Editor's note: This article was updated with a response from Mowi Canada West on Sept. 18.
Three north Vancouver Island First Nations are sounding the alarm after a research team found hundreds of sea lice per fish on young chum salmon near Port Hardy at the end of August.
'Namgis hereditary chief and retired fisher Homiskanis (Don Svanvik) said he received photographs on Aug. 28 showing that juvenile salmon migrating through the remaining 10 salmon farms still operating off Port Hardy are infected with early-stage lice. The research conducted in Port Alexander indicates the lice became attached in the area with the salmon farms, he said in a press release on Sept. 9.
"I am not one to tell another Nation how to manage their territory, but I am also not going to sit idle while young salmon suffer this fate as soon as they leave the protection we provide in 'Namgis Territory," said Homiskanis.
In 2018, the provincial government signed an agreement with the Mamalilikulla, 'Namgis, and Ḵwiḵwa̱sut'inux̱w Ha̱xwa'mis First Nations, known as the Broughton Archipelago Transition Initiative, which led to the phased removal of open-net salmon farms in the Broughton Archipelago to protect and restore wild Pacific salmon.
Before each farm was removed, Homiskanis explained, the Nations' members performed monthly sea lice counts and disease sampling on the fish in the farms. They reviewed all lice treatment schedules, enforced strict limits on the total number of lice per farm, and said they witnessed the negative repercussions of the farms firsthand.
Since the removal of salmon farms, wild salmon returns have reached levels not seen in decades.
The 'Namgis say the skyrocketing returns this year are due to the closure of the salmon farms in the Broughton, while Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) suggests the clearing of the Big Bar landslide on the Upper Fraser River may have played a role. Because sockeye return in four-year cycles, this is the first brood to return to the river having had access four years ago in 2021, once the landslide was cleared.
According to a report co-authored by Homiskanis and independent researcher Alex Morton, chum salmon returns to the Viner River on Gilford Island in the Broughton increased 22 times compared to recent years. Additionally, pink salmon numbers in the Ahnuhati River ballooned from an average of 12,000 fish over the previous three generations to 106,000 in 2024.
Homiskanis pointed to Mowi Canada West data in its recent reporting, which reveals that five out of their six active farms near Port Hardy were over the lice limit DFO considers safe for young wild salmon in July.
"We are well aware of the so-called debate over the impacts of salmon farms, but remember that we were on the farms, did the research, we are collaborating with many scientists – we know what is going on in these farms, and this is what happens to wild salmon when farm lice numbers go up," Homiskanis continued. "This has to stop."
Mia Parker, director of environmental performance and certification with Mowi, said all of their salmon farms are operating in compliance with regulations.
"While the levels we reported were greater than three motile lice, this is outside the sensitive window and does not exceed regulation nor pose a risk to wild fish," Parker wrote in an email. "We continue to manage lice levels cautiously for the long-term benefit of wild and farmed fish, even outside the sensitive period for out-migrating wild juvenile salmon."
She added that climate change is affecting Pacific salmon stock ranges, but strong returns are seen in some southern regions. Analyses of sea lice data indicate that factors like climate and ocean conditions, rather than the presence of salmon farms, influence lice levels on juvenile salmon.
Brian Kingzett, BC Salmon Farmers Association executive director, said sea lice are naturally occurring parasites that have lived alongside wild Pacific salmon for millions of years, long before salmon farming existed in B.C.
"One of the most complete scientific reviews to date, published in Scientific Data this July, looked at more than 20 years of monitoring across B.C.’s coast," Kingzett wrote in an email. "It included nearly 100 farm sites and over 365,000 wild salmon. That research showed that heavily infested wild salmon comprised less than 0.04 per cent of all fish sampled."
Kingzett noted that without specific details about the samples, such as the number of fish, where they were sampled, or the credentials of the data collectors, it's impossible to determine if the findings represent a broader trend or just isolated cases.
But Homiskanis said he is confident in the validity of the research. He said one of the researchers, Jody Eriksson, who has been conducting research with Farlyn Campbell, has been sampling wild juvenile salmon for research on the impacts of sea lice from salmon farms for nearly two decades.
"The number of lice on those fish in the photographs is almost unbelievable," Homiskanis told the Mirror. "Is this going to happen naturally? No."
- with files from Mark Page
