By Bob Brown
The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) has authorized Cooke Aquaculture to transport 1.8 million Atlantic eggs from its Vogar facility in Iceland to the company’s Scatter Creek hatchery in Rochester. The department issued the transfer permit Oct. 10 after ensuring Cooke met all the fish health standards required under state law to import Atlantic salmon eggs., officials said
Cooke operates salmon net pens at eight locations in Puget Sound, including at Cypress Island, where one pen collapsed on Aug. 19, resulting in the release of tens of thousands of Atlantic salmon into Puget Sound. After the incident, which is under investigation, Governor Jay Inslee directed no permits be issued for new aquaculture net pens while the incident was being investigated. WDFW dooen't have the authority to deny Cooke’s request to import healthy Atlantic salmon eggs which will mature at the hatchery into juvenile fish and eventually be used in net pen operations.
So what about Atlantic salmon?
The fish aren't a native fish here and for years have been bred to become easier to farm. According to the WDFW, they are a favored species to farm in cold marine waters because they grow quickly, are resistant to disease and more docile than wild salmon. In the U.S., Washington and Maine are the two largest Atlantic salmon producing states.
So how long have Atlantic salmon been in Northwest waters? In 1951, the WDFW tried to establish wild Atlantic salmon runs by releasing Atlantic salmon smolts into the wild in hopes of creating more salmon fishing opportunities.
The department tried again to establishe wild runs in 1980 and 1981. Atlantic salmon were also released into lakes in an effort to establish fisheries there. Both ventures failed and attempts to establish wild runs outside of the Atlantic ocean have also failed across the U.S.
Research into the use of net pens in Puget Sound and elsewhere started in the 1960s and '70s. At first, much of the research was focused on helping wild salmon runs on the east coast. When those efforts worked, a commercial industry started popping up.
Ray Hilborn, a professor with the University of Washington, said, “So far, no Atlantic salmon have established themselves in Pacific Northwest waters, because farmed Atlantic salmon don’t survive well in the wild because they are used to being fed.”
Ron Warren of the WDFW said the department had concerns farmed salmon would out–compete native salmon for food and spawning grounds, but so far haven’t done either, and there isn’t any evidence Atlantic salmon have spawned or crossbred with other salmon species.
Atlantic salmon have been bred to more efficiently turn feed into flesh. What used to cost several dollars per pound to grow worldwide, now costs about $1.25. That makes for higher profits, plus Atlantic salmon are available year-round, unlike wild-caught salmon, says Michael Rust, science adviser for NOAA.
Concerns have been raised regarding rearing pen contamination affecting Puget Sound waters. While those concerns may be legitimate, they have not been thoroughly investigated, so the question remains; are Atlantic salmon detrimental to the environment and wild salmon stocks? Also, do we want salmon aquaculture in our region? There doesn’t seem to be a straight YES/NO answer to either of those questions, however maybe the answer lies somewhere in-between? Thanks to Courtney Flatt, environment reporter, Northwest Public Radio for much of the material in this article.
Bob Brown lives in Roy and is a freelance outdoors writer. He can be reached at robertb1285@centurylink.net.
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