"The Fraser River's sockeye salmon are in trouble. And when the salmon are in trouble, we're all in trouble. " ... From the weekly Science Matters column by David Suzuki with Faisal Moola, The David Suzuki Foundation: The number of sockeye returning from the ocean to the Fraser River this year is one of the lowest in the past 50 and follows two years of dangerously low returns. In fact, we have witnessed decades of decline for diverse sockeye populations from the Fraser Watershed, some of which are now on the brink of extinction. Many salmon runs besides Fraser sockeye are also endangered, while others have disappeared altogether. As populations decline, so does genetic diversity. This diversity allows salmon to ... continue reading.

... while Canadian Ministry Promotes "Sustainable" Aquaculture in Norway.  Media Release by CSRWire.ca:Government officials promote "sustainable" aquaculture in Norway while wild salmon stocks crash at home.(August 17, 2009) Where is Canada's Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, Gail Shea, at a time when one of Canada's most important commercial runs of salmon is experiencing a catastrophic collapse?  She is showcasing Canada's aquaculture industry at the Aqua Nor international aquaculture trade show in Trondheim, Norway. British Columbia's Fraser River sockeye may be down to less than ten percent of the predicted return but this has not deterred Minster Shea from joining the Canadian delegation to promote an industry associated with the demise of wild salmon worldwide (Ford and Myers 2008). Norwegian-owned companies control ... continue reading.

"Wild Salmon In Trouble", a new short animation released by the Watershed Watch Salmon Society, takes viewers on a provocative tour of how salmon farming and sea lice are harming wild salmon. Wild Salmon in Trouble Video Watershed Watch Salmon Society produced the short video to increase public understanding of salmon ecology and interactions with sea lice on wild and farmed salmon, and to help bridge the gap between technical science and an understandable depiction of what can often be a complicated issue. Though the weight of scientific evidence shows that open-net cage salmon farming poses a grave threat to wild salmon in Canada and other salmon farming nations, this smorgasbord of science is not always easily obtained or digested. ... continue reading.

A continent away from their native waters, disoriented and out of captivity for the first time in their lives, 30,000-odd Atlantic salmon are roaming free off the British Columbia coast. Their mass exodus from a pen at Marine Harvest Canada's Frederick Arm site on July 1 is B.C.'s largest farmed-salmon escape in eight years. It has spawned a government investigation, with Environment Ministry conservation officers combing the site to find out exactly what went wrong. Read the Globe's full feature... ... continue reading.