Happy with farm fish life, North Island Gazette
April 27, 2010 5:00 PM
Dear editor,
My name is Dave Pashley and I worked in the commercial fishing industry on B.C.’s coast for 23 years. The commercial industry provided a comfortable year round living for my family.
As the years progressed, however, I realized more and more that the resource we depended on was facing pressure from declining fish stocks and government decisions that didn’t always make sense.
It was time to look for other employment options. I wanted a livelihood that would offer not only year round employment but which would also be sustainable and mean utilizing the ocean to create instead of always taking away.
Aquaculture made good sense, because the skills I had were transferable to the fish processing facilities. I have now been in the aquaculture industry for 14 years.
I’m the manager of one of BC’s largest processing plants located in Port Hardy, B.C. The plant provides more than 150 well-paying full-time jobs in a community where the unemployment rate has been traditionally high.
I have no regrets about making the transition to aquaculture and I’m proud of the contribution I make to the industry.
Dave Pashley
Port Hardy, B.C.
