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New harvest boat built in BC

Odd Grydeland
Published Modified

Odd Grydeland

The James Walkus Fishing Company is not new to the salmon aquaculture industry in British Columbia. Company owner James Walkus told FishfarmingXpert that he remembers when his crew used to brail farmed salmon during harvest into tanks filled with carbon dioxide in order to slow them down enough so staff could cut the gills of the fish before they were then drained into totes filled with water and ice for transport to a processing plant.

Mr Walkus also said that the Canadian public at large has a poor understanding of the business of salmon farming, and that the industry is an important component of the security of food supply for a growing population. His company employs about 17 First Nation individuals on a year-round basis-  mainly to service the salmon farming activities of Marine Harvest. The number of employees can reach 40 during the spring/summer fishing season for herring and salmon.

The new boat, named the “Amarissa Joye” after Mr Walkus’ daughters Amanda, Larissa and Joye, will be captained by his son Henry, who has over seven years of experience of harvesting farmed salmon using some of Mr Walkus’ converted commercial salmon seine vessels, among them the “Pacific Joye”.

Some specs of the new boat include the anticipated staffing of four, and a harvesting capacity of more than 600,000 pounds (~272,000 kg) per trip. A 50-tonne chiller in each of the four holds can bring the temperature of the stun-and-bled salmon down to about two degrees Celsius in short order. The volume of the holds amounts to a stated total of 10,660 ft3 (~ 315 m3). Some other specs;

  • Overall length: 104 feet 10 inches - approximately 32 metres

  • Width: 34 feet, or 10.4 metres

  • Main engine: 1,000 horse power Caterpillar 3508, using a MGX5321 4.96:1 Twin Disc gear

  • Auxiliary power:

    • Two Caterpillar C18 340 kW gensets- mainly used for running the chillers

    • One Caterpillar C4.4 58 kW genset for the supply of basic power when the vessel is at dock

  • Stunning equipment: An eight-channel system supplied by Baader Canada (Campbell River)

  • Harvesting capacity: Approximately 8,000 fish per hour

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