441-02236 (Fisheries)

We, the undersigned residents of Canada, draw the attention of the House to the following:

WHEREAS:

A public survey done in 2011 found that 70% of British Columbians agree with the statement that, "wild Pacific salmon are as important to British Columbians as the French language is to Quebeckers";

The Fraser River sockeye run unexpectedly collapsed in 2009, with only 1 million of the expected 10 million salmon returning to spawn;

This collapse prompted the Government of Canada to launch a comprehensive Federal Commission of Inquiry, headed by the Honourable Bruce Cohen and released in 2012, to investigate the cause of this catastrophic decline;

Among the 75 recommendations stemming from Justice Cohen's inquiry were:

• The Government of Canada should remove from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans mandate the promotion of salmon farming as an industry and farmed salmon as a product,
• The Department of Fisheries and Oceans should explicitly consider proximity to migrating Fraser River sockeye when siting salmon farms, should consider relocating existing salmon farms that are too close to existing salmon runs, and should consider prohibiting net-pen salmon farming altogether, especially in the Discovery Islands,
• Department of Fisheries and Oceans should encourage British Columbia to require users of pesticides in forestry and agriculture to record, and report annually to the province, the areas where pesticides were applied and the amounts used, and
• To improve future sustainability of the Fraser River sockeye, the Government of Canada should champion, within Canada and internationally, reasonable steps to address the causes of warming waters and climate change; and

Years later, the recommendations made by Justice Cohen in the Inquiry have yet to be implemented.

THEREFORE, YOUR PETITIONERS call upon the House of Commons to act on the precautionary principle and immediately implement all of the 75 recommendations made by Justice Cohen to save our salmon.