A petition signed by hundreds of fishermen has been sent to Fisheries Minister Gail Shea and Paul Sprout, the Pacific director general of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.
The petition notes last month's B.C. Supreme Court ruling that salmon farms should be regulated by the federal department, not the province as they are now, reports MedicineHatNews.
"Now that the regulatory agency is supposed to be the federal government, we're saying that the regulations that apply to the commercial sector should also apply to the farm fish sector," Joy Thorkelson, of the United Fishermen and Allied Workers' Union told MedicineHatNews.
"It's a question of fairness, but more than that, it's also a question of what is necessary to protect wild salmon stocks."
Fish farm critics say sea lice from the open net-cage farms have been killing wild salmon who migrate past them.
BC Fishermen Petition for Aquaculture Rules
CANADA - B.C. fishermen are demanding the federal government take responsibility for the salmon farming industry, and start applying the same rules to the controversial operations as they apply to the commercial fishing sector.
