Watershed Watch’s 2026 Salmon Outlook says this year’s salmon returns are expected to be shaped by difficult freshwater and ocean conditions, including drought, low snowpack, wildfire impacts, warm river temperatures, and shifting marine food webs. The article explains that salmon forecasts are becoming harder to predict as climate change disrupts long-standing environmental patterns. Some indicators, […]

The Times reports on the growing shift toward land-based salmon farming as companies look for ways to meet seafood demand while reducing the environmental impacts linked to open-net pen aquaculture. The article highlights concerns with conventional ocean-based salmon farms, including escapes, pollution, disease, sea lice, fish welfare issues, and the risk of farmed salmon interbreeding […]

Gold River Aquafarms is developing a land-based recirculating aquaculture system facility in Gold River, B.C., designed to produce steelhead salmon without relying on open-net pens in coastal waters. The company says its project will be a 3,000-metric-ton land-based steelhead farm and the largest approved facility of its kind in Canada. Built on the site of […]

The Pacific Salmon Foundation reports that a global coalition of salmon conservation organizations is calling for faster action to restore the rivers, streams, and estuaries wild salmon need to survive. Released ahead of International Wild Salmon Day, the joint statement warns that wild salmon across the Northern Hemisphere are facing severe pressure from habitat degradation, […]

Wild salmon conservation organizations held a news conference in Ottawa calling on the federal government to complete and release its draft Salmon Aquaculture Transition Plan, which would confirm the phase-out of open-net pen salmon farms in B.C. coastal waters by June 30, 2029. Speakers from the Pacific Salmon Foundation, Watershed Watch Salmon Society, the David […]

Fisheries and Oceans Canada is reviewing the Pacific Salmon Allocation Policy, which was first introduced in 1999 to guide how allowable Pacific salmon catch is allocated among First Nations, commercial, and recreational fisheries. DFO says the policy needs to be updated because salmon management has changed significantly since 1999, including new conservation requirements for stocks […]

Raincoast Conservation Foundation reports that a new Simon Fraser University study found juvenile Chinook salmon in the Lower Fraser River estuary are being exposed to a complex mix of contaminants while they feed and grow in critical habitat. Researchers detected hundreds of organic contaminants in water and fish tissue samples, including pharmaceuticals, personal care products, […]

Watershed Watch’s 2026 Salmon Outlook summarizes the environmental conditions that will influence wild salmon returning to B.C. rivers this year, based on DFO’s annual outlook process. The article explains that salmon returning in 2026 have faced a mix of difficult freshwater and ocean conditions throughout their life cycles, including drought, low river flows, warm water […]

RBC highlights how First Nations in British Columbia are leading salmon conservation work by restoring habitat, rebuilding stewardship capacity, and reconnecting salmon recovery with Indigenous knowledge and governance. The article features Jordan Point, Executive Director of the Indigenous Stewardship Fund and Councillor of the Musqueam Indian Band, who explains that salmon are central to First […]

APTN reports that salmon conservation groups and First Nations leaders in British Columbia are calling for long-term, sustainable funding to support wild Pacific salmon recovery. The article highlights work being done across B.C. to restore salmon habitat, improve monitoring, support Indigenous-led stewardship, and rebuild salmon populations that continue to face serious pressure from climate change, […]