Elected local leaders from Campbell River, the epicentre of salmon farming on Canada’s West Coast, say they will support Discovery Island mayors.
Campbell River Mirror reports that Campbell River city council says it will continue the fight for salmon farming.
The news that BC’s Discovery Island salmon farms are be phased out by 2022 is still making waves in the community. Campbell River is the hub of the salmon farming industry on Canada’s West Coast.
Mayor Andy Adams opened the first council meeting of 2021 by addressing the letter sent by North Vancouver Island Mayors and the BC Salmon Farmers Association Board to Minister Bernadette Jordan in late December.
At the time, the mayors wrote: “We will no longer sit on the sidelines and will be pursuing every possible option to remedy this untenable situation.”
Adams said that support from their council was unanimous.
“I think this is such an important issue for the North Island, for our region and across Canada,” said councillor Colleen Evans to the publication. “I commend you and the other mayors for standing up on behalf of families, jobs, individuals, the sector, and I know that this is just the beginning of more advocacy efforts.”
“It’s not over yet and I get a little concerned reading articles with our MP talking about the plan to mitigate the impacts, as if it’s a fait accompli. I would hope that we’re not giving up on this battle, because the implementation date is 2022. I’m certainly not willing to roll over and accept a bad decision,” added councillor Charlie Cornfield.
The council supports the BC salmon farming on a municipal level, such as keeping highway system connected with the rest of Vancouver Island. “Communication and collaborative projects with provincial and federal bodies, in support of local aquaculture, continue to be top priorities of our municipal government,” it wrote on the council site.
“Campbell River is a small city, and our business and industry leaders are also a tight-knit community. The local aquaculture sector shares customers, suppliers and industry insights in order to maintain global competitiveness and continue pushing the industry forward,” it added.
