N.L. government orders cleanup of aquaculture sites on Newfoundland's south coast

Todd O'Brien · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 10, 2025 4:30 AM EDT | Last Updated: March 10

Aquaculture companies operating connected the southbound seashore of Newfoundland have been ordered to cleanup aged unfastened nett pen salmon cages.

In caller months, the Atlantic Salmon Federation (ASF) has identified a fig of sites with abandoned aquaculture equipment.

Fisheries Minister Gerry Byrne says immoderate of the worldly whitethorn have been determination decades.

"I've told the companies that I expect it to beryllium cleaned up successful a tenable play of time," Byrne told CBC Radio's The Broadcast.

The ASF initially recovered the sites utilizing Google Earth and followed up with a chopper flights over of areas on the southbound seashore successful aboriginal February.

Byrne says the companies progressive include: Cold Ocean Aquaculture (Cooke), Northern Harvest Sea Farms (Mowi) and Nova Fish Farms (Ocean Trout Canada Inc).

Some of the cleanup has already begun, and Byrne is keeping a adjacent eye.

"I've informed them that if determination are further sites, they should bash that arsenic well," helium said.

In December, the ASF released photos of an country adjacent Gaultois called the Locker.

The cove contained partially sunken oversea cages, plastics, netting and provender bags.

Byrne ordered a cleanup, which was completed successful January.

Differing opinions

Andrew Clarke is manager of conservation campaigns with ASF.

"We were capable to spot that determination was garbage that we had seen earlier with the aquaculture rings laying determination fractional sunk, fractional floating and decidedly problematic," Clarke said of the chopper flights. 

"It did look similar it had been determination a while, and I deliberation successful 1 peculiar lawsuit we went backmost to 2010 oregon 2011 and it was determination then. So this isn't thing that was freshly stored." 

But Keith Sullivan, executive manager of the Newfoundland Aquaculture Industry Association, says this latest run by the ASF is simply a wide effort to manipulate radical successful Newfoundland and Labrador.  

He says it's a thinly veiled onslaught connected the radical who are moving successful the concern and the communities that beryllium connected aquaculture, and an onslaught connected the full manufacture overall.

"That's instrumentality that's really sitting connected licensed sites. This is not of an off-licence tract oregon successful an country that instrumentality shouldn't be. But certainly, you know, companies are precise committed to making definite that there's nary debris and if it leaves their sites oregon anything, it volition beryllium surely dealt with arsenic rapidly arsenic possible," Sullivan said. 

"I cognize sometimes successful Newfoundland and Labrador we person storms and if thing benignant of comes loose, I mean, they bash everything to forestall that. But bully codification of practice. But perfectly marque definite that you cognize that doesn't spell into the marine situation unnecessarily."

Mel Jackman, 72, lives successful Harbour Breton.

He sees things differently, spending months astatine his compartment astatine Hardy's Cove, acold into Hermitage Bay.

"Hermitage Bay was ever a precise cleanable bay. You get wood driving successful determination and a definite integrative vessel oregon thing each present and then. But a fewer years ago, aquaculture came successful determination and, you know, astir instantly you commencement seeing things similar rope, buoys, Styrofoam, that benignant of worldly coming into the bay," Jackman said.

"And it wasn't truthful atrocious astatine first, but past seems similar each year, I conjecture arsenic the instrumentality and worldly was getting older, determination was much and more. And close present retired there, I mean, arsenic acold arsenic I'm concerned, I telephone Hermitage Bay a dump and it's astir the dirtiest bay successful Newfoundland."

Clarke says he's blessed the state took enactment connected cleaning up the Locker, but wonders wherefore it is near up to organizations similar the ASF to point out biology concerns.

"We request to person stronger regulations astir garbage. We person to person stronger regulations astir however they are being stewards of the situation and they request to bash a amended job," helium said. 

"We can't expect the Newfoundland authorities oregon the DFO to beryllium capable to modulate them due to the fact that this is truly elemental stuff, right? This wasn't hard for america to find. We're an NGO that looks aft chaotic salmon. Why we are the ones that had to telephone this out?"

While the Province acts arsenic the regulator successful the aquaculture sector, Byrne says the national authorities has been shirking its responsibilities successful protecting the ocean.

Sullivan says companies are taking action.

A institution called Eco Axis — formerly known arsenic ASL Energy — is presently operating successful Harbour Breton and is recycling aged aquaculture material.

It's being shredded and granulated to marque concern tube successful Quebec.

"I volition accidental determination is surely a large committedness by companies to marque definite that keeping sites cleanable and going guardant is simply a truly bully development," Sullivan said.

WATCH | CBC's Todd O'Brien reports connected the ordered cleanup:

Jackman says helium isn't against aquaculture, but doesn't privation to spot enlargement and the anticipation to "ruin much coastline."

"If they've got to stay, enactment wherever they are and cleanup aft themselves. I mean, it's casual to transportation a tub and enactment your garbage successful and instrumentality ashore," helium said.

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