Salmon Steward is the official publication of the Pacific Salmon Foundation in British Columbia, Canada
Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/1379981
GOVERNMENT RELATIONS 8 Spring 2021 psf.ca (TOP) MARK HOBSON C ommunity supporters are the backbone of the Pacific Salmon Foundation. This past January, we learned about the passing of Cliff Jackman, a longtime champion of PSF from Nanaimo. Cliff was born and raised on Vancouver Island; his chosen careers included land surveyor and commercial fisherman. In his free time, he enjoyed hunting and gardening – many friends and neighbours will attest to his gifts of homegrown vegetables. But his passion for conservation is what set him apart, and we were honoured to learn that Cliff left a gift in his estate to PSF in support of salmon conservation and restoration projects across B.C. – ensuring that his legacy will benefit generations to come. Longtime friend and fellow salmon champion Mel Sheng speaks fondly of Cliff: "I was first introduced to Cliff when developing a restoration project in Nanaimo's Bowen Park in 2007. He cared immensely about salmon and immediately donated the balance of money required to complete this project. He was a generous financial supporter of many salmon initiatives in central Vancouver Island, including PSF's fundraising Dinner & Auction in Nanaimo, but always wanted to remain anonymous. Cliff cared deeply about many other environmental programs, but salmon was his passion and he always offered his financial support. He especially valued the role volunteers played in leveraging funding and the stewardship they provided in maintaining projects to ensure long-lasting productivity and longevity. I'm proud to call him a friend who has left the salmon community a better place." If you would like to make a memorial gift in honour of Cliff Jackman to further support community salmon stewardship, please visit psf.ca. n PLANNED GIVING COMMUNITY SUPPORTER BECOMES LEGACY DONOR PSF encourages estate and memorial contributions in support of its programs. Please contact Margaret Buttner, manager, annual & planned giving, for a confidential conversation about what your legacy might look like. 604.664.7664 or mbuttner@psf.ca. Vancouver Island University students participate in a beach seine to collect Coho for tracking. The study was made possible through restoration work on the Millstone River supported by Cliff Jackman. R ecently, Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) Minister Bernadette Jordan decided to phase out open-net aquaculture in the Discovery Islands. The Pacific Salmon Foundation encouraged this decision based on findings from our Strategic Salmon Health Initiative (SSHI), which indicate that such open-net salmon farms play a significant role in spreading disease to wild Pacific salmon. We also commend the Homalco, Klahoose, K'ómoks, Kwaikah, Tla'amin, We Wai Kai and Wei Wai Kum First Nations for their consultation work with DFO on this issue. In January, PSF made a formal submission to DFO's consultation on the proposed new federal Aquaculture Act. Our submission stressed the need for protecting wild Pacific salmon and their ecosystems to be the top priority of the federal government on this issue, and that all aquaculture proposals must meet the requirements of the Fisheries Act. Our additional points supported First Nations involvement in aqua- culture decisions, application of the precautionary principle, and the need for science to minimize interactions between aquaculture and wild fish populations. We are optimistic that our research will aid in the transition from open-net salmon farming – an important step in restoring and sustaining salmon populations. On that note, PSF has appointed a new staff point person for the aquaculture transition; with a PhD in population biology from the University of Cambridge (U.K.), Andrew Bateman brings more than a decade of experience with salmon and salmon farming in B.C. New results from the SSHI continue to pour in, and our peer-reviewed publications have yielded considerable insight; one, out this year, explored the patterns of infectious agents in farmed salmon, from hatcheries right through to harvest. This and other hard evidence only serve to reaffirm PSF's position on aquaculture. n B.C. AQUACULTURE REFORM: PUTTING WILD SALMON FIRST PSF IS PROUD to announce the renewal of the Salmon Conservation Stamp agreement with the federal government for another five years. This funding is the backbone of PSF's Community Salmon Program. Purchases of the $6 decal by saltwater anglers are funnelled via grants to thousands of volunteers and citizen scientists across B.C. This year's winner from our annual stamp competition is Mark Hobson's Chinook Salmon: Breaking Through (above). Contact salmon@psf.ca to purchase a signed print.