Fish farm opponent apologizes to commission for blogging while under oath
MARK HUME, VANCOUVER— Globe and Mail, Thursday, Sep. 08, 2011
Alexandra Morton, a high-profile researcher and opponent of fish farms, has apologized to the Cohen commission for a scathing blog posting she made after she was sworn in as a witness.
After a barrage of questions from Mitch Taylor, a lawyer representing the Government of Canada at the federal inquiry into the decline of sockeye salmon, Ms. Morton said she was wrong to post comments while under oath.
“I do apologize to the court. … If I knew I was breaking the rules I certainly would not have been public with it,” she said after Mr. Taylor complained she had been discussing evidence on her blog. She had been testifying since Wednesday.
Mr. Taylor also told the commissioner, British Columbia Supreme Court Justice Bruce Cohen, that Ms. Morton had sent an e-mail overnight to one of the other witnesses, even though she was “specifically told not to discuss your evidence with anyone” while under oath.
“I did not realize there was this boundary,” said Ms. Morton, who over the years has been a fierce critic of the government’s management of West Coast salmon stocks.
Mr. Taylor also showed the inquiry a cartoon Ms. Morton posted on her blog, in which Judge Cohen is depicted addressing a panel of scientists who earlier testified at the hearings.
“The cartoon is showing flames coming from the pants of the witnesses. … What does that mean?” Mr. Taylor demanded.
“I’ll leave that to you,” Ms. Morton replied.
“You are familiar with the saying, ‘Liar, liar, pants on fire?’ ” Mr. Taylor asked. “Are you saying they lied?”
In reply, Ms. Morton said the cartoon was meant to mock scientists for refusing to recognize the existence of a fatal salmon disease that she says has been detected in Fraser River sockeye.
Huge numbers of salmon have been dying in the river before they have a chance to spawn, and Kristi Miller, head of molecular genetics at the federal Pacific Biological Station in Nanaimo, has done research suggesting a salmon leukemia virus is to blame. Ms. Miller’s work is still preliminary, however, and some scientists disagree with her theories.
But Ms. Morton told the inquiry she thinks the evidence strongly suggests wild salmon have picked up the virus when migrating past fish farms in Georgia Strait, and she did not apologize for posting the cartoon.
“When I see an ecosystem being destroyed, I will use what tools I can,” she said as the cartoon was projected on large screens around the hearing room.
Mr. Taylor drew groans of protest from the audience when he asked questions about Ms. Morton’s education at American University in Washington, D.C., which he described as a liberal arts college known for fostering protest.
Ms. Morton, who graduated in 1977, said she chose that university because it was close to where she then lived with her mother.
Clifton Prowse, lawyer for the B.C. government, also focused on Ms. Morton’s attendance at American University, where she got a bachelor of science degree, and questioned her ability to do credible research on disease and sea lice issues.
But Ms. Morton, a biologist, said the measure of her work should be taken from the prestigious science journals that have published her findings, noting that her papers have been subject to rigorous peer review.
The effort by government lawyers to challenge Ms. Morton’s credibility frequently stirred audible protest from the packed public gallery, and the line of questioning took the focus off the disease.
“I actually have enormous experience [dealing with disease and sea lice issues] and I’m sorry I wasn’t able to speak to that,” she said.
At the close of the day, Mr. Cohen did not admonish Ms. Morton for her breach of the rules. But he thanked her along with three other panel members for appearing – and he addressed Ms. Morton as Dr. Morton, in recognition of the honorary degree she has received from Simon Fraser University for her work on salmon.
