Wild Salmon Mortality Caused by Fish-Farm Sea Lice

Published by: David Suzuki Foundation
Authored by: Martin Krkosek, Marjorie Wonham

Biodiversity, Oceans and fresh water fisheries and aquaculture, British Columbia, salmon, water systems, conservation, species at risk

This bulletin summarizes the research results of a peer-reviewed study by University of Alberta doctoral student Martin Krkosek, published in the Proceedings of the National Academies of Science (U.S.), which investigates the impact of sea lice infections on wild salmon caused by fish farms. The study shows that fish farms are changing the way wild salmon get infected with parasites. As a result, up to 95 per cent of wild juvenile pink and chum salmon are dying from sea lice infections in coastal British Columbia. This increases the weight of evidence that current open net pen farming must change.