Question Period Note: Morton/’Namgis Lawsuits/PRV

• Our government continues to protect and recover wild Pacific salmon stocks.
• After thorough consideration and analysis, we have determined that testing for the BC strain of PRV-1 is not required to authorize the movement of live fish.
• My department will adapt and adjust its approach to aquaculture management, as needed, as new scientific evidence becomes available.
• We will continue to work with Indigenous communities, industry, environmental groups and the Province of BC to protect wild salmon and enhance environmental sustainability of aquaculture in BC.

• On October 3, 2019 DFO determined that testing for the BC strain of Piscine Orthoreovirus (PRV) 1a is not required prior to authorizing the release or transfer of live fish pursuant to section 56 of the Fishery (General) Regulations (“PRV decision”) because the Department has determined, based on best available science, that the level of risk PRV-1a BC strain poses to wild fish is minimal. The Department then communicated the outcomes of its PRV decision to [Redacted] and the ‘Namgis First Nation.
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• On February 5, 2020, CTV News reported on a new report released the same day by Tofino-based conservation group Clayoquot Action, which says that PRV was found at nearly 100 per cent of the open-net salmon farms tested by the organization in Clayoquot Sound.
• The new article states that “Laboratory testing …found the strain in Clayoquot Sound fish farms is a Norwegian variant of the disease, known as PRV-1a. “ In fact, PRV1a includes both the commonly occurring BC strain and Norwegian strain of low virulence.
• DFO continues to engage the BC government, First Nations, industry, and environmental non-governmental organizations on fish health management approaches via DFO’s Indigenous and Multi-Stakeholder Advisory Body and its Fish Health Technical Working Group.
• DFO will continue to work with the ‘Namgis, both through the Broughton Finfish Aquaculture Transition and Wild Salmon Restoration Implementation Plan process, as well as ongoing dialogue related to a broad range of aquaculture subjects, including fish health.
• The Department is also moving forward on implementing two key management measures as part of our commitment to the precautionary approach:
o Precautionary screening of freshwater hatcheries in BC for two non-native strains of PRV—the Icelandic and Norwegian—to prevent their introduction and spread in BC waters; and,
o Investing resources to enhance monitoring in BC for Heart and Skeletal MuscIe Inflammation (HSMI) in farmed Atlantic salmon and jaundice in farmed Chinook.
• The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is also actively engaged on this issue because the Agency is the federal lead on fish health through the National Aquatic Animal Health Program.

History
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