Biologist Alexandra Morton is planning a 500 km walk from Sointula, on Malcolm Island, to Victoria in April and May. It's the next step in an ongoing campaign to force the provincial and federal governments to start protecting wild salmon.
Writing on her blog, Morton reported some successes in the battle:
Every week is bringing much needed progress on the issue of fish farm impact on our oceans. The courts are behind us every step of the way. Now if we can just communicate to our politicians that wild salmon must be given top legislated priority over farm fish, because wild salmon are essential to our economics and ecology, supporting towns and 200 species, including us.
This week Simon Fraser University announced they are awarding me an honorary Doctoral Degree in Science! I am so happy about this. I am so hoping this helps people understand that the science I have done with my colleagues on the impact of salmon farms has the support of my peers, that it is real and valid and managers must separate farm and wild salmon.
Morton also updated her readers on the threat of drug-resistant salmon being processed in a way that could spread that resistance:
Jody Eriksson and Twyla Roscovich dove down 90’ again to check the effluent pipe where the Grieg salmon are being processed and found blood and fish guts are still pouring into the Fraser River migration route. We all know blood carries disease. It is negligent of government to allow this to continue.
This week’s sample contained sea lice and a live salmon intestinal worm. Is this effluent a factor in the collapse of our Fraser sockeye? The provincial Ministry of Agriculture and Lands is not bringing the science of epidemiology to this issue to protect wild salmon.
The Hook reported on this issue in February.
Morton says she's getting in shape for her walk by blogging while on a treadmill.
Crawford Kilian is a contributing editor of The Tyee.
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crankypants
2 years ago
She
She should be given the Order of Canada for her tireless effort to expose the state of our wild salmon and the effects the fish farms are having on it. Those that discount her efforts should hang their collective heads in shame.
She has had no public relations juggernaut at her disposal, but has soldiered on in her effort to educate both government and the people of BC on the state of our fisheries.
May the force be with her.
Fiat lux
2 years ago
I only hope she won't have
I only hope she won't have an "accident", as she's cutting into the powers' profit making machines.
Ed Deak.
bpither1
2 years ago
One day those who condemn
One day those who condemn her will repackage their views as common sense. Will the public forget? If history is any precedent they probably will.
I shall forever remain in admiration of her guts
sunshine coast girl
2 years ago
Much as I admire Alexandra...
It's pretty hard to walk from Sointula. It's on an island. Now Port McNeill is a different story.
freebear
2 years ago
You go girl!
Too bad no politician ever was awarded an honourary degree in common sense!
Illahie
2 years ago
Have a good walk
Morton is harmless enough, except for the millions of dollars she has caused us taxpayers in researching her bogus claims.
She is good for THETYEE as well, because she stirs up public opinion, which is good for readership. Pity though, the poor Crawford Killian who has been lead like a sheep to slaughter, blindly following her every whim and utterance. He has so much invested in this story now that he will probably never admit that he has had the wool pulled over his eyes.
Frank
2 years ago
Illahie
Did you just say it would be better if millions hadn't been spent on research?
I think you did.
Spoken like a true fan of industry running roughshod over the environment.
Illahie
2 years ago
Frank
We need to spend a lot more money on fisheries research. DFO has made horrible cutbacks to stock assessments and basic research going back to the 1970's.
There is a huge void in our knowledge of fisheries management, it is called ocean survival. DFO's position has been that ocean survival cannot be controlled, so why study it. It looks like the biggest mortalities in ocean survival happen in the first 30 days after salmon head to sea. We may be able to influence ocean survival by migration timing. We know that larger fish migrate to sea sooner than smaller fish. Techniques such as lake fertilization can be used to increase size and survival of salmon fry. Lake fertilization can also change migration timing.
If we spent some more money on basic research, the potential benefits could be huge.
DFO took Morton's claims seriously, and they used some of their best scientific talent on a multi-year multi-million dollar study.
Those researchers and the research funds could have been much better spent elsewhere.
Frank
2 years ago
Illahie
And so because of Morton the federal and provincial coffers are bare?
I don't buy it, if they wanted to study whatever, they would have done it.
Fact is, wild salmon are endangered and salmon farming is protected. The government would never allow salmon farming to be found guilty of anything.