First Nations Leadership Council – FNLC Nations involved in the Discovery Island consultation on fish farms are seeking to save wild salmon, and support a shift to land-based aquaculture, and an immediate stop to fish farms in the Discovery Islands. In light of the historic low returns of Pacific wild salmon this year, the First Nations Leadership Council (FNLC) is calling on the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) to fully implement the Precautionary Principle. The Precautionary Principle recognizes that in the absence of scientific certainty, conservation measures can and should be taken when there is knowledge of a risk of serious or irreversible harm to the environment and/or resources using best available information. In applying the Precautionary Principle, the FNLC is calling for the Government and Minister Jordan to take proactive conservation-based actions and commit to prioritizing the rebuilding of Pacific salmon stocks.

There is ample research and evidence that supports our understanding that the decline of Pacific wild salmon is the result of cumulative stressors along its migration routes. This understanding requires a fundamental change as to how we manage and protect wild Pacific salmon, to prioritize the rebuilding of wild salmon stocks and ensuring productive systems seven generations into the future. It is a matter of conservation. It is a matter of protecting the identities, culture and food security of B.C. First Nations across the Province.