The Forty‑Year Fight: How First Nations Built a World‑Class Salmon Farming Legacy

The Who and Why of Dismantling It

Indigenous coastal communities spent decades mastering finfish aquaculture. Now political decisions threaten to erase one of Canada’s most successful Indigenous‑led industries.

Land-Based Salmon Farming: Latest Bankruptcy

Follows Repeated Land-based Failures

West Coast Salmon, a major proposed land-based salmon farming project in Nevada backed by prominent industry figures and planning for 50,000 tonnes of annual production, filed for bankruptcy on December 18, 2025—before the facility even advanced beyond initial planning stages.
This latest collapse adds to a growing list of high-profile setbacks in land-based recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) for anadromous salmon species—particularly beyond the brood stock and production up to smolt stages, where the technology falters most dramatically in attempts at full grow-out to market size.

Is Carney Telling the Truth?

Mark Carney says, on X.COM, @MarkJCarney ·  "Unemployment is down, jobs and wages are up. We’re building big and empowering more Canadians with new careers. Even with strong global headwinds, there is encouraging progress — and we are just getting started." 

The Savvy Public Investor: La Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ)

La Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec's Strategic Mastery

In the heart of the Quiet Revolution, Quebec boldly asserted its economic autonomy by establishing the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) on July 15, 1965, through an act of the National Assembly under Premier Jean Lesage. This institutional investor was born to manage funds from the newly created Quebec Pension Plan (QPP), a provincial counterpart to the Canada Pension Plan that ensured retirement security for Quebecers outside federal oversight. 

Mowachaht/Muchalaht Title Declared to B.C. Court

 Notice of Claim

"The. . . First Nation has Aboriginal title to its lands and that B.C.'s Forest Act and Land Act will no longer apply to Mowachaht/Muchalaht lands once title is declared." Vancouver Island First Nation whose ancestors met explorer Capt. Cook in 1776, only to see the disappearance of land, resources, and sovereignty, sues province of British Columbia

Working with First Nations to increase worker safety

Lisa Houle gave a presentation on behalf of WorksafeBC at the First Nations Safety Conference Oct, 22, 2018, at the Nanaimo Convention Centre. WorksafeBC is the injury insurance program for employers and employees on worksites in all industries across the province. "We work at the industry-level with partnerships in collaboration with the employers and the workforce," says Houle.

In the past few years, "We have developed a history of visiting First Nations schools to provide education resources to non-graduated students. We've been working together with First Nations to create greater awareness of safety on the job," no matter where the work is found, in the commercial fisheries, Indigenous agriculture, First Nations forestry, these are a few examples.

Houle describes a few of the many WorksafeBC initiatives and provides links to the WorksafeBC website for further information: "We have a Young Worker Campaign because work can be intimidating, especially if you’re new to the job or don’t have a lot of experience in the industry. You want to make a good first impression by showing your co-workers and your boss that you know what you’re doing.

"That’s why, while talking about safety at work, asking for training, or bringing up concerns can be hard, it’s important. Employers are responsible for providing adequate training before you start work. Proper training and orientation helps to ensure that everyone stays safe on the job.

"If you get a gut feeling that something isn’t safe, or you don’t know how to do your job safely, listen to your instincts and talk to your manager about it. It could save your life or the life of your co-worker." https://worksafebclistentoyourgut.com/

Houle says WorksafeBC runs a First Responders Mental Health Committee that provides an effective website interface for initiating contact and services like Self-Assessment "Sometimes it’s helpful to take a personal mental health check, to see how you’re managing with the stress and pressure of work (and life!)."

The website supplies a contact reference on "Ways To Help": "Is someone you work with struggling with their mental health? Do they seem stressed? Are they acting differently—or is there something a little “off” in the way they’re behaving? Here are things you can do to offer support." Learn more about valuable mental health resources http://BCFirstrespondersmentalhealth.com

Houle explains, "At WorksafeBC we have 3000-plus resources with an industry-related focus covering the entire spectrum of job-related safety." She rolled a film about one of the higher-risk careers in B.C., the commercial fishery, "There have been 26 work-related deaths from 2007 to 2017 in the commercial fishery." The injuries come every year and FishSafeBC was an organization launched in order to reduce the risk associated with employment in this valuable workplace sector.

lisa.houle@worksafebc.com

Nunavut Connections, Inuit-owned transportation services for the Arctic

“Business will run essentially from Churchill where we have an office. We transport anything that comes by rail and ship to communities in the Kvaliut region,” explains Elizabeth Copland, Nunavut Connections President, "communities including my own, Arviat (pop. 2,800), second largest Nunavut community. Shipping is of vehicles, groceries, building materials, and other goods and equipment,” delivering to companies like the Northern Store, or Arviat’s local Coop, and the Independent Eskimo Point Lumber store.

Nunavut is building capacity for new industry and the communities decided to get engaged in the process, “We hope to build a training program and expand operations. We want to grow the company and improve end-services with a fuel tank farm, port maintenance and railway and marine services, and eventually construction services. We have a big port that has been used for a number of years.”

The Churchill harbour facilities employ office workers and 12 stevedores that work cranes and heavy equipment. They are all from Churchill. “I have family there, so I am in Churchill on a number of occasions through the year. We could be soon developing programs to recruit and train. Things are going real well since the launch of the new enterprise. ” Meanwhile, she lives in Arviat, “Our temperatures are pretty much the same with Northern Manitoba the only difference is we do not have any trees.

July 2011 was the first sailing of a ship served by Nunavut Connections with the opening of the sea-lanes, and the shipping into these areas will run till October, weather permitting. Copland notes that, “In the north mining is booming and other companies and groups want to take part or get involved. Our shareholders decided to form a company to get a piece of the economic development action.”

She adds, “We are very familiar with Churchill,” Arviat lying due north on the shore of Hudson’s Bay, “and Nunavut needs these opportunities for the young people, jobs involving skills and service to their own communities.” 

Nunavut Connections brings together a broad base of shareholders from across the Baffin and Kivalliq regions. "We believe this is the opportune time for us to partner with a well-established company such as OmniTRAX Canada," said Simon Merkosak of Pond Inlet, a shareholder in the venture. "Nunavut needs these type of ventures to benefit not only the people of Nunavut but also our young Nunavut government."

Eitan Dehtiar of OmniTRAX Canada explains, “Several Kivalliq and Baffin business people approached us with a way to work together in the north about six months ago and the planning came together to build employment, ownership, and improved reliability of service,” giving Nunavut region communities better control over expedition of goods.

The new business initiative provides a better ability for economic developers to manoeuvre around political situations, as well as giving the region an entrepreneurial leg-up on business conducted by southern companies presently directing operations in the north. “This scenario is different in meeting service levels required, and we launched with twelve stevedore jobs in Churchill, when, in mid-May 2011, we took on local staff.”

Part of the plan is to expand employment and employ-ability of personnel around the sea-lift capability and further developing year-long project support infrastructure in Churchill planning cycles. “We are pleased with the launch cycle that occurred this spring and summer, and I estimate that things are going fairly well. Our launch was well-received and by the end of October 2011 we will see the progress that was made,” says Dehtiar.

“The major effort this year has been to introduce the shareholders behind Nunavut Connections as a company that will move goods and services in the Kivalliq and Baffin region, showing continued support for the growth of these remote communities. The economic potential in the north is becoming very significant,” impossible to ignore.

The new company improves service levels and creates more financial viability to investors in other areas of economic development, such as mining. “We will have a much better sense by end of year of how the company will deploy in future during the short shipping season. The first ship sailed to various communities,” visited by marine carriers.

The goal is to expand, “ideally, across the board, for we want Churchill to remain a competitive port from a price perspective and a Nunavut business services perspective, and the focus is a considerable expansion of service levels in material shipping,” which requires, furthermore, an evaluation of infrastructure as part of the plan. “Churchill has existing facilities, the province of Manitoba is supportive, and we the province has have a Memorandum of Understanding with Nunavut.”

This development is perceived as a boost to Province of Manitoba’s capacity for economic development in the north. “We see James Bay area and the eastern shores of Hudson’s Bay as a potential part of the expansion and definitely part of this model of business activity.” Planning continues around the seasonality of the port. “In addition, we will supply air support to communities and make this a year-round part of operations.”