'No one is guarding the chicken coop'

Dan MacLennan
August 18, 2010
Courier-Islander

The pending transfer of aquaculture regulation from Victoria to Ottawa has left "no one guarding the chicken coop", the Coastal Alliance on Aquaculture Reform (CAAR) said on the eve of a web-based seminar on Ottawa's proposed aquaculture regulations.

"The old game that the governments played, much to their advantage, was one of jurisdictional ping pong where both the feds and province shared responsibility and they'd point at the other guy and say 'it's not my job.'" CAAR's Catherine Stewart told the Courier-Islander Monday. "The recent game, since the (BC Supreme Court) ruling in February, is that neither government has been willing to fully accept responsibility for oversight, enforcement and management of this industry."

For evidence, she said, look no farther than the aquaculture industry's unilateral decision to stop supplying fish health and sea lice data to provincial regulators, and the province's subsequent termination of the program April 1.

"This is just appalling," Stewart said. "No one is guarding the chicken coop here since the court decision came down. It's just appalling that the industry is allowed to get away with this.

"On paper, the province is responsible until the hand-over, but the reality is they're washing their hands of it and laying off staff. The feds don't assume responsibility until December so they're not taking an active role."

Meanwhile, Stewart will be one of the hosts of a 'webinar' tomorrow afternoon, hosted by the Living Oceans Society and T. Buck Suzuki Foundation. Starting at 1 p.m., it deals with the draft federal aquaculture regulations, currently open to public comment. To register, reply to david@salmonsupporters.org for login details.

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