Dozens of sea lions drown at B.C. fish farm
Last Updated: Friday, April 20, 2007 | 9:53 AM PT
CBC News
Related
External Links
(Note: CBC does not endorse and is not responsible for the content of external sites - links will open in new window)
There has been a mass drowning of 51 California sea lions that got trapped in the nets of a fish farm on the west coast of Vancouver Island.
The sea lions got caught between nets at the Creative Salmon fish farm in Tofino Inlet this month, company general manager Spencer Evans said.
He said he thinks the sea lions chewed through the predator net, which surrounds the fish farm, and then got through the shark guard attached to the bottom of the grower net that enclosed the farmed salmon — but then couldn't get back out again.
"It appears the sea lions were swimming up from underneath and pushing the shark guard up against the flow of the grower net.
"And then as they try and suck on the fish in the grower net, they create small holes in the shark guard, and then they eventually get into that space between the floor of the grower net and the shark guard."
Evans called it an unfortunate incident, saying it's the first time in 16 years of operation that Creative Salmon has experienced anything like it.
He also noted there has been a large increase in the sea lion population in the area over the past 18 months.
The company has reported 110 drowned sea lions so far this year, up from 46 last year.
Environmentalists have been calling for years for fish farm operators to move away from open-ocean net cages to closed-containment systems.
With files from the Canadian PressShare Tools
Latest British Columbia News Headlines
- Ryder Hesjedal wins prestigious Giro d'Italia
- Victoria native Ryder Hesjedal has become the first Canadian to win one of the cycling world's three Grand Tour events, wrapping up the 2012 Giro d'Italia with an excellent performance in the final stage in Milan. more »
- Surrey RCMP seek hit-run driver
- Police are looking for a light-coloured Chrysler with damage to the driver's front side after a pedestrian was hit in Surrey, B.C., early Sunday morning. more »
- B.C. man who scaled Everest returns home
- A Vancouver man who climbed the world's highest mountain is back home and talking about the adventure. more »
- Fort Langley restaurant damaged in fire
- A sushi restaurant in Fort Langley, B.C., was damaged in a fire early Sunday morning. more »
Top News Headlines
- Canadian Pacific strikers face back-to-work legislation
- Labour Minister Lisa Raitt is prepared to end the Canadian Pacific Railway strike if necessary, after both CP and the union rejected a proposal for voluntary arbitration by the government-appointed negotiator on Sunday. Raitt says she is "extremely disappointed." more »
- Syrian regime denies role in Houla massacre
- The UN Security Council condemned the Syrian regime at an emergency meeting Sunday, holding president Bashar al-Assad's military responsible for the massacre of more than 100 people, dozens of whom were children younger than 10 years old. more »
- Ryder Hesjedal wins prestigious Giro d'Italia
- Victoria native Ryder Hesjedal has become the first Canadian to win one of the cycling world's three Grand Tour events, wrapping up the 2012 Giro d'Italia with an excellent performance in the final stage in Milan. more »
- Neighbour may have helped find missing kids in Mexico
- Two Winnipeg children who had been missing for nearly four years were found in Mexico after a man raised concerns about his neighbour, according to a private investigator. more »
- B.C. NDP calls for unity in fighting coast guard closure
- Surrey RCMP seek hit-run driver
- B.C. man who scaled Everest returns home
- Fort Langley restaurant damaged in fire
- Passengers' families sue for fatal B.C. plane crash
- B.C. Coast Guard Auxiliary gets new name
- Tsunami motorcycle heading to Harley museum
- Psych ward escapes worry neighbours
- Gang forum honours Surrey 6 victim
