Three salmon farming companies and two First Nations that support fish farming are challenging federal Fisheries and Oceans Minister Joyce Murray’s decision last month not to renew federal licences for 15 salmon farms in the Discovery Islands.
Grieg Seafood, Mowi Canada West, Cermaq and the We Wai Kai and Wai Wai Kum First Nations are asking the Federal Court for a judicial review.
Mowi Canada said it had an obligation to its employees to fight what it called an “unlawful” government decision. About 300 Mowi workers have lost their jobs as a result of the order to shut down salmon farms, according to the company’s filings in support of a judicial review.
“Mowi has an obligation to protect its employees, fish and business at large from significant harm caused by unlawful and unreasonable government decisions,” the company said in a statement.
“The continued absence of procedural fairness afforded by both ministers throughout the process of licensing renewals within the Discovery Islands region leaves our company no other option than to seek the court’s intervention.”
As for the We Wai Kai and Wei Wei Kum, they are seeking a declaration that the fisheries minister’s order “was inconsistent with the honour of the Crown and constitutes a breach of Canada’s duty to consult and accommodate the applicants in respect of their aboriginal rights and title.”
On Feb. 17, Murray announced by press release that her predecessor’s order shutting down open-net salmon farms in the Discovery Islands by June 2022 would stand.
In 2020, former fisheries minister Bernadette Jordan informed salmon farmers in the Discovery Islands that their federal licences would not be renewed, and ordered all salmon farms in the region off the water by June 2022.
Those farms represented about 25 per cent of the salmon farming production in B.C. All but one of the salmon farms that had operated in the region have vacated the area.
While they complied with the order to shut down, salmon farmers successfully challenged Jordan’s decree in court. A Federal Court last year found Jordan’s order lacked procedural fairness and it was set aside.
As her successor, Murray was obliged to hold a round of consultations with the industry and other stakeholders, but at the end of the day she reaffirmed her predecessor’s original decision not to renew 15 of 19 federal licences.
One chinook salmon farm operated by Saltstream will continue to operate in the Discovery Islands. All the rest have vacated.
