New paper continues debate over link between lice from salmon farms and B.C. wild salmon

A new paper on sea lice from fish farms and wild salmon in B.C. shows a significant relationship between the two and critics say that contradicts a report from the federal government, which regulates the fish farms. 

Bob Chamberlin, elected chief of Kwikwasut'inuxw Haxwa'mis First Nation in B.C. and chair of the First Nation Wild Salmon Alliance, a political advocacy group on wild salmon protection, said the paper shows industry has too much influence on science advice at Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO).

"It shows that the initial work by the Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat hadn't a foundation in terms of objectivity, or free of conflict of interest, and I don't think that the DFO has a leg to stand on," said Chamberlin.

The new paper, published in Aquaculture Environment Interactions on June 5 and co-authored by the same scientists as the DFO report, shows a significant relationship between sea lice infestations at fish farms and sea lice on wild salmon through a method of statistical modelling.

In January 2023, a report by DFO concluded there was no statistically significant association between parasitic sea lice on salmon farms and sea lice on wild salmon.

Jaewoon Jeong, a research scientist with Ohio State University, contributed both to the DFO report and was the head author on the paper published June 5. He said the report and the paper are not the opposite of one another.

He said the interest on the relationship between infestations at fish farms and on wild salmon is more about "the level" rather than a "yes or no."

"This paper in a peer-reviewed journal is supposed to be more scientific, so I explored more statistical analysis between the sea-lice abundance on salmon farms and sea-lice infection on wild salmon," said Jeong.

The paper used the same data as the DFO report, he said, plus two additional years of recent data and considers other environmental factors in a deeper way.

"The relation between the salmon lice from salmon farms and infestation on juvenile wild salmon quite varies, depending on the regions and times, so it cannot be generalized," Jeong said.

Scientists critical of DFO report

The 2023 DFO report was criticized in a letter to the minister signed by 16 professors and research scientists from Canadian and American universities.

Sean Godwin, an assistant professor at University of California, Davis, in the department of environmental science, said the 2023 report underscored already present criticisms of the integrity of DFO's "dual mandate" to safeguard both wild salmon and the farmed salmon industry.

"The processes that DFO used to produce that science advice are not up to the standard of the rest of the world. They're not transparent, they're not evidence based, they're not impartial, and they're not independently reviewed," said Godwin.

DFO did not respond to a request for comment before time of publishing.

Open net-pen salmon aquaculture in B.C. waters will be banned by 2029, the federal government announced last year.

Wild salmon stocks are in decline across B.C. and Yukon and face significant compounding challenges that include aquaculture, climate change and industrial development, according to a 2024 report by the Pacific Salmon Foundation, a non-profit environmental organization.

Causation not proven

The B.C. Salmon Farmers Association said the paper is not proof salmon farms cause sea lice on wild salmon, and that  there is no scientific evidence showing that.

"Although this research concluded a positive trend, it does not conclude that it is causational," a spokesperson wrote in a statement.

The B.C. Salmon Farmers Association has said its analysis shows the province could lose up to $1.17 billion in economic activity annually and 4,560 full-time jobs if open-net salmon farming is no longer allowed.

Isaiah Robinson, deputy chief councillor of Kitasoo Xai'xais Nation and a spokesperson for the Coalition of First Nations for Finfish Stewardship (comprising 17 First Nations that have agreements with finfish aquaculture companies), said he hopes Prime Minister Mark Carney's government changes that decision.

The First Nation holds six salmon farm tenures leased and operated by Mowi Canada West, one of Canada's Norwegian-based salmon producers, Robinson said.

"People understand there needs to be an economy… There needs to be bread in every household," he said.

Debate on inherent rights

Robinson said like other industries, aquaculture is a matter of rights and title and economic sovereignty for First Nations.

"There's tons of these First Nations that are saying that we shouldn't be doing our own fish farms that are supporting oil and gas," said Robinson.

"I think there's bigger discussions we should be having on how we can help rejuvenate the wild stock rather than looking for a smoking gun."

Chamberlin said "economic reconciliation lies downstream of accommodation of Aboriginal rights."

"If the salmon that were being affected only stayed in the territories where the fish farms are operating, then by all means, they can make any decision that they wish," said Chamberlin.

"But the fact is, 90 per cent of the Fraser River salmon migrate up the Johnstone Strait past the fish farms that are on the east coast of Vancouver Island, and that represents an infringement of rights across British Columbia."

Chamberlin said he's seen an increase in salmon returns since the removal of fish farms in the Broughton archipelago.

"We need to look after salmon, or we're going to lose the strength of genetic diversity from across the province," he said.