Sea Lice AND Salmon - Farmed And Dangerous
Sea Lice AND Salmon - Farmed And Dangerous Sea Lice AND Salmon - Farmed And Dangerous
Many peoplebelieve that thepink salmoncollapse stemmedfrom a massivekill of juvenilepink salmon in2001, causedby sea liceoriginating inlocal salmonfarms.The Broughton Archipelago.Maple Leaf Adventures photo2. WHY IS THE BROUGHTON AREAGETTING SO MUCH ATTENTION?The Broughton Archipelago has received enormousattention since the collapse of its 2002pink salmon run. From an expected 3,600,000,only 147,000 spawners returned. Though widefluctuations in pink salmon populations arenatural, analyses conducted by both theDepartment of Fisheries and Oceans Canada(DFO) and the Pacific Fisheries Resource ConservationCouncil (PFRCC) showed that theBroughton collapse was not “natural”. [9] Manypeople, including fisheries biologists, FirstNations, other local residents, commercial fishermen,and conservationists believe that thepink salmon collapse stemmed from a massivekill of outward migrating juvenile pink salmonin 2001, and that the kill was caused by sealice originating in local salmon farms. TheBroughton Archipelago has British Columbia’sdensest concentration of fish farms, with 29farm tenures, 17 of them active in 2003. [101]Most of the farms are located directly onsalmon migration routes. [72] Evidence suggeststhat juvenile pinks were infested withsea lice during their outward migration, whenthe threat from sea lice is normally low,because adult salmon are normally scarce atthat time of year. The salmon farms made sealice available precisely when the pinks weremost vulnerable to them. [9]3. ARE THE AREA’S WILD SALMONAT RISK FROM SEA LICE?Nobody knows exactly what the ultimateimpact of sea lice will be on wild salmon. Butfish farms can produce much higher than “natural”numbers of sea lice, and lice do not differentiatebetween wild and farmed salmon.Therefore, wild salmon must be at risk fromsea lice produced on fish farms. Only theextent of the risk is debatable. While someagency scientists, including those from DFO,acknowledge that fish farms produce sea lice,they don’t yet publicly admit that wild salmonare in any danger, and deny there is evidencelinking sea lice infestations on wild fish tosalmon farms. However, a large, and growing,body of circumstantial evidence from aroundthe world leads other experts to believe thatthe Broughton Archipelago’s wild salmon are atgreat risk. A ten-week study in the BroughtonArchipelago found that juvenile salmon nearsalmon farms were infected with more than1.6 lice per gram—a probable lethal limit—while sea lice levels were near zero in all areasdistant from farms. [110] The provincial andfederal governments’ current sea lice studiesin the Broughton Archipelago have been initiatedin response to a growing public outcry.It seems reasonable to conclude that exposureto unnaturally high levels of sea lice results inhigh levels of sea-lice infestation, and unnaturallyhigh levels of disease and death. [41]4. WHEN DO PINK SALMON JUVENILESENTER THE OCEAN?Juvenile pink salmon emerge from theirstream-bed gravel in late-winter and earlyspring, and almost immediately start makingtheir way to the ocean. They are only 3.5 cmlong when they reach salt water [73] and weighonly 0.3 grams. [110] They live in the shallow,productive waters of estuaries and coastlines,where a plentiful food supply allows them togrow rapidly before they migrate farther out tosea. [74]14 Sea Lice and Salmon: Elevating the Dialogue
5. THROUGH WHAT PARTS OF THEBROUGHTON DO PINKS MIGRATE?During their initial stages in the sea, juvenilepinks rely heavily on the food-rich, shallow,coastal saltwater zones—estuaries, wetlandsand beaches. Brackish estuaries are especiallyimportant as they provide ideal conditions foradapting to salt water. In addition to providingjuvenile pinks with plentiful food, the shallowcoastal waters offer protection from predatorsand strong ocean currents. After several weeksfeeding on small, planktonic creatures, thejuvenile pinks migrate to sea where they stayfor 12–16 months. [74–76]6. WHERE ARE THE SALMON FARMSRELATIVE TO MIGRATION ROUTES?Of the Broughton Archipelago’s 27 farmtenures, 16 are located directly in the path ofmigrating juvenile pink salmon. [72] Thesefarms, most of which are owned by Stolt SeaFarms, a multinational industry based inNorway, may hold more than one million fish.[77] The remainder are owned by GeorgeWeston Ltd. [29]7. ARE OTHER BROUGHTONARCHIPELAGO SALMON AT RISK?Pink salmon aren’t the only salmon living inthe waters of the Broughton Archipelago.Chum, coho, and Chinook salmon are alsofound there, as are sea-run cutthroat trout andsteelhead. Though juvenile pink salmon arethe most susceptible to sea lice, [43, 57, 58]other salmon are also at risk of infestations,especially outmigrating juveniles. [36] A recentstudy in the Broughton Archipelago foundthat 90% of juvenile pink and chum salmonnear salmon farms were infected at or abovelice loads considered to be lethal. [110] Otherrecent research in the area found that 28% ofthe area’s juvenile pink and chum salmon wereinfected with lice. [109]Experts believethat theBroughtonArchipelago’swild salmon areat great risk.FIGURE 8Pink salmonmigrationroutes andsalmon farmtenures in theBroughtonArchipelago.Modified fromLiving OceansSociety mapSea Lice and Salmon: Elevating the Dialogue15
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5. THROUGH WHAT PARTS OF THEBROUGHTON DO PINKS MIGRATE?During their initial stages in the sea, juvenilepinks rely heavily on the food-rich, shallow,coastal saltwater zones—estuaries, wetlandsand beaches. Brackish estuaries are especiallyimportant as they provide ideal conditions foradapting to salt water. In addition to providingjuvenile pinks with plentiful food, the shallowcoastal waters offer protection from predatorsand strong ocean currents. After several weeksfeeding on small, planktonic creatures, thejuvenile pinks migrate to sea where they stayfor 12–16 months. [74–76]6. WHERE ARE THE SALMON FARMSRELATIVE TO MIGRATION ROUTES?Of the Broughton Archipelago’s 27 farmtenures, 16 are located directly in the path ofmigrating juvenile pink salmon. [72] Thesefarms, most of which are owned by Stolt <strong>Sea</strong>Farms, a multinational industry based inNorway, may hold more than one million fish.[77] The remainder are owned by GeorgeWeston Ltd. [29]7. ARE OTHER BROUGHTONARCHIPELAGO SALMON AT RISK?Pink salmon aren’t the only salmon living inthe waters of the Broughton Archipelago.Chum, coho, and Chinook salmon are alsofound there, as are sea-run cutthroat trout andsteelhead. Though juvenile pink salmon arethe most susceptible to sea lice, [43, 57, 58]other salmon are also at risk of infestations,especially outmigrating juveniles. [36] A recentstudy in the Broughton Archipelago foundthat 90% of juvenile pink and chum salmonnear salmon farms were infected at or abovelice loads considered to be lethal. [110] Otherrecent research in the area found that 28% ofthe area’s juvenile pink and chum salmon wereinfected with lice. [109]Experts believethat theBroughtonArchipelago’swild salmon areat great risk.FIGURE 8Pink salmonmigrationroutes andsalmon farmtenures in theBroughtonArchipelago.Modified fromLiving OceansSociety map<strong>Sea</strong> <strong>Lice</strong> and <strong>Salmon</strong>: Elevating the Dialogue15
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