October 19, 2011
Minister of Fisheries and Oceans
Ottawa
Min@DFO-MPO.GC.CA
Dear Fisheries Minister Ashfield:
The European strain of Infectious Salmon Anemia virus (ISAV) has been found by the World Organisation for Animal Health (www.oie.int) in wild BC sockeye salmon.
Because this influenza-type virus is highly infectious and lethal to salmon it is an internationally reportable disease, similar to hoof and mouth disease, Anthrax etc. U.S. fish may have been exposed when they entered BC waters to feed, as is well documented and known to occur, and when BC salmon mingled with Alaskan stocks in the open Pacific. No one knew that sockeye could be infected with this disease so we are facing a highly uncertain situation that demands immediate and effective response.
Fisheries and Ocean Canada (DFO), needs to understand that, as a result of Canada’s prodigious production of documents to the Cohen Commission, many of us now have a good understanding of the traditional DFO disease response mechanism and it is inadequate.
May I suggest that that DFO not waste time trying to defend past statements and behaviour and move on quickly to do everything possible to prevent a North Pacific ISAV pandemic. Here is my recommended course of action:
1. Because this is the European strain of ISAV it most likely came from the 30 million Atlantic salmon imported into BC. The provincial fish farm Animal Health Centre lab needs to publicly report what type of PCR they have been using to test for ISAV so that the OIE and other scientists can evaluate the next step in farm salmon testing. Their PCR data on ISAV has to be made available.
2. The salmon farms closed their farms to government testing in April 2010 - this has to be revoked to allow independent statistically valid testing.
3. Immediately stop farm salmon processors from dumping blood water in the ocean.
4. Close the border to Atlantic salmon eggs.
5. An international volunteer team of scientists needs to draw up the optimal testing plan for both wild and farm salmon, including inventory of samples that may already exist, and this investigation has to be public. Corporate laws around secrecy have to be come second to the public interest.
6. An ISAV testing lab has to be set up/designated on Vancouver Island so that fresh optimal samples can reach a lab, with reference samples continuing to go to Dr. Kibenge as he is a world designated lab for ISAV confirmation, he diagnosed the Chilean outbreak.
7. The federal government must release emergency funding for this testing program.
Please understand suppression of this will be impossible this. If ISAV is widespread many scientists will have access to the virus. ISAV is traceable to the source broodstock, and we will also learn how long it has been in the Pacific.
I am hoping the federal government will come out with a strong, scientifically sound response that we can all support and work with. ISAV has proven itself extremely capable of spreading, it does mutate into increasingly virulent strains, and no country has ever eradicated it because they have not turned off the source. This a doubly unprecedented situation as it was first detected in wild, not farmed salmon, and is a virus that has never been loose among wild Pacific salmon.
No one can possibly know the out-come, but we do know it would be best to do everything we can to stop its spread through the North Pacific right now. This will likely end up in the Supreme Court of Canada and all parties might want to consider their actions in light of that.
The reason I am writing this is because the response to date has not mentioned the wild salmon of BC. Canada is questioning the results by the OIE reference lab; the Canadian government is already making statements to protect the salmon farms.
We make horror films about viruses because they are so dangerous. Please Minister Ashfield do the right thing here and give British Columbia a fighting chance against the European strain of ISAV.
Respectfully,
Alexandra Morton
gorbuscha@gmail.com
Fish farm processing plant effluent into Discovery Passage (Fraser sockeye migration route)
