Aquaculture in Victoria County A Nova Scotia Story Canada’s Farmed Seafood Policy Conference 2017 November 22, 2017

There are a total of 22 marine aquaculture leases and one shellfish hatchery in Victoria County. 11 of the leases are used for mussel cultivation, 10 for oysters, and 1 for Rainbow Trout. In the Cape North area, there is mussel and oyster cultivation. St. Anns Harbour is exclusively mussel aquaculture and is also starting trials with marine plants. The Bras d’Or Lakes sites are oysters and trout aquaculture. Of note, in neighbouring Inverness County, are the trout farms operated by the Waycobah First Nation. This is the largest First Nation owned and operated aquaculture operation in eastern Canada.

History The Mi’kmaq have harvested oysters from the Bras d’or Lakes for thousands of years. Raft culture for oyster grow-out in the 1970’s. First trials (in North America) for Atlantic Salmon grow-out in the late 1960’s. Longline mussel culture in the early 1980’s. Largest aquaculture lease in North America issued in 2002. (read straight from slides)

Past Challenges MSX Opposition to development. Lack of confidence in old regulations. Public trust Investor confidence. Aquaculture in Victoria County has not been without its challenges; MSX disease was discovered in the Bras d’Or Lakes in 2002. It devastated the fledgling oyster aquaculture industry and the commercial oyster fishery. The disease spread to South Harbour, on the northern tip of the county, and caused similar mortality in that harbour. MSX continues today. The mussel leases in St. Ann’s Harbour, when proposed in 2002, were controversial and divided the community. The community did not feel their concerns were taken seriously and that the operation was not adequately regulated.

A New Direction ONE Nova Scotia – Independent Report on Aquaculture – Now or Never an Urgent Call to Action (2014) Independent Report on Aquaculture – New Regulatory Framework for Low-Impact/High Value Aquaculture in Nova Scotia (2014) Auditor General’s Report 2015 New legislation & policy (2015) Clearly defined rules. Transparent and opportunity for public input New compliance & enforcement model. Research & development support. Nova Scotia has responded to concerns about how it manages the aquaculture industry. 2012- The Province released an Aquaculture Strategy which, amongst other things, committed to a review of the regulations. 2013- The Province stopped receiving any new aquaculture applications and announced the formation of a two-person independent panel to review the way aquaculture is regulated. 2014- “The New Regulatory Framework for Low-Impact/High Value Aquaculture in Nova Scotia’ report was released (The Doelle/Lahey Report). I participated in a Round Table stakeholder group during this process. The entire review took over 18 months and included 46 public meetings in 21 communities throughout Nova Scotia. 2015- ONE Nova Scotia released “Now or Never, an Urgent Call to Action” report (the ‘Ivany Report’). The report focusses on the Provinces need to change its attitude towards development and resource based industries. 2015- The Nova Scotia Auditor General released its report on how aquaculture is managed by the province. 2015- Based on the recommendations of the Independent Report and the Auditor General’s report the Province introduced amendments to the Fisheries and Coastal Resources Act and two new sets of regulations. 2016- The Province announced that it was once again accepting applications for marine shellfish and trout applications. It also announced significant funds to support aquaculture research and development. 2017- The Province announced that it is now accepting applications for marine salmon sites. I continue to sit on the Minister’s Regulatory Advisory Committee, which meets twice a year to review the effectiveness of the new regulations.

The Tide is Turning Ongoing collaborative R&D projects to outrun MSX. New regulations are starting to produce better outcomes. Growth and optimism More trust (read from slide)

Victoria County is Open for Business Aquaculture is a valuable contributor to Victoria County’s economy and we would like to see it grow. A diversity of grow-out areas to support a variety of species. Excellent marine and processing infrastructure. Leading ocean technology and research facilities. A great place to live! (Read from slide)