During the early years of salmon farming in BC, the ocean conditions needed for optimal farmed salmon growth and development – together with protection of the ocean floor ecosystem – were not well understood. As a result, some farms were situated in areas where salmon farming was not compatible with environmental sustainability.

Comprehensive siting criteria ensure that farms are situated well away from species at risk, critical habitats, salmon bearing streams, and other important ecosystem components. After a suitable location that meets these criteria is identified, modelling is carried out to ensure that the amount (biomass) of fish to be cultured is within the carrying capacity of the receiving environment. Regulations establish thresholds that limit the intensity and extent of the impact that the farm may have. These rigorous thresholds are set to ensure that any impacts are temporary and that recovery will occur in a brief and reasonable timeframe.

Early net pens were primarily constructed from wood with nylon knotted netting similar to that traditionally used in the fishing industry. The pens were often moored to the seabed using cables attached to one-ton pieces of concrete. Unable to withstand the winds and tides in exposed coastal areas, the pens were situated in protected waters – often in areas where the marine environment was less suited to supporting sustainable salmon farming.

Net pen systems have evolved significantly from their wood-based predecessors. Ocean pens are now constructed from steel or high-density polyethylene – and are engineered, built, and anchored to the specifications of the operational environment. The net enclosures are manufactured from modern polymers that provide excellent and long-lasting durability, strength, and reliability. Current net pens are anchored to the seabed via sophisticated mooring systems designed and modelled by engineering firms to ensure fitment for the conditions of the infrastructure and the site e.g. engineered to dampen the forces generated by site-specific wave motion. The strength and durability of these innovations allow containment systems to be situated at exposed marine sites with greater capacity to support environmentally sustainable salmon farming – and have reduced fish escapes to almost zero in recent years.

Early feeding practices consisted of hand-feeding – where feed was thrown onto the surface of the water. The amount fed was dependent upon observations by the farm worker throwing the feed – who based feeding decisions on surface feeding behavior.

BC salmon farms now use sophisticated models, real time feedback, and automated feed delivery systems that evenly distribute a set amount of feed throughout the pen at designated times; these innovations optimize fish performance and feed consumption. While feeding, salmon behaviour is closely monitored primarily via underwater video cameras. Automated delivery and underwater monitoring ensure that only the amount of feed that salmon will eat is delivered to the pen; this significantly reduces the amount of feed that falls to the ocean floor, thereby supporting a healthy benthic ecosystem.

Early feed formulations were dependent on fishmeal and fish oil as the primary sources of dietary protein and fat.

To reduce the industry’s dependency on wild fisheries, aquafeed companies are increasingly replacing wild-caught protein and oil sources with alternative plant and animal sources. New sustainable raw ingredients being incorporated into feed include: certified soy and palm oil products, soy protein concentrate, maize gluten, guar meal, and by-products from cereal processing & oil seeds. These alternative and novel raw materials have enabled fish feed companies to develop some salmon feed formulations that are completely fishmeal-free while delivering equal performance in terms of fish growth and health.

For feed formulations that do require marine oil and/or protein, aquafeed companies are increasing their usage of seafood trimmings and locally sourced by-products. The use of trimmings and by-products from wild fisheries upcycles ‘waste’ materials into healthy fish feed. Up to 30% of the marine oil and proteins utilized in some feed formulations is now derived from seafood trimmings and by-products.

Livestock and poultry farmers have used antibiotics to treat and prevent disease, increase feed conversion, and preserve food since the 1930s. Due to the lack of fish vaccines, early salmon farmers followed the lead of livestock and poultry farmers, using antibiotic for the treatment of bacterial diseases.

Continually improving health management practices, combined with vaccination against common pathogens, have facilitated a significant reduction in the use of antibiotics on BC salmon farms. For example, between 1997 and 2017, the use of antibiotics on BC salmon farms declined from 516g to 59g per ton of salmon (89% decrease). Currently, less than 5% of farmed salmon require antibiotic treatment. BC salmon farmers are striving to reduce usage even further – with the goal of eventually eliminating all use of antibiotics.

Globally, fish vaccines were in an early developmental phase until the mid/late 1990s. During this phase, vaccines existed only for a limited number of bacterial infections (e.g. vibrio); vaccines against other diseases were less effective, had side effects, and were extremely expensive to develop and produce.

When disease free, vaccinated juvenile farmed salmon are transferred from hatcheries to ocean net pens, they are challenged by bacterial and viral pathogens that exist naturally within wild salmon populations. Vaccines have been developed against many of the common bacterial and viral pathogens that impact farmed salmon. Vaccination of all juvenile farmed salmon before transfer to the marine environment significantly increases farmed salmon health and reduces the potential of disease transfer to and from wild stocks.

Few diagnostic tools had been developed to evaluate the health status of farmed salmon.

Salmon farmers have developed a sophisticated suite of diagnostic tools – and are going even further with ongoing research and development to continually improve and refine diagnostic testing of both fish and the environment. Fish health testing prior to transfer to the marine environment ensures that only healthy juvenile farmed salmon enter the ocean.

While the species of sea louse most commonly reported on wild and farmed salmon in the Pacific Ocean off BC’s coast is Lepeophtheirus salmonis (L. salmonis), infections and impact from L. salmonis infestations were very rare on BC salmon farms. BC aquaculture veterinarians therefore did not consider sea lice to be a serious health concern for farmed salmon.
In addition to the low pathogenicity of the Pacific L. salmonis, veterinarians also knew that large populations of wild salmon carry significant sea lice loads – and have developed species-specific levels of sea lice resistance. As a result, they did not consider that the limited number of sea lice on salmon farms could impact the already significant sea lice numbers occurring naturally within populations of wild salmon.

Aquaculture veterinarians in BC continue to consider that: (1) L. salmonis poses a low health risk for farmed salmon; (2) L. salmonis from salmon farms do not contribute significantly to the total sea lice loads found in populations of wild salmon. While salmon farms in BC are not scientifically a concern in regard to L. salmonis, it has become a topic of concern for the public. Therefore, as responsible stewards of the marine environment, BC salmon farmers have now developed a full suite of sea lice enumeration methods, prevention strategies, and treatment options to keep sea lice levels below the regulatory threshold. Sea lice numbers are routinely monitored at all BC farm sites to enable optimal use of management tools and minimize risk to wild salmon. Enhanced sea lice and thresholds monitoring is implemented during the juvenile salmon out- migration period to confirm that sea lice levels on farms do not exceed the regulatory threshold.

Prior to discharge into the marine environment, wastewater from the processing of wild and farmed salmon was historically passed through a screen to remove particulate matter.

While wild salmon processing plants continue to primarily rely on screens to remove particulate matter, facilities processing farmed salmon are now equipped with innovative wastewater treatment technologies – including UV and chlorine treatment – that support the health of the marine environment and minimize potential pathogen transfer to wild fish stocks.

The provincial and federal governments permitted salmon farming companies to choose sites without adequate government consultation with the First Nations in whose territory the farms were operating. Not all First Nations had input into siting locations or the environmental performance of farms in their territory – and many received no economic benefit from their operation.

Many Nations and salmon farming companies are on a journey of reconciliation. The sector’s evolution to higher environmental standards has been aided by partnership agreements forged between BC salmon farmers and BC First Nations over the past 20 years. In many of these agreements, the level of environmental performance stipulated by the First Nation partner exceeds that required by Federal regulation. Often, Indigenous guardians monitor farm sites and independent biologists ensure that the production is done according to sustainable principles established by First Nations and companies.

The agreements between BC salmon farmers and BC First Nations demonstrate the role that partnerships can play in achieving meaningful reconciliation. Seventeen First Nations now hold beneficial partnership agreements with BC salmon farmers. Each of these agreements is founded upon the recognition of First Nations’ rights, including the right to exercise jurisdiction over the land, resources, and waters within their territories – rights that form the very core of the reconciliation process.

Each of these partnerships brings significant socioeconomic benefits, business opportunities, and jobs to Indigenous communities – many of which have struggled with economic hardship resulting from declines in resource industries. Partnerships also establish a commitment to work collaboratively – combining expertise and knowledge – for the preservation and protection of wild salmon.

Like Indigenous communities, the economies of other remote coastal communities in BC also suffered greatly from the decline of resource industries.

The development of sustainable salmon farming has offered these communities an economic lifeline by creating a diverse range of supply and service business opportunities – as well as a significant number of direct and indirect jobs. Jobs within the salmon farming sector pay approximately 30% more than the median employment income in BC.

In 1986, BC produced 391 tonnes of farmed salmon with a value of 2.7 million.

BC farmed salmon is the province’s #1 seafood export and #1 agri-food export. In fact, it is BC’s 10th most important export commodity overall. For example, in 2019, BC Salmon Farmers Association members produced 83,180 tonnes of farmed salmon valued at $771 million, creating 353 million meals of high-quality protein. The sector plays a significant role in bringing greater strength and resilience to the province’s food-supply chain.