Nearly 1 million wild fish died due to ocean-based salmon farming practices that require sea lice to be removed from farmed salmon. This marks a 6x increase from 2021 to 2022.

Conservation groups say the wild fish, primarily herring, are ‘needlessly’ dying at the cost of salmon farming operations.

“Herring are very important because they are a foundational part of the marine food web. They provide food for a whole host of different species of fish, birds and mammals, including chinook salmon which we’re seeing declining in a number of regions,” says Stan Proboszcz, Senior Scientist, Watershed Watch Salmon Society.

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Read full article on Bowen Island Undercurrent here.