There are concerns over the “cozy relationship” between the Novia Scotia Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture (NSDFA) and the aquaculture industry over a review process underway for new industrial salmon farms in Jordan Bay.
Mayday-Shelburne County community group has said that minutes from monthly regulator meetings between the NSDFA and Cooke Aquaculture reveal them working together to put pressure on local fishermen and community members to “further the interests of the aquaculture industry.”
Mayday-Shelburne County representative, Sindy Horncastle, said: "We know for a fact, that on at least two separate occasions, an NSDFA representative visited the homes of fishermen in an attempt to get them to withdraw their opposition to the placement of salmon farms in Jordan Bay.”
The minutes also allegedly reveal poor quality baseline information submitted by Cooke Aquaculture, showing "a lack of transparency and scientific scrutiny of aquaculture development by the provincial government and a total exclusion of fishermen and local communities from the decision making process."
So far, NSDFA has not been back in touch with World Fishing when asked to comment on the minutes.
Meanwhile, Cooke Aquaculture has other problems. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has ordered it to kill and dispose of all of its salmon at its Shelburne fish farm following a viral outbreak.
Back in February, infectious salmon anaemia was also detected at the same site during routine testing.
