Watershed Watch Salmon Society

"It’s a pretty big thing to have remained overlooked for so long."

Over the last several years, the federal government has been developing Canada’s first ever aquaculture act. We were shocked to learn the new aquaculture act may exempt factory fish farms from important environmental laws like the Fisheries Act! Public consultations are open until Feb 14. Let our decison-makers know we need an aquaculture act that protects coastal waters and wild fish. Send an email now with our easy one-click tool!

"For years, ocean sunfish, or mola, spotted off Canada's West Coast, were identified as Mola mola, the most abundant and widespread ocean sunfish species found in the Northern Hemisphere. But now, researchers are identifying a number of these fish as Mola tecta, or hoodwinker sunfish, a species previously thought only to exist in the Southern Hemisphere. They're finding them as far north as Alaska."

Wondering about the difference between transient and resident orcas and the effects of dwindling salmon returns? This is a great read!

Looking for something to watch tonight?

A great reminder about fish farm consultations happening right now between DFO and the seven Nations that have overlapping territories in the Discovery Islands; Kwiakah, We Wai Kai, We Wai Kum (Laich-kwil-tach Nations) and Komox, Homalco, Klahoose, and Tla’amin. The federal licences of these farms (owned by Mowi, Cermaq and Grieg) expire December 18, 2020.

We believe that if we can go back to the foundation of our teachings, the foundation of what our elders knew, that it would help us in the long run, Campbell said, adding that merging traditional knowledge with Western science is the best of both worlds.

Now that all three parties have released their election platforms, we've added links to these here in this blog. There is also a list of town halls and all-candidates meetings, and some suggestions of questions about salmon and water to ask your candidates.

Have you ever seen a basking shark? What wonders lurk beneath the ocean's surface!

Fraser steelhead were once world-renowned but are now critically endangered. Provincial and federal politicians are dragging their feet on taking action to reverse the decline. Join provincial steelhead biologist Robert Bison to find out more about these iconic fish, their current status, and what can be done to bring them back.

EDIT: We're adding all-candidates meetings as we hear about them. Please let us know about any missing from our list. And keep checking back for meetings in your area. The BC election is coming up fast. Have you asked your candidates what they plan to do for wild salmon and clean water? We've compiled some questions you can ask, and a list of all-candidates meetings across the province. Get out there and take a stand for wild salmon!

The salmon life cycle is a true wonder to witness. B.C. wild salmon begin their lives in rivers and streams all over the province, migrate out to sea where they spend 1 or more years, before returning to their natal streams to spawn and die. Unfortunately, this year we are seeing very low returns in many streams. Let us know how the returns are in your area.

We've made some big steps forward in our efforts to protect the lower Fraser and other watersheds for fish and wildlife while putting people back to work and investing in our economy and our communities. That said, there remains a lot of blocked fish habitat out there that needs to be opened up. Find out more about our Connected Waters campaign.

"B.C.’s spending on wildlife and habitat protection has declined by 65 per cent over the past 20 years as wild populations of caribou and endangered runs of steelhead and salmon plumb new lows, according to an analysis by the B.C. Wildlife Federation."

The B.C. government is stalling on their commitment to create an endangered species law and time is running out for B.C.'s 1,800 species at risk including a number of wild salmon and steelhead populations. That means B.C. has no laws prohibiting harm to species at risk (other than hunting regulations), no laws protecting critical habitat, and no laws requiring recovery planning or implementation for species at risk.

Curious about where BC Liberal Party BC Greens and BC NDP stand on climate & environmental issues? Find out straight from the source! Attend the (virtual) debate next Thurs, Oct 15 at 7pm Zoom space is limited, register here: http://ow.ly/viob50BLs5W Or join the facebook live: https://www.facebook.com/events/421717295462547

Check out our World Rivers Day Photo Contest winners! Thanks to everyone who participated. We were blown away by the quality and number of photos submitted. We also want to send out a huge thanks to our sponsors Hook And Vice, Patagonia, Yellow Dog Brewing and to author and fly fisher Art Lingren. #worldriversday #bcriversday

This year, returns in many places are much lower than expected. Please, post in the comments and let us know how the runs are in your area. And feel free to suggest viewing spots that have not yet been added to this list!

Wild salmon are not one place. They go in the ocean, they go up rivers, they spawn. All First Nations (along that route) should be consulted, said Robert Phillips, political executive for the First Nations summit and member of the Northern Secwepemc te Qelmucw (Shuswap) of the Canim Lake First Nation." #Fishfarmsout

If we want our wild salmon to survive, we need to do everything we can to give them a fighting chance. That means getting #FISHFARMSOUT of B.C. waters and away from wild salmon migration routes. Find out more and send a letter to your MP today. https://watershedwatch.ca/safe-passage

We received an incredible number of truly amazing photos for our Rivers Day photo contest! We will be announcing our winners on Monday, but in the meantime, here is a little taster of some of the submissions. And yes, all of the more than 125 submissions were this good! #BCRiversDay #WorldRiversDay

This week, we expected the Union of BC Municipalities to vote on Resolution NR16 Flood Risk Mitigation Through Green Infrastructure and Natural Assets at their (virtual) AGM. Unfortunately, due to technical issues, some of the resolutions were not voted on and are postponed until a future meeting. We will keep you in the loop when we hear more!

Glad to see sockeye mentioned here, despite not being officially classed as "endangered." We would also like to put in a word for Thompson and Chilcotin steelhead who, despite being on the brink of extinction, the federal government decided not to protect under Canada’s Species At Risk Act.