The Ecology Action Centre’s community-led campaign to prevent the expansion of open net-pen salmon farming in Nova Scotia has secured a major win. Today, Cermaq Canada announced it will abandon its controversial expansion into Nova Scotia.
For the past year, the EAC has worked with community partners, fishing associations, municipal leaders, and marine stewards across the province, driving community opposition from Digby Neck to Mahone Bay to Cape Canso. Together, we sent a strong message to Cermaq and our elected officials—Nova Scotians are not willing to sacrifice our ecosystem health, community access, and fishing grounds to an outdated industry.
For more than a decade, the EAC has pushed back on open net-pen aquaculture expansion in Nova Scotia, participating in countless review processes and pushing for improved regulations. Most recently, EAC has supported community-led initiatives through a cross-province letter writing campaign and a coast-to-coast conversation about the risks open net-pen salmon aquaculture poses to wild salmon populations.
There is more work to be done on this file, but the message to Cermaq went out loud and clear. Today we’re ecstatic to announce that message has been received.