Salmon farms: are we making progress

Commercial finfish aquaculture has endured a turbulent thirty years since its arrival in British Columbia. The international record on the state of wild salmonid populations exposed to salmon farms is not encouraging as there is no region where salmon farming and stable wild salmonid populations coexist. The industry has made changes as it matures, reporting better siting, sea lice control and vaccines. However at the same time the number of fish per farm has risen to 1.7 million, adjacent commercial fisheries are largely closed, orca are increasing failing to carry offspring full term and First Nations are without food fish. In this presentation we review the current state of two of the most controversial public concerns regarding impact of salmon farms on wild salmon: sea louse management and exposure to farm-origin disease agents. Is there visible progress? Are there indicators that equilibrium between farmed and wild salmon populations can be reached? What is the scientific record telling us and where do we go from here