The first open net-pen Review Board hearing is here. Intervenors have until March 13 to submit an application.
Cooke's Rattling Beach aquaculture site, not far from the Digby Harbour, will be the first to go through a Review Board hearing for lease expansion. Photo: Simon Ryder-Burbidge.
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On 5 February, 2021, the Nova Scotia Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture referred a request to the Aquaculture Review Board (ARB). The request, by Kelly Cove Salmon Limited, is for an expansion of an existing open net-pen finfish aquaculture site located at Rattling Beach, in the Annapolis Basin, Digby County.
A screenshot from the Nova Scotia Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture's lease siting map shows Cooke's current lease area in green, with the proposed expansion area in yellow overtop. Source: NSDFA.
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Around 4 March, 2021, the ARB released the hearing dates as being 10-13 May, 2021 at a location to be announced. Public attendance and participation is encouraged. Details can be found on the ARB website. Applications for intervention are due to the Board by March 13. After that, public comments will be accepted until April 25. If you would like to learn more about the process of intervention, how to apply, or how to submit a comment, we can help! Don't hesitate to reach out to us.
This announcement is of interest to the Healthy Bays Network because it is the first finfish application to be heard by the ARB since the Board was established over five years ago. It is also of interest because it represents an opportunity for the public to voice their concerns about the use of open net-pen methods of finfish farming in this location.
The Healthy Bays Network will apply for intervenor status at this Hearing. We stand with our partners and supporters in advocating for cleaner, better regulated and more environmentally responsible alternatives to this method of aquaculture.
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