Pink salmon returns to B.C.’s Fraser River are exceeding original forecasts, prompting some Indigenous leaders and environmentalists to suggest there’s a link between the increase and the closure of open-net salmon farms off Vancouver Island.
The Pacific Salmon Commission said it is increasing its projections of pink salmon returns this summer to a possible high of 11.6 million, up from an estimate of between 6.1 million and 8.6 million fish.
The commission, which was formed by the governments of Canada and the United States in 1985 to implement the Pacific Salmon Treaty, said on its website the increase is based on the numbers of pink salmon being caught in marine test fisheries in B.C. coastal waters.
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