Wharfside
April 2017
Q&A with Michelle Bluhm
In this issue Something to think about do: vote May 9th. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Breeding and feeding fish for a lifetime. . . 3
“When you have a happy team, work is easy and life is good.”
Marine Harvest’s Roy Kristian to the rescue. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 North Island College readies for aquaculture technician training . . . . . . . . . . . 4 First salmon BBQ of the summer!. . . . . . . . . 4 $92,000 of support for local salmon foundation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Did you Know? Ninety per cent of the world’s potato varieties come from Chiloé Island in Chile.
Trivia time! In what year did New Zealand’s rugby team first perform the pre-match “haka”? Answer on Page 4
Comments about this Newsletter? Please email comments, articles and ideas to Ian Roberts, Director of Public Affairs, at ian.roberts@marineharvest.com
International Women’s Day (March 8th) celebrates the social, economic, cultural and political achievement of women. According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, one in two workers in the seafood industry today are women. Women are essential contributors to different sectors of the industry including fisheries, aquaculture, seafood processing and all related services. Women represent 70 per cent of the total workforce in aquaculture. You will find women doing everything-including raising
fish, preparing them for fresh sales, or cutting filets to be frozen or packaged in tins. In fish farming, women represent the dominant proportion of the labour force. To celebrate International Women’s Day, the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) interviewed Michelle Bluhm, Site Manager at Monday Rock in Quatsino. Michelle runs one of the first farms in North America certified by the ASC salmon standard. The ASC featured her Q&A on its website at asc-aqua.org.
Something to think about do: vote May 9th By Ian Roberts Director of Public Affairs
I confess: when I became old enough to vote, I didn’t. And when I began to vote in my twenties, I just voted for the candidate whose name I could remember on the campaign sign nearest the elections office. I may as well have flipped a loonie. I fully admit that I was not a vital contributor to our democratic society. But then as I grew into my career as a salmon farmer I started to realize that the political party in power can affect my livelihood – for better or for worse. So I became much more involved in asking
candidates how they would personally support my career, and clarifying their political party’s platform regarding salmon farming in British Columbia. Marine Harvest Canada employs 530 families who mainly reside in the middle and north regions of Vancouver Island. It’s a massive area with only two electoral districts represented provincially or federally, so those 530 family votes have a huge influence on who represents our careers in Victoria or Ottawa. A huge influence…if we vote.
MHC’s environmental survey vessel pulls alongside Chancellor after completing a DFO compliance survey, March 16, 2017.
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Liberal? Green? NDP? Independent? Who should represent you in Victoria? It’s absolutely your choice on May 9th. But here’s the kicker. There are political parties and candidates who demand salmon farms be removed from the ocean, effectively ending our jobs. You should know who these people are. So ask your candidate the important questions. Talk to your friends, colleagues, and family. Don’t just think about it – actually do it. Make your vote count in British Columbia’s election on May 9th.
Breeding and feeding fish for a lifetime catfish, all the common pet store varieties,” Kyle says. ““I had a bunch of tanks in my bedroom where I grew whatever I wanted.” He has bred more than a dozen species of exotic fish, though hardly ever goldfish which were “boring and easy”.
By Gina Forsyth
Kyle Fairbanks is a specialist at breeding and growing small fish in indoor tanks. Nowadays, he applies his fish husbandry skills to growing Atlantic salmon fry at Marine Harvest’s Dalrymple Hatchery. Growing up in Lillooet, B.C., it wasn’t unusual for Kyle to have up to 20 aquariums in his home. “My Dad bred all types of exotic fish. Freshwater angels, guppies, mollies, platties,
His father’s hobby turned into Kyle’s profession. In the early 1990s, he moved to Vancouver Island to study aquaculture at Malaspina College, now Vancouver Island University. Teaming up with six classmates, he started a business growing tropical aquarium fish. The group bred and sold five production fish, creating full time, yearround work. At its peak, their system had more than one million fish in 24 custombuilt recirculation units. “We would fill the van with fish and take them as far as Seattle to be sold,” Kyle says. “We got to know the fish and wildlife officer at the border pretty well.”
Omega. It was his first experience raising Atlantic salmon fry. “I think the early stages of fish growth are the most exciting,” he says. “It’s unbelievable how well they grow.” He’s now been growing fry for 17 years. He was managing United Hatchery when it closed, and then he moved to Dalrymple Hatchery in Sayward. “I managed the incubation department and first feeding for a few years and now I just focus on fry,” Kyle says. Is he still growing and selling tropical fish on the side? No. His two tanks at home are “community tanks full of random fish” and his children (aged nine and 18) haven’t developed a taste for aquaculture, yet. When he’s not feeding fish, you can find Kyle camping, travelling or enjoying a music festival. Tribune Bay on Hornby Island is one of his family’s favourite summer spots.
In 2000, Kyle started work at United Hatchery in Fanny Bay, owned by one of Marine Harvest’s predecessor companies,
Marine Harvest’s Roy Kristian to the rescue The Frosti lost power while fishing near Port Hardy on Monday and the Roy Kristian responded, leaving its moorage at the Seine Floats to meet the Frosti, tow her into Hardy Bay and skillfully nestle her to the dock at Seagate, under the watchful eyes of the coast guard and Port Hardy Harbour master Leah Robinson.
Photo and story by John Harding/North Island Gazette MarineHarvest.ca
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North Island College readies for aquaculture technician training The B.C. government and North Island College (NIC) have partnered on a new $600,000 labour-market project that will boost aquaculture in B.C. and help residents become aquaculture technicians in the future.
This project started in February this year, and is expected to finish in spring 2020. The project committee will develop curriculum as well as materials for aquaculture technician training levels 3 and 4, with the goal to pilot the new courses in 2018 and
2019 to 40 students at its Campbell River campus. Read the full announcement at https://news.gov.bc.ca/ releases/2017JTST0099-000804
First salmon BBQ of the summer!
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Charity
Date
Location
Serving Time
Campbell River Killer Whales Swim Club: Easter Event
15-Apr-17
Campbell River - Spirit Square
Lunch
Habitat for Humanity - Vancouver Island North Society Earth Day of Music
22-Apr-17
K’omoks Band Hall
Lunch
Mt Washington Ski Club Royal LePage 35th Annual Snow to Surf Relay
23-Apr-17
Comox Marina Park
Lunch
MarineHarvest.ca Answer: 1888
There’s no better way to spend Easter Saturday, April 15, than at Spirit Square in Campbell River, chowing down on a salmon burger or salmon noodle salad, lovingly prepared by MHC chefs Cori and Pierre. All proceeds go directly to the Campbell River Killer Whales.
Safety Conference By Joy Stowe, Brainsafe Facilitator
The 8th Annual Upper Island Safety Conference being held at the Sportsplex in Campbell River on May 29th and 30th is a great place to increase your safety knowledge and gather some new ideas to implement at your sites.
Participants in an introduction to aquaculture course at North Island College visited Duncan and Bell Islands. It is the
first time the course has been offered in Port Hardy, and we were happy to help out with a tour.
There are a variety of workshops (i.e. Joint Health and Safety Committee, Your Eyes, Sleep, Post Earthquake Survival); trade show booths with the latest technologies and gadgets; keynote speakers to engage and motivate you. This two-day conference is ideal for safety committee members, supervisors, managers and anyone responsible for safety at work. Early bird registration is April 8th ($235 for two days, lunches, nutrition breaks) and purchase orders can be used. There is an additional one-day Post Conference workshop ($325) for supervisors and managers to further increase leadership skills. Please contact me or any member of the Health & Safety team for a copy of the registration package.
Meanwhile, further south, students from the University of Victoria joined Farm Technician Ryan Wogan (far left) while
visiting Philips Arm with the BC Salmon Farmers Association.
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L-R Troy Wilson, CRSF, Renée Hamel, MHC, Kent Moeller CRSF, Nadine Gibbs, MHC, and Don Bendickson, CRSF. Photo by John Deal.
$92,000 of support for local salmon foundation Marine Harvest Canada donated $10,000 to support salmon conservation in the Campbell River watersheds, totaling $92,000 in donations over the past decade. Marine Harvest Canada’s Phil Heyward presented the Campbell River Salmon Foundation (CRSF) with the donation at its annual fundraising dinner on March 11. The company has been a supporting partner since the Foundation’s inception in 2007. CRSF board member Kent Moeller says it has been invaluable to have had consistent support from a local aquaculture company.
“Our Foundation started ten years ago and Marine Harvest has returned every year with cash donations to support our conservation work. This type of long term partnership gives us the confidence to continue important restoration and enhancement work.” Marine Harvest’s Director of Environmental Performance, Sharon DeDominicis, says salmon conservation is a good fit for the company’s community investment program. “We see the positive results of critical habitat restoration in local river systems and
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estuaries,” says Sharon. “We are grateful to be able to support the important work of the Foundation and its volunteers.” In 2016, Marine Harvest Canada provided financial support to various B.C. salmon conservation organizations including Oyster River Salmon Enhancement, Tsolum River Restoration Society, Goldstream Volunteer Salmonid Enhancement Association, Quatse Salmon Stewardship Centre, Kitasoo Salmon Enhancement, Campbell River Salmon Foundation, and the Pacific Salmon Foundation.
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