Watchdog group formed

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After a meeting between the B.C. Aboriginal Fisheries Commission (BCAFC) and environmental groups, a new watchdog group was formed to keep an eye on coastal fish farms and the various government bodies overseeing their management.

Representatives from the Georgia Strait Alliance, David Suzuki Foundation, the Living Oceans Society and the Sierra Club of BC have joined with the BC Aboriginal Fisheries Commission to renew their alliance and begin strategizing on ways to ensure the environment is protected against the potential harmful effects of fish farming.

"First Nations territories are being altered by a foreign method of raising salmon," said BCAFC coastal Co-chair Simon Lucas. "The [Salmon Aquaculture Industry Advisory Committee] is not looking at the long-term impacts. Their only role is to implement provincial legislation, which does not address First Nations concerns. This watchdog group will have a broad sense of the impacts of altering our way of life," he said.

According to a BCAFC press release, plans are now being made to have First Nations concerns brought to the public's attention through escalating direct action if concerns are not addressed.