Is there a catch to salmon hatcheries?
Pacific salmon are in trouble. Unfortunately, salmon hatcheries are an expensive fix that can make the problem worse.
A growing body of scientific evidence demonstrates how hatchery fish can harm wild salmon populations. Whether through direct competition for food and habitat or interbreeding with wild fish and altering their genetic structure, science shows hatchery fish can reduce wild salmon abundance and survival.
Hatchery operations have many direct impacts on wild salmon. Science shows hatchery fish increase the risks of disease and parasites in wild salmon. The hatchery facilities themselves can degrade wild salmon habitat through blocked passages or water withdrawals. As important as these direct impacts are, the genetic and competition issues are of greatest concern.
Please watch the video and send a message to Fisheries and Oceans Minister Bernadette Jordan and B.C. Premier John Horgan that salmon hatcheries are not a silver bullet for wild fish problems, and that stimulus spending should go to other programs, like community-led science and habitat restoration.