B.C. First Nations take their battle against =
fish farms to
the courts
By Terri Theodore (CP) – Apr =
13,
2010
VANCOUVER, B.C. — Several First Nations from British Columbia's =
Broughton
Archipelago have set out on what could be an upstream court battle against =
the
federal and provincial governments over fish farms.
The bands were in B.C. Supreme Court on Tuesday, seeking to certify a
class-action lawsuit against the provincial and federal governments.
The legal battle comes after decades of inaction, said First Nations
spokesman Chief Bob Chamberlin.
Natives in the archipelago, on the west side of the Queen Charlotte Strait =
on
the central coast of B.C., have long worried about the environmental impacts =
of
fish farms.
They fear the effects of the chemicals used on the farms and that the =
farmed
fish will spread disease to the almost 230 different wild salmon stocks =
native
to the region.
"We've pounded our head against the wall for years," Chamberlin said of =
the
frustration in getting both governments to listen to their concerns.
The court fight could last a decade, but he said the bands they weren't
getting any action through other avenues.
"I don't think the fish can wait that long. That's why we've chosen the
class-action route to get it in front of the courts as quickly as =
possible."
But even before the class-action certification process began Tuesday, a
lawyer for the federal government challenged the scientific research =
presented
by the First Nations in an attempt to pre-empt any further hearings.
Harry Wruck told Justice Harry Slade that the scientific expert makes "one =
bald-faced assertion after another."
Scientific experts for the governments say there is no sound evidence that =
wild salmon stocks are declining in the Broughton Archipelago, Wruck =
stated.
But that question is the point of the entire case, replied J.J. Camp, the
lawyer for the potential class.
"This will be about a battle of experts," Camp told the court.
The hearing is expected to last nine days.
There are more than two dozen aquaculture sites in the ocean around =
Broughton
area and almost 230 different populations of wild salmon swim past the farms =
on
their way to 59 rivers in B.C.
Chamberlin said they're especially concerned about what's being poured =
into
the environment by these farms. A chemical called Slice is used to kill sea =
lice
on the farmed fish, antibiotics are fed to the fish, and then there's the =
food
and feces that also goes into the water shared with wild stock.
"Tonnes and tonnes of it. It's not some innocuous little amount, and =
that's
getting introduced into our environment," Chamberlin said. "It's an =
off-loading
of the responsibilities that these companies have."
Opponents of fish farms have had some success in the courts in their long
fight against the industry.
The B.C. Supreme Court ruled last year the federal government, not the
province, should regulate fish farms because it had constitutional powers =
over
the ocean.
Biologist Alexandra Morton, a longtime opponent of open net aquaculture =
who
took part in the lawsuit, said the federal government is better equipped to
regulate farms and protect the surrounding environment.
However, the Department of Fisheries has said sea lice from fish farms are =
not connected to the low returns of wild salmon in the area.
The B.C. Salmon Farmers Association said Atlantic salmon exports to the
United States, Europe and Japan were valued at $330.9 million for 2009.
But unlike B.C.'s forestry, mining and fishing industries, Chamberlin said =
fish farming hasn't changed with the times, and continues to pollute B.C.'s
waters.
"If they moved to closed containment, they would silence 99 per cent of =
the
critics. Why is it they won't do it," he asked.
Last last year the federal government gave a B.C. Supreme Court judge
unlimited powers to find out why the Fraser River sockeye salmon fishery
collapsed in 2009.
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Press. All
rights reserved