Federal New Democrats are stepping up to address the salmon crisis in B.C.
Burnaby-New Westminster NDP MP Peter Julian slammed the Conservative government's policies on the dwindling B.C. salmon stock, calling their handling of the west coast fish crisis a "complete neglect of policies."
"The writing was on the wall, yet the federal government has consistently ignored the evidence and evaded responsibility by turning a blind eye to the ongoing collapse of wild salmon stocks," Julian said in a release on Friday morning.
Julian pointed out that the fishery expected a run of 10-million Sockeye Salmon this year but are now predicting they will see about 10 per cent of that number.
Given the importance of the sockeye run to B.C.'s eco-system and economy, Julian is calling on the federal Minister of Fisheries to convene an emergency summit in the province to discuss possible solutions.
Wild salmon resources generate $1.6 billion in revenue to the coastal communities and bring 52,000 jobs to the province.
