Canada’s Fish-Health Regulations Called into Question

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VANCOUVER — A former government fisheries biologist believes Canada’s fish-health regulations are inadequate, reports The Victoria Times Colonist, in reference to a recent report.

Sally Goldes, fish-health unit section head at the B.C. Environment Ministry for 17 years, says the regulations are not strict enough to prevent viruses, such as Infectious Salmon Anemia virus (ISAV) from being imported to West Coast fish farms.

“Current Canada Fish Health Protection Rules do not provide a high level of regulatory security against the introduction of ISAV into British Columbia,” reads the paper. “It is important to remember iodine disinfection does not kill ISAV inside the egg and it’s unknown whether ISAV is in this location,”

Salmon farms in B.C. import Atlantic salmon eggs from the U.K., U.S. and Iceland. The virus has devastated fish farms in Chile and Norway and is present in Atlantic Canada. Fisheries and Oceans Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency announced this month no confirmed cases of the ISAV have been found in wild or farmed salmon in B.C.

For more details about the report, visit timescolonist.com.

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