BCSF'S Dunn says 20,000 jobs possible with Aquaculture Act
Neil Cameron / Campbell River Courier-Islander, March 28, 2014
B.C.'s salmon farming contributes $800 million per year to the provincial economy but could grow that to $1.4 billion by 2020 and $3.5 billion by 2035 if a proper Aquaculture Act for Canada was in place.
That's what BC Salmon Farmer's Executive Director Jeremy Dunn told a standing senate committee in Nanaimo Wednesday.
He said such an act would allow the industry to create 8,000 total jobs by 2020 and 20,000 jobs by 2035. The industry says it currently creates about 6,000 direct and indirect jobs.
Dunn said all the sector needs is legislation that better speaks to the work of the ocean farmers.
"An Aquaculture Act for Canada will define aquaculture in federal law and provide a unifying, long-term framework that recognizes aquaculture's growing importance to Canada's economy," said Dunn.
The Standing Senate Committee on Fisheries and Oceans visited Nanaimo as part of a fact-finding mission this week studying the regulation of aquaculture in Canada, and the opportunities and challenges for the sector.
Campbell River Mayor Walter Jakeway spent one hour in front of the committee and was impressed with their handling of the issue.
"The Nanaimo Senate sessions on aquaculture were informative and the senators are well aware of most issues," said Jakeway. "They asked good, deep questions, and are beginning to formulate potential recommendations/solutions. Their collective ability to read people was impressive and they worked well together at asking difficult questions from numerous directions."
From representatives of BC's salmon farming community, they heard that regulation tailored specifically to aquaculture would both meet the public's interest in strong management of the sector while also enabling the sector to grow.
