure and define the impact of farm-salmon pathogens on wild salmon. My observations suggest the impact is very serious and government is afraid to do anything about it.”
The duo have been alternately vilified, lauded and dismissed since they first teamed up in the early 2000s when they linked sea-lice infested Broughton Archipelago fish farms to passing juvenile wild salmon deaths and declining salmon runs.
Since then other researchers have corroborated their research and extended their findings.
Most recently, Routledge and Morton incurred fish farmers’ wrath when they announced they’d discovered infectious salmon anemia, a viral disease affecting farm-raised Atlantic salmon, in wild salmon in Rivers Inlet.
Shout out to the brave men and women of the US Coast Guard
Recreational fishermen along US coastlines appreciate that the US Coast Guard is willing and able
to assist and even rescue us if ever needed - thank God most of us will never need their uniquely-
specialized skills - great insurance to have these men and women and their life saving equipment
available in the event of a potentially life-threatening emergency.
Legacy – December 2012
Wild Game Fish Conservation International
“Pants on Fire” Recognition: Hugh Mitchell, MS, DVM – Fish Health Manager /
Owner at AquaTactics Fish Health
Wild game fish conservationists around planet earth believe that some things we hear and read from
corporate representatives, natural resources agency professionals and elected officials might not
reflect reality. In fact, some associate these “leaders” with those who wear burning pants.
The December 2012 recipient of the coveted Wild Game Fish Conservation International “Pants on
Fire” honor is: Hugh Mitchell Fish Health Manager / Owner at AquaTactics Fish Health.
According to Dr. Mitchell:
• “wild populations are actually the ones that pass parasites and viruses onto the more
vulnerable farm populations, not the other way around”
• “I do not believe ISA is here “
• within six months of moving a net pen, there's usually no sign it was at the previous location.”
Legacy – December 2012
Wild Game Fish Conservation International
Local Conservation Projects
Volunteer groups count thousands of salmon coming up Eel River
November 5, 2012
Chinook salmon are moving up the Eel River in unusually large numbers this fall, according to a series of counts undertaken in September and October by volunteer divers from the Eel River Recovery Project (ERRP) and Humboldt Redwoods Company (HRC).
ERRP volunteers counted a total of approximately 5,000 Chinook salmon, hundreds of steelhead, and over a dozen Coho salmon in the lower reaches of the main stem Eel River on three dives taken on Sept. 28, Oct. 13, and Oct. 27.
On Monday, Oct. 29, a volunteer team organized by HRC counted a total of 2,500 adult Chinook and 500 jacks (immature males) in a deep pool at Holmes, near Redcrest, and at least 400 adult Chinook at the confluence with the South Fork Eel at Scotia.
But it’s still early in the fall run, with November usually the month of "the Charge of the Light Brigade" -- the highest numbers of migrating Chinook -- according to Pat Higgins, consulting fisheries biologist and volunteer coordinator of ERRP.
Chinook and steelhead migration should still be strong in December, and some Chinook are usually seen in January as well, Higgins said.
With this in mind, Higgins estimates a total run of Chinook as high as 50,000.
This large run is occurring in a year in which water levels in the Eel River system are unusually -- and somewhat puzzlingly -- low.
In spite of nearly normal rainfall in the 2011/2012 season the U.S. Geological Survey gauge at Scotia
showed the Eel flowing at only 63 cubic feet per second on Sept. 28, the day of ERRP’s first dive. This
is only half the long-term average flow for this time of year.
Northwest Indian College students on the Tulalip campus are getting field experience
monitoring water quality in their own backyard.
A few years ago, the Tulalip Tribes’ natural resources department constructed a wetland adjacent to the parking lot that serves the college as well as the Boys and Girls Club. Engineered wetlands contain highly organic soil and vegetation to absorb and break down pollutants carried by stormwater, including copper from brake pads, which is harmful to salmon. To monitor the effectiveness of the wetland, native environmental studies students are sampling water in two catch basins following a rainstorm. The first catch basin collects water that runs off the parking lot. After the stormwater has time to filter through the system, the students will sample water from a second catch basin where the water drains from the horseshoe-shaped wetland. “This constructed wetland was a demonstration project,” said Valerie Streeter, stormwater planner for the tribe. “I hoped to get students interested in the wetland, and I was very impressed with how engaged they were.” Monitoring the wetland is part of a service component of Ben Lubbers’ class on biology and the natural history of the Salish Sea. “Hands-on learning is important,” Lubbers said. “In class, we learn about water quality and stewardship. What better place to expand on that than right outside the classroom?”
Nicole Rasmussen, water quality biologist for the Quileute Tribe, prepares to install a water temperature monitoring device in a tributary to the Dickey River.
The device will monitor water temperature continuously and the data will be downloaded regularly into a computer
Jim Brosio (360) 943-9947 Macro Invertebrate Sampling Activity
Fly Casting Instructions
2013 Northwest Youth Conservation &
Fly Fishing Academy
2013 Academy Dates: Sun., June 23 - Sat., June 29. Supported by the Washington Council Trout Unlimited and the Washington State Federation of Fly Fishers. Hosted by Olympia Chapter TU, South Sound Fly Fishers and Puget Sound Fly Fishers. Held on Hicks Lake, Lacey, WA. .
Fishing a Local Pond
ACADEMY FEATURES
Co-educational, ages 12 – 16. Curriculum focuses on conservation, natural
resource stewardship, and fly fishing essentials. Fly fishing classes include fly casting, fly tying, knot
tying, reading water, and water safety. Morning and evening fly fishing activities on
Nisqually Pond and Deschutes River. On-the-water aquatic macro invertebrate sampling
activity. Career discovery opportunities. Faculty and staff include wildlife resource
professionals, northwest fly fishing and fly tying professionals and enthusiasts, and local fishing club volunteers.
• A written essay on why you would like to attend the Academy and what you expect to learn from it. • A brief letter of recommendation from your school science teacher or counselor including an address and telephone number. Application and recommendation may be sent via postal mail or e-mail.
The Academy is limited to 24 qualified youths, ages 12 through 16. Applicants must not have reached their 17th birthday by April
15, 2013. A committee shall make selections based upon a candidate’s written essay and recommendation from science teacher or
counselor. Tuition fee, including food and lodging is $275. Candidates should not send tuition until notified of selection.
Notifications will be sent out by May 10, 2013. ACADEMY DATES: JUNE 23-29, 2013
Application must be received by April 15, 2013
Print this application page, complete, and send to:
Northwest Youth Conservation & Fly Fishing Academy C/O Mike Clancy
For additional information e-mail to the above address or contact either: Mike Clancy: (home) 360-753-1259, (cell) 253-278-0061; or Jim Brosio: (home) 360- 943-9947
Many businesses around planet earth rely in part on sustained populations of wild game fish. This is true for fishing guide/charter services, resort and hotel owners, fishing tackle and boat retail stores, clothing stores, eco/photo tours, grocery stores, gas stations and many more. In fact, wild game fish are the backbone of a multi-billion dollar per year industry on a global scale.
This is why we at Wild Game Fish Conservation International offer complimentary
space in each issue of “LEGACY” for business owners who rely on sustained wild
game fish populations to sustain your business. An article with one or more photos about your business and how it relies on wild game fish may be submitted for
publication to LEGACY PUBLISHER. Please include your business website and
contact information to be published with your business article. Selected submissions will be published each month.
Sustained wild game fish populations provide family wage jobs and balanced eco-systems while ensuring cultural values. They also provide a unique, natural resources- based lifestyle for those fortunate to have these magnificent creatures in our lives.
Conservationists working together with the business community can effectively protect and restore planet earth’s wild game fish for this and future generations to enjoy and appreciate. This will be our LEGACY.
WGFCI endorsed conservation organizations:
American Rivers
Global Alliance Against Industrial Aquaculture
LightHawk
Salmon Are Sacred
Salmon and Trout Restoration Association of Conception Bay Central, Inc
Gorgeous rainbow trout caught by Vlasta Štefanič while fishing the Soca River in Slovenia
Photo courtesy of Vlasta Štefanič
Legacy – December 2012
Wild Game Fish Conservation International
King among the Chinooks.......
Photo courtesy of Curtis Palmer Owner – Operator: RIVER SECRETS GUIDE SERVICE – Roseburg, Oregon
Whether your choice is Salmon or Steelhead Fish, River Secrets Guide Service can fulfill your needs. Curtis Palmer is your Guided Fishing Trip host for a
relaxing, yet exhilarating fishing vacation. With his 30 years experience on Oregon rivers, he will make your fishing trip safe, enjoyable and Full of
memories. Contact Curtis Palmer and book your trip now.
Thank you for sharing this photo, Curtis – Tight Lines and Screaming Reels!
West Virginia Golden (Rainbow) Trout - Pipestem State Park
Photo courtesy of Curtis Fleming
Legacy – December 2012
Wild Game Fish Conservation International
Playing the biggest Danubian Salmon that was caught while fishing the Sava
Bohinjka River in Slovenia last year.
Photo courtesy of Branko Bačelič (CEO, Nature Freakz)
Branko Bačelič : “With 114cm, it’s the biggest (Danubian Salmon) ever caught on the fly rod in this part of Europe (known). It took a streamer on 4/5 rod and line 0,16. The
Why many conservationists around our planet strive to protect and restore wild game fish – others rely on these magnificent creatures for their very lives!
Legacy – December 2012
Wild Game Fish Conservation International
Community Outreach:
Float fishing for steelhead
OLYMPIA CHAPTER OF TROUT UNLIMITED November 28, 2012, 7:00PM
NORTH OLYMPIA FIRE STATION 5046 BOSTON HARBOR ROAD NE
FLOAT FISHING FOR STEELHEAD
Winter Steelhead Floats
Program: Float Fishing for Steelhead
The public is invited to the November 28th meeting of the Olympia Chapter of Trout Unlimited
for a presentation by Terry Wiest on float fishing for steelhead, refreshments, and fishing
equipment raffle. His one hour presentation will cover the when, where, why and how’s of this
extremely effective technique. Learn float fishing tactics for steelhead from one of the leaders
in the industry. If this method is new to you, or you would like to be more successful using it,
come to the meeting and get all your questions answered.
Bio: Terry Wiest
Terry Wiest has over 37 years of experience fishing for salmon and steelhead and has the natural ability to teach people how to catch more fish, whether it be in writing or speaking at seminars. Terry has published numerous magazine articles, mostly on salmon and steelhead, but also on his many adventures around the Pacific Northwest, Canada, and Alaska. He has also contributed to the book “Pro Tactics for Salmon and Steelhead”. Terry writes a bi-monthly column, “Westside”, for Northwest Sportsman Magazine, and a featured writer for Salmon, Trout, Steelheader. Since 2008, Terry has been the Webmaster and Chief Instructor for Salmon University, the largest salmon fishing website on the West Coast. Terry also hosts and serves as Chief Instructor for Steelhead University. Terry’s first book—“Steelhead University: Your Guide to Salmon and Steelhead Success is due out late 2012.
Legacy – December 2012
Wild Game Fish Conservation International
Conservation Video Library – “Why we’re involved”
Tar Sands Oil Extraction: The Dirty Truth (11:39)
Salmon Wars: Salmon Farms, Wild Fish and the Future of Communities
(6:07)
Tar Sands: Oil Industry Above the Law? (1:42)
SPOIL – Protecting BC’s Great Bear Rainforest from oil tanker spills (44:00)
The Facts on Fish Farms (60:00+)
Undamming Elwha (26:46)
Is your favorite seafood toxic? (6:06)
“Algae culture fish farm” (6:40)
Pebble Mine: “No Means No” (1:15)
Salmon Wars- Aquaculture, Wild Fish & The Future of Communities (6:25)
Vegetarian Fish? A New Solution for Aquaculture (7:32)