Expand DFO staff, mayor
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PORT HARDY - If DFO is expanding to deal with fish farms, the District is an ideal place to locate staff, said Mayor Bev Parnham.
In a July 31 letter, Parnham pointed to a front-page article in July’s Northern Aquaculture magazine, where DFO official Trevor Swerdfager reportedly recognized the need for a stronger presence to oversee fin fish aquaculture operations off the coast of Vancouver Island.
“As the Regional District of Mount Waddington has the highest number of licenses for any jurisdiction on Vancouver Island, I am respectfully requesting that the suggested additional staffing for DFO be assigned to the Port Hardy DFO office,” wrote Parnham.
“Port Hardy is a community that is highly dependent on the aquaculture industry and we currently have a DFO presence that is constantly fluctuating due to the constant movement of personnel.
“It has been some time since our DFO office in Port Hardy has operated with its full contingent of staff” and “this has constituted a significant loss to the community, of not only skilled DFO technicians, but their families as well.”
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