Chief Bill Cranmer of the ‘Namgis First Nation will be a featured presenter at an international conference on closed-containment aquaculture in New Brunswick this April.
The Atlantic Salmon Federation (ASF) and The Conservation Fund Freshwater Institute (TCFFI) will jointly host an Atlantic Salmon Closed-Containment Workshop Apr. 29 and 30 at ASF’s headquarters near St. Andrews, NB. It’s the second such conference held at ASF that brings participants together to hear presentations and discuss the technology and operation of this increasingly-popular method of farming fish.
Cranmer will discuss the ‘Namgis First Nation-owned Kuterra Closed-Containment Project, located just south of Port McNeill. It is the first of its kind dedicated to growing Atlantic salmon on land. Ground was broken on the site in 2012 and the first smolts entered the facility in March of 2013. That cohort of fish has since been transferred to one of the facility’s large grow-out tanks and will soon be ready for harvest.
There will also be further updates on several ongoing closed-containment projects including presentations from Steve Summerfelt, from The Conservation Fund Freshwater Institute in West Virginia.
“We will have expertise in all aspects of land-based, closed containment systems from start-up costs and construction, fish health and welfare, organic and sustainability rankings, to marketing and promotion of the final product,” says Jonathan Carr, ASF’s Executive Director of Research and Environment. “We’ll also be talking with suppliers and marketing experts including representatives from Sobeys and Loblaws.”
Government representatives with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans have also been invited to attend the two-day conference, along with industry representatives who have a strong interest in closed-containment aquaculture.
Conference participants will also be provided with the opportunity to sample Atlantic salmon grown in a land-based, closed containment facility.