CAAR and Marine Harvest Canada Negotiating Collaborative Research

In January 2006 the Coastal Alliance for Aquaculture Reform and Marine Harvest Canada completed a "Framework for Dialogue", which among other elements, provides a process for developing collaborative research to explore questions about sea lice and the viability of closed containment aquaculture systems.

Frustrated with the ongoing conflict over the impacts of salmon farming and the continued polarized public debate, both parties are working to foster collaborative efforts toward resolving the contentious issues surrounding open net-cage salmon farming.

Step 1
Establish a foundation for constructive dialogue (read the press release: pdf).

Step 2
Determine terms of reference for the five identified sea lice research questions defined in the Framework agreement and issue a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the two priority projects. In addition, begin collaborative work on analyzing the financial viability and public economic contribution of closed containment aquaculture in comparison with open net-cages.

The terms of reference and the first two RFPs were completed in the fall of 2007 and the economic research was initiated at the same time. CAAR members ensured the research proposals were designed to set a sound foundation for collaborative research that will address sea lice impacts from salmon farms on B.C. wild salmon and an economic comparison that incorporates costs, such as waste disposal, that are borne by the environment when open net-cages are used.

Research teams have responded to the RFPs for two sea lice studies and negotiations are underway to finalize details of the methodology and contract teams to undertake the work:

• RFP #1 will research morbidity and mortality impacts from sea lice on small juvenile salmon, including a field and laboratory component
• RFP #2 looks at identifying the source of sea lice on wild juveniles through a sentinel cage study, coupled with further methodologies to trace the source of lice

A multidisciplinary team has been contracted to carry out a comparison of closed containment and open net-cage salmon farming:

• Comparison of the financial viability of closed containment and open net-cage businesses (private analysis)
• Comparison of each practice from an economic perspective (public analysis), including efficiency of resource use, government expenditure, and generation of revenues and jobs
• Identify and to the extent possible quantify the costs to the environment that are currently externalized by the open net-cage industry and incorporate these into the modeling above

Next Steps
The agreement regarding sea lice RFPs between industry and CAAR members as well as agreement on the economic analysis team offered a rare occasion to celebrate mutual progress. But much work remains.

The sea lice research and economic comparison are integrally interrelated - neither are stand alone projects, progress is needed on both fronts to move forward. Not only must the field research and analyses be approved, initiated and completed to the satisfaction of both CAAR and Marine Harvest Canada, but both parties will also have to negotiate which actions to take based on the teams’ findings.

While these negotiations remain challenging, CAAR hopes that this collaborative effort will continue to progress and will make a substantial contribution towards long term solutions that will enhance the sustainability of salmon farming on the B.C. coast.