"The Doelle-Lahey Panel" goes to government

A New Regulatory Framework for Low-Impact/High-Value Aquaculture in Nova Scotia

The Final Report of the Independent Aquaculture Regulatory Review for Nova Scotia

[The Doelle-Lahey Panel]  2014

Aquaculture_Regulatory_Framework_Final_04Dec14.pdf

South Coast Today December 16, 2014

Aquaculture review goes to government

Timothy Gillespie

http://www.southcoasttoday.ca/content/aquaculture-review-goes-government

http://thechronicleherald.ca/business/1258042-nova-scotia-aquaculture-regulation-needs-overhaul-report

Chronicle Herald, Dec 17 2014:

Letters to the Editor about aquaculture round table

Report will resurface
Had it been released one day closer to Christmas, the Doelle-Lahey report on aquaculture reform would have been served up with plum pudding presumably, and eggnog on the side.
Aquaculture Minister Keith Colwell might even have felt obliged to dress up as Bob Cratchit or, better yet, Tiny Tim. As it is, the government is hoping this critically important report will be buried under the mistletoe, never to see the light of day again.
Why is it that controversial stuff in government gets released at 4 p.m. on a Friday or just before the Christmas break? A cynic might conclude that they are hoping we are thoroughly distracted.
Not so fast, fellas. Concerned citizens are anxious that the Doelle-Lahey report be thoroughly aired and implemented forthwith. Stand by for action on this file in January. Once we get the Christmas lights taken down, we will shine a rigorous focus on this important report instead.
Stewart Lamont, Tangier

Freeze permits
While the newly released Doelle-Lahey report on aquaculture falls short of recommending an outright ban on the open net pen fish farm model, it does indicate very clearly that the current system of regulation and environmental protection is not working and needs a major overhaul.
It also says many areas of Nova Scotia’s coastline are not suitable for salmon farms and that open net-pens should not simply be imposed on coastal communities where they may not be wanted.
The minister of aquaculture appears to recognize the significance of the report as well as his department’s inability to act on its recommendations without major changes in how it does business and resources to develop and enforce new regulations.
While I, like many Nova Scotians, firmly believe that there is no right way to do that wrong thing when it comes to open-net pen fish farming, I hope that there will at least be no further approval or renewal of fish farm licences until the report’s recommendations can be fully implemented by a responsible government.
Dave Maynard, Tangier
 

Buried in hubbub
After many delays, the final report of the Doelle-Lahey panel on aquaculture regulatory reform has just been submitted to government. What will happen now?
The timing of the release gives me fear that the government intends to ignore the panel’s recommendations, or cherry-pick among them. We have seen this sort of cynical approach in the past, when the government was trying to avoid public feedback, hoping that the issue would be lost among seasonal activities.
This report took over 18 months to produce. The panelists did a fine job of listening to the various interest groups and addressing the very real problems of open-net pen fish farming. To have this important report buried under the holiday hubbub does a great disservice to all who participated in the process. But I don’t think that the government will get away with it this time. There is too much concern among too many people about the many negative aspects of open-net feedlots polluting our shorelines and producing fish of questionable quality despite government subsidy and promotion.
Graham Smith, Brookside

http://thechronicleherald.ca/letters/1258329-voice-of-the-people-dec.-18-2014