Cooke Charged Over Harmful Substance Deposits

The charges came on 1 November when Kelly Cove Salmon and three senior company officials were found to be violating Section 36(3) of the Fisheries Act which prohibits the deposit of a substance thats harmful to fish into fish-bearing water, a spokesperson from Environment Canada told TheFishSite.

The charges came as a result of two investigations by Environment Canada, opened on 22 December, 2009 and 10 February, 2010, into the cause of dead and dying lobsters and the alleged use of cypermethrin in adjacent aquaculture sites near Grand Manan and Deer Island, New Brunswick.

The use of Cypermethrin is banned in Canadian marine environments as it is harmful to crustaceans such as lobster and shrimp. However, the substance is used in other countries as a sea lice treatment.

In conclusion, Environment Canada has alleged that Kelly Cove Salmon and three of Cooke Aquaculture's senior company officials released a cypermethrin-based pesticide into the waters of Maces Bay, Passamoquoddy Bay as well as the waters surrounding Deer Island and Grand Manan Island between November 2009 and November 2010.

Kelly Cove Salmon and ofiicals Glenn Cooke (CEO, Cooke Aquaculture), Mike Szemerda (VP, Cooke Aquaculture) and Randal Griffin (Regional production manager, Kelly Cove Salmon) were each charged with 11 counts for allegedly violating Section 36(3) of the Fisheries Act.

The three officials will now be expected to appear in provincial court in St. Stephen, New Brunswick on 13 December, 2011 in regards to the charges.

In response to the charges, Glenn Cooke released a statement saying he was devestated by the action taken. He also mentioned that the incriminating substance is used regulary for agricultural purposes and salmon farming in other countries.