Yet another North American ENGO formed to fight fish issues
Calling itself the "Conservation Alliance for Seafood Solutions", this group "has partnered to pursue a common vision for sustainable seafood and work together", states its web site. "Using a range of approaches, participating organizations bring conservation expertise to companies that buy and sell seafood. Our goal is to preserve the health og ocean and freshwater ecosystems and ensure a long-term seafood supply".
Counting among its members the usual suspects known for their lack of credibility in their constant fight against net-pen salmon farming, the group lists the David Suzuki Foundation, the Living Ocean Society and the Monterey Bay Aquarium. But this group also includes the World Wildlife Fund, already involved in the Salmon Aquaculture Dialogue process, and the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, boh generally considered more professional and genuine in their approach to ecological sustainability of the salmon farming sector. A willingness to work with companies to pursue true sustainability makes the difference, and this seems to be the case for this new group also, although time will tell. While recognizing the need for economical and social sustainability, the Conservation Alliance suggests that seafood companies should go elsewhere to find the resources needed to address those issues. They will only address conservation issues presumably leading to ecological sustainability
With respect to aquaculture, the new group's web site states "To meet the demand for seafood, aquaculture has expanded greatly, increasing 86 percent in the last decade. While some forms of aquaculture hold promise as sustainable options to meet seafood demand, the practices used to farm many species can result in the loss of natural habitat, release of waste, spread of disease, and the introduction of foreign species that harm native fish. Also troubling is the dependence on wild-caught fish to feed many farmed species, a practice that puts added strain on the world’s oceans". Sounds familiar?
There is hope that this group may be able to do a better job of working with the aquaculture companies than what their individual members have been able to. An indication of this is the Alliance web site's section on "Seafood Facts for Canada and the United States". Although somewhat old, the information provided is accurate, government-provided and without the usual rhetoric. Give Peace a Chance.
