Hupačasath hereditary chief orders Cermaq to close Boot Lagoon hatchery
Port Alberni, BC Tsu-tsii-in(Alton Watts), tyee ha'wilth (hereditary chief) of Hupačasath First Nation in the Alberni Valley, publicly demanded on Sept. Watts says Cermaq is polluting Nuu-chah-nulth waters and bringing disease to the fish that swim up their rivers. “I just want them gone and hopefully they clean up their mess and we never have to deal with them again,” said Watts.
Located on Hupačasath traditional territory by Great Central Lake, roughly an hours’ drive from Port Alberni on the west coast of Vancouver Island, the Boot Lagoon hatchery rears young juvenile Atlantic salmon, or smolts. “These are Atlantic salmon. They don’t belong on the west coast. No matter what you offer me, if you offered me $10 million dollars, I’d say no,” Watts continued. Hupačasath does not have a protocol agreement with Cermaq, according to Watts.
“Zero dollars. Zero permissions. Zero anything at all,” said Watts. ” Cermaq renewed a five-year protocol agreement with Ahousaht First Nation hereditary chiefs in 2022. According to Ahousaht leadership, the protocol agreement benefits the nation with about $6 million annually for the term of agreement.
They say the funds from the aquaculture operations support land back initiatives, restoration work, business expansion and other community programs. Ahousaht First Nation Hashekumiss (Richard George) declined to provide a comment for this story. Hashekumiss is the son of Ahousaht tyee ha’wilth Maquinna (Lewis George). “Wild salmon are central to the ecological health, culture and economy of British Columbia. Immediate and meaningful action is required to protect them for future generations,” wrote Hesquiaht leaders in Jan.
Chief Ho’miskanis (Don Svanvik) is a hereditary chief and elected chief councillor for ʼNa̱mǥis First Nation on the north coast of Vancouver Island and centred around Alert Bay. Following a decade of protests and research, Svanvik shared that the three Broughton First Nations (Mamalilikulla, Namgis and Kwikwasut’inuxw Haxwa’mis) were able to reach an agreement with the federal and provincial government to systematically remove 17 open-net fish farms located within their territory.
The wild salmon returns after the farms were removed from the Broughton were a “resounding success”, Svanvik said. “Holy cow. The fish are starting to come back like crazy. “Fish that swim through their territory are not their fish,” said Svanvik. “Whatever fish end up swimming by their farms, whatever pathogens and diseases that come from there are floating out in the ocean to infect these fish.
They can’t stop the rest of fish from swimming through their territory, and they can’t stop the farms from releasing these pathogens,” he continued. “It’s like if your neighbour had an outhouse that was leaking into your yard. ” said Svanvik. The federal policy requires new salmon aquaculture licences to utilize closed containment technology and for active open-net pen salmon aquaculture operations to move to closed containment on land or in the ocean.
“Throughout the transition process, the government engaged extensively with First Nations, communities, industry and other stakeholders in British Columbia. “Any future decisions related to salmon aquaculture transition will be communicated by the Government of Canada at the appropriate time,” she continued. 2 billion in economic output, $483 million in GDP across Canada and supports 4,051 full-time jobs, according to BC Salmon Farmers Association.
“The BC Salmon Farmers Association is supporting the sector in advocating for an outcomes-based decision that will allow innovation without prescribing a specific closed containment technology,” said Nixon. Globally, BC Salmon Farmers states that more than half of all seafood comes from aquaculture, and production is expected to almost double by 2050. C. farmed salmon is exported to the USA and Asia as well as domestically, according to Nixon.
Mitsubishi entered the salmon farming business in Chile in 2011, building on its seafood processing and distribution operations in Japan. In 2014, Mitsubishi made Cermaq a wholly-owned subsidiary. Most recently, in July 2025, Cermaq acquired three additional farming salmon operations in under Grieg Seafood; the operations are located in northern Norway, the east and west Coasts of Canada.
Located on Hupačasath traditional territory by Great Central Lake, roughly an hours’ drive from Port Alberni on the west coast of Vancouver Island, the Boot Lagoon hatchery rears young juvenile Atlantic salmon, or smolts. “These are Atlantic salmon. They don’t belong on the west coast. No matter what you offer me, if you offered me $10 million dollars, I’d say no,” Watts continued. Hupačasath does not have a protocol agreement with Cermaq, according to Watts.
“Zero dollars. Zero permissions. Zero anything at all,” said Watts. ” Cermaq renewed a five-year protocol agreement with Ahousaht First Nation hereditary chiefs in 2022. According to Ahousaht leadership, the protocol agreement benefits the nation with about $6 million annually for the term of agreement.
They say the funds from the aquaculture operations support land back initiatives, restoration work, business expansion and other community programs. Ahousaht First Nation Hashekumiss (Richard George) declined to provide a comment for this story. Hashekumiss is the son of Ahousaht tyee ha’wilth Maquinna (Lewis George). “Wild salmon are central to the ecological health, culture and economy of British Columbia. Immediate and meaningful action is required to protect them for future generations,” wrote Hesquiaht leaders in Jan.
Chief Ho’miskanis (Don Svanvik) is a hereditary chief and elected chief councillor for ʼNa̱mǥis First Nation on the north coast of Vancouver Island and centred around Alert Bay. Following a decade of protests and research, Svanvik shared that the three Broughton First Nations (Mamalilikulla, Namgis and Kwikwasut’inuxw Haxwa’mis) were able to reach an agreement with the federal and provincial government to systematically remove 17 open-net fish farms located within their territory.
The wild salmon returns after the farms were removed from the Broughton were a “resounding success”, Svanvik said. “Holy cow. The fish are starting to come back like crazy. “Fish that swim through their territory are not their fish,” said Svanvik. “Whatever fish end up swimming by their farms, whatever pathogens and diseases that come from there are floating out in the ocean to infect these fish.
They can’t stop the rest of fish from swimming through their territory, and they can’t stop the farms from releasing these pathogens,” he continued. “It’s like if your neighbour had an outhouse that was leaking into your yard. ” said Svanvik. The federal policy requires new salmon aquaculture licences to utilize closed containment technology and for active open-net pen salmon aquaculture operations to move to closed containment on land or in the ocean.
“Throughout the transition process, the government engaged extensively with First Nations, communities, industry and other stakeholders in British Columbia. “Any future decisions related to salmon aquaculture transition will be communicated by the Government of Canada at the appropriate time,” she continued. 2 billion in economic output, $483 million in GDP across Canada and supports 4,051 full-time jobs, according to BC Salmon Farmers Association.
“The BC Salmon Farmers Association is supporting the sector in advocating for an outcomes-based decision that will allow innovation without prescribing a specific closed containment technology,” said Nixon. Globally, BC Salmon Farmers states that more than half of all seafood comes from aquaculture, and production is expected to almost double by 2050. C. farmed salmon is exported to the USA and Asia as well as domestically, according to Nixon.
Mitsubishi entered the salmon farming business in Chile in 2011, building on its seafood processing and distribution operations in Japan. In 2014, Mitsubishi made Cermaq a wholly-owned subsidiary. Most recently, in July 2025, Cermaq acquired three additional farming salmon operations in under Grieg Seafood; the operations are located in northern Norway, the east and west Coasts of Canada.
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