Environmental Alerts | Luxury Wilderness Adventure Tours & Cruises on BC's West Coast | Ocean Adventures Charter Co. Ltd, Vancouver, Canada

	Adventures Grizzly Bear Tours » Fiordland-June » North Coast » Fiordland-Aug Photography Tours Whale Watching Haida Gwaii Spirit Bear Inside Passage Vancouver Area Custom Trips Maps Schedule
	About Us Guest Log The Ship Captain & Crew What's NEW Enviro Alerts Merchandise Links
	Gallery Showcase 2010 Journal 2009 Journal Aug to Oct, 2008 May to Jul, 2008
	Contact Us Bookings Home


			Environmental Alerts Sign the petition to STOP TROPHY HUNTING BEARS IN B.C. Imagine making a difference. The "Faltering Light" visual petition is a high quality book containing: an open letter to the BC government requesting that trophy hunting of bears is stopped, essays from leading environmentalists, sepia toned bear photographs and YOUR SIGNATURES supporting the termination of the trophy hunt. The book will be delivered to Premier Gordon Campbell & Environment Minister Barry Penner before the trophy hunt resumes in April. The book will also be given to the Vancouver city archive as a record of every individual's historic contribution. So let's make history, record your name and join conservation photographer Andy Wright with founding supporters Simon Jackson (www.spiritbearyouth.org) and Ian McAllister (www.pacificwild.org) to make this visual petition a significant creation that changes history and saves the magnificent bears of British Columbia. Go to Stop Trophy Hunting Bears in B.C. on GoPetition.com, to sign the petition personally or anonymously, and help us make a difference today. February 2010 Subject: Press Release - Olympic Mascot Under Threat One "Sport" That Doesn't Deserve A Trophy Government trophy hunt puts iconic spirit bear and Olympic Games symbol at risk FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - VANCOUVER, BC, February 23, 2010 -- In a few weeks, the B.C. government plans on reopening the trophy hunt of bears in the internationally celebrated Great Bear Rainforest. And the spirit bear, which was featured in the Olympic Games' opening ceremonies, could be one of its targets. The future of the white Kermode or spirit bear is being put at risk because black bears that carry the spirit bear's white fur gene are fair game for trophy hunters. The genetically distinct Haida black bear and the grizzly bear, which is listed as a Species of Special Concern by the Canadian Federal government, can also be killed senselessly for sport. Coinciding with the release of a Vancouver Sun full page ad, supported by over 20 million people from 40 countries, conservationists have released a map showing that less than two percent of the white Kermode or spirit bear range actually protects the bears from trophy hunting in B.C. "How can British Columbia be celebrating the spirit bear in the opening Olympic ceremony and as an official mascot to the Olympics when trophy hunting is allowed in over 98 percent of the animal's genetic range?" asks Ian McAllister of B.C.-based Pacific Wild. "It just doesn't make sense to protect only the white coloured bears when the black bear also carries the gene that produces white cubs." said Kitasoo/Xai'xais bear viewing guide Doug Neasloss. "The spirit bear is a beautiful representative of evolution and we should not be tinkering with nature by allowing black Kermodes to be shot only to be hung on people's walls. This is an archaic and shallow blood sport," said Wayne McCrory, a Valhalla Wilderness Society biologist who has studied Kermode bears for 20 years. Liz Barratt-Brown, an attorney with the U.S.-based Natural Resources Defense Council, is urging the B.C. government to end the trophy hunt. "The spirit bear is important enough to us that it is represented in our logo and our 1.2 million members and activists want to know that bears are protected in the Great Bear Rainforest." "The eyes of the world are on B.C. and the global campaign to end the trophy hunting of bears in Canada's Great Bear Rainforest will continue to escalate until they are protected," said Rebecca Aldworth of Humane Society International/Canada. Contact: Ian McAllister, Pacific Wild: 250-957-2480 or cell 250-882-7246 Liz-Barratt Brown, Natural Resources Defense Council: 202-289-2404 Wayne McCrory, Valhalla Wilderness Society: 250-358-7796 Rebecca Aldworth, Humane Society International/Canada: 514-575-6797 Douglas Neasloss, Kitasoo/Xai'xais Spirit Bear Adventures:778-839-1241 Doug Neasloss is in Vancouver at the Pan Pacific Aboriginal Pavilion during the Olympics and is available for television interviews. B-roll footage available. To download recent ads and map of the current black Kermode hunting area visit: www.pacificwild.org Facts: * In 2001, Premier Gordon Campbell overturned a moratorium on the trophy hunting of grizzly bears. Since then, over 2,000 grizzly bears have been killed for sport in B.C. The globally rare white Kermode bear is protected from hunting, but the black Kermode, that produces white offspring is subject to open season trophy hunting in over 98 percent of its natural range. A 2009 an Ipsos-Reid poll showed that nearly 80 percent of British Columbians are opposed to the trophy hunt of bears. * The trophy hunt also threatens tourism-based bear viewing operations, which generate considerably more revenue in B.C. than bear hunting. Coastal First Nations are opposed to the trophy hunt of bears in their traditional territories. List of organizations supporting an end to the trophy hunt: Pacific Wild Humane Society International/Canada Humane Society of the United States Humane Society Wildlife Land Trust Coastal First Nations Greenpeace Sierra Club BC Western Canada Wilderness Committee David Suzuki Foundation The Spirit Bear Youth Coalition Valhalla Wilderness Society Bears Matter Forest Ethics Animal Rights Sweden Freedom for Animals - Croatia Brigitte Bardot Foundation - France Franz Weber Foundation - Switzerland Global Action in the Interest of Animals (GAIA) - Belgium Fundacion para la Adopcion, Apadrinamiento y Defensa de los Animales (FAADA) - Spain Four Paws (International) Respect for Animals - UK Commercial Bear Viewing Association of British Columbia Robin Wood Canopy Friends of the Earth BCSPCA Vancouver Humane Society Natural Resources Defense Council -30 - January 2010 Media Advisory from FISHERMENLIST@LISTS.ONENW.ORG* From: Alexandra Morton Date: January 26, 2010 2:13:17 PM PST (CA) To: "fishermenlist@lists.onenw.org" Subject: [fishermenlist] We Won again Hello Today BC Supreme Court ruled in our favor once again. Justice Hinkson granted the federal government a suspension order until December 18, 2010 so that Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) can further prepare to assume control of regulating salmon farms. However, Justice Hinkson forbade any expansion of aquaculture during that period. Specifically, the province cannot issue any new fish farm licences and cannot expand the size of any tenure. He recognized the First Nation interest in this matter by granting the Musgamagw-Tsawataineuk Tribal Council intervenor status, which is essential as this case is based in their territory. On the matter pursued by Marine Harvest at the Court of Appeal and sent back to Justice Hinkson to reconsider (that is whether the fish in the farms are privately owned by the companies and whether the Farm Practices Protection Act (FPPA) is still in force), Hinkson confirmed that the FPPA, will no longer apply to finfish aquaculture and thus no longer protect farms from nuisance claims. On the question, does Marine Harvest own the fish in their pens? Justice Hinkson found that this was not the place for this decision. Marine Harvest will have to bring this before the courts themselves. For now, we know that the aquaculture fish are now part of the fisheries of Canada. Today's decision is met by the unrelated announcement by US box store chain "Target" that they have eliminated all farmed salmon from its fresh, frozen, and smoked seafood offerings in its stores across the United States, because of farm salmon environmental impact on native salmon. There is an enormous amount of work ahead to translate any of this into better survival of our wild salmon, but the courts seem consistently interested in bringing reason, the constitution and the law to bear on the Norwegian fish farm industry in British Columbia. While I am truly sorry that jobs will be lost in ocean fish farming, bear in mind the industry is in deep trouble with mother nature herself in the fish farming strongholds of Chile and Norway. Trying to hold this nomadic fish in pens is never going to work, because it causes epidemics, unnatural sea lice infestations and drug resistance. Salmon farming is not sustainable and ultimately we are better served by our wild fish. Alexandra Morton Winter 2009 Media Advisory from FISHERMENLIST@LISTS.ONENW.ORG From: Alexandra Morton Date: October 26, 2009 4:35:37 PM PDT (CA) To: "fishermenlist@lists.onenw.org" Subject: [fishermenlist] Member of Parliament Judicial Inquiry! Hello All Good News Finally! Peter Julian, Member of Parliament - New Westminster has just launched a petition for a Judicial Inquiry into the Fraser sockeye crash. CONSIDER THIS: If there had been a Judicial Inquiry into the declining North Atlantic cod, we would have rebuilt that fish stock by now because we would have discovered that the critical research by Dr. Ransom Myers of DFO was being suppressed by DFO (Department of Fisheries and Oceans). Here we are again. DFO is completely silent, they have not even acknowledged that the Fraser sockeye crash pattern is extremely specific and provided the media with misinformation. A judicial inquiry will place people under oath so they can be heard over the politics. Please go to Peter Julian's website: http://peterjulian.ndp.ca/node/864 And download the petition document, and sign: here This has to be a paper copy, there can be 1 signature on a page, or a full page of signatures, the address is on the document and postage to the federal government is free. You cannot say you care about wild salmon if you don't make this effort. This will make a very big difference in the future of BC and the eastern pacific. Alexandra Morton www.adopt-a-fry.org Fall 2009 September 21st, 2009 Letter from OCEAN ADVENTURES CHARTER CO. LTD. ----- Original message ----- From: "Eric Boyum" To: mhume@globeandmail.com Cc: premier@gov.bc.ca, eoconnor@theprovince.com, globalnews.bc@globaltv.com Date: Mon, 21 Sep 2009 21:52:10 -0700 Subject: Oil SUPER tankers MUST BE STOPPED Hello Mark We are emailing you from the First Nations village of Hartley Bay on the North Coast of B.C.. Today we learned from the Elders of Hartley Bay of their greatest concern for their village: oil supertankers traveling the waterways of their traditional lands. This is a land of great abundance... and especially, an abundance of spirit. The Gitga'at People of Hartley Bay rushed to the Queen of the North as she sank to the bottom of Wright Sound, saving most of the lives of the passengers and crew that cold winter night. This is absolutely NOT a surprise to us. We've known these people for over 10 years now.. these are a people that are the very definitions of all that is good and right. Many visitors come to this area of B.C.'s North Coast in search of the Spirit Bear... but aside from this unique and amazing little white bear, there is the awe inspiring spirit of a people that is more unique than even the spirit bears who share their traditional homelands. Considering the rare and unique people and the white Spirit Bears who share their homelands, how can Enbridge consider a project that will bring oil SUPER tankers to these waters and how can the governments of British Columbia and Canada allow this to happen?? Long ago, we entered into a protocol agreement with the Gitga'at People of Hartley Bay... and we intend to honour that which we have promised... we will stand by their sides as they attempt to protect their lands, their waters, their wildlife, their children, their Elders and their way of life. Most Sincerely, Trish & Eric Boyum Ocean Adventures Charter Co. Ltd. tel. 604-812-9453 Spring 2009 May 27th, 2009 Media Advisory from FISHERMENLIST@LISTS.ONENW.ORG Date: Fri, 26 May 2009 23:58:12 -0700 From: Alexandra Morton Subject: [fishermenlist] Trip to Norway Message from Alexandra Morton in Norway, disease and sea lice are not under control in Norwegian salmon farms and BC stands to lose all. I have been in Norway for 10 days because 92% of fish farming in British Columbia is Norwegian owned. I have met with many Norwegian scientists, members of the Mainstream and Marine Harvest boards, been to their AGMs, toured the area with fishermen, examined a closed-containment facility, met the Norwegians fighting for their fish and joined a scientific cruise. I thought Norway had this industry handled and I expected to learn how marine salmon farming could work, but this has not been the case. My eyes have really been opened. This industry still has major issues that are growing and has no business expanding throughout the temperate coastlines of the world. The way they have been treating sea lice in Norway has caused high drug resistance. The only solution in sight is increasingly toxic chemicals. In the past two years (2007, 8) sea lice levels have actually increased on both the farm and wild fish. The scientists I met with are holding their breath to see if drug-resistant sea lice populations will explode and attack the last wild salmon and sea trout. The same treatment methods have been used in BC and we can expect this to occur as well. I am not hearing how the industry can possibly safeguard British Columbia from contamination with their ISA virus. Infectious Salmon Anemia is a salmon virus that is spreading worldwide, wherever there are salmon farms. In Chile, the Norwegian strain of ISA has destroyed 60% of the industry, 17,000 jobs and unmeasured environmental damage. The industry is pushing into new territory. If this gets to BC no one can predict what it will do to the Pacific salmon and steelhead, it will be unleashed into new habitat and we know this is a very serious threat to life. Professor Are Nylund head of the Fish Diseases Group at the University of Bergen, Norway, reports that, "based on 20 years of experience, I can guarantee that if British Columbia continues to import salmon eggs from the eastern Atlantic infectious salmon diseases, such as ISA, will arrive in Western Canada. Here in Hardangerfjord we have sacrificed our wild salmon stocks in exchange for farm salmon. With all your 5 species of wild salmon, BC is the last place you should have salmon farms." New diseases and parasites are being identified. The most serious is a sea lice parasite that attacks the salmon immune system. There is concern that this new parasite is responsible for accelerating wild salmon declines. The Norwegian scientists agree with many of us in BC. If you want wild salmon you must reduce the number of farm salmon. There are three options. The future for salmon farming will have to include: permanently reduction of not just the number of sea lice, but also the number of farm salmon per fjord, removing farm salmon for periods of time to delouse the fjords and not restocking until after the out-migration of the wild salmon and sea trout. But where wild salmon are considered essential they say the only certain measure is to remove the farms completely. There are many people here like me. I met a man who has devoted his life to the science of restoring the Voss River, where the largest Atlantic salmon in the world, a national treasure, have vanished due to sea lice from salmon farms. Interestingly he is using the method I was not allowed to use last spring... Towing the fish past the farms out to sea. Another man is working with scientists and communities to keep the sea trout of the Hardangerfjord alive. There are so many tragic stories familiar to British Columbia. The corporate fish farmers are unrelenting in their push to expand. With Chile so highly contaminated with the Norwegian strain of ISA all fish farmed coasts including Norway are threatened with expansion. I made the best case I could to Mainstream and Marine Harvest for removing the salmon feedlots from our wild salmon migration routes, but they will not accept that they are harming wild salmon. They say they want to improve, but they don't say how. Norway has different social policies which include encouraging people to populate the remote areas and so fish farming seemed a good opportunity to these people. BC has the opposite policy, but the line that fish farms are good for small coastal communities has been used in BC anyway. I have not seen any evidence that it has even replaced the jobs it has impacted in wild fisheries and tourism. It is becoming increasingly clear to protect wild Pacific salmon from the virus ISA the BC border absolutely has to be closed to importation of salmon eggs immediately and salmon farms MUST be removed from the Fraser River migration routes and any other narrow waterways where wild salmon are considered valuable. Our letter asking government that the Fisheries Act, which is the law in Canada be applied to protect our salmon from fish farms has been signed by 14,000 people to date at www.adopt-a-fry.org has still not been answered. Please forward this letter and encourage more people to sign our letter to government as it is building a community of concerned people word wide and we will prevail as there is really no rock for this industry to hide under and longer. Alexandra Morton May 16th, 2009 Media Advisory from FISHERMENLIST@LISTS.ONENW.ORG Date: Fri, 15 May 2009 10:44:26 -0700 From: Alexandra Morton Subject: [fishermenlist] What next? Hello, Gordon Campbell locked the doors when I tried to deliver our letter and left us on the street. Campbell has been re-elected and at first I thought this meant BC does not actually want wild salmon, nor their rivers. I began to make plans to give up and get my own life back in order, but then someone forwarded me this map. The ridings with wild salmon and wild salmon rivers, did not actually elect Campbell. Thousands of people have told me they want wild salmon and have wished me success in this, but at every BC election a handicap is laid on us who are trying to do this. I am writing to say people cannot wave from the sidelines any longer, because we are not succeeding. Wild salmon are going extinct on our watch. Yes, yes climate change will be a factor, but wild salmon are built to survive cataclysmic change in their environment and if we allow their genetic warehouse to rebuild right now, we stand a far better chance of receiving the food and energy this fish brings to us in the years to come. Grieg Seafood is trying to build two of the biggest fish farms on the coast, on the juvenile salmon migration route for Fraser River and East Vancouver Island stocks, at York Island. Marine Harvest is trying to increase the size of their "farms" coastwide. They are taking me back to court this summer to resolve whether they own their fish in the Canadian Ocean. Atlantic salmon eggs are still being imported into BC, despite the Infectious Salmon Anemia virus popping up everywhere the Norwegian salmon farmers operate. Emamectin benzoate (Slice) is being used in our waters... with no warnings posted during usage...even though the U.S. Food and Drug Agency apparently has a ban on any food products "exposed" to this neurotoxin (Pacific Fishing current issue). This means all of us who are fishing, and harvesting seafood near fish farms have no way to make sure we are not "exposed" to the drug. And the fish feedlots are in violation of many sections of the Fisheries Act. Not only is there no progress, we are moving backwards. I am headed to Norway next week, but doubt anyone is listening there either. I can only see two ways forward... The courts... And for us all to step up and say "no more." The solution is so simple: Apply the laws of Canada, The Fisheries Act. If the Norwegians can't comply they should leave. Give the Canadian fish farmers who want to revamp their industry in closed tanks a break in getting set up. Market wild and farm fish to raise the value of both. And restore wild salmon in a way that has never been tried... adhering to their biology, the natural laws that have caused them to thrive in the first place. And we need everyone who wants wild salmon to sign this letter. Currently we are at 14,000... and we are still on the street, this was not enough to even get in the door. It is up to you guys. Alexandra Morton Click here to view the NDP/Liberal ridings map. Click here to subscribe to One North West's Fishermen's Listserve. April 8th, 2009 Media Advisory from the Harley Bay Band Council "A project proposed by Enbridge would bring oil tankers bigger than the Exxon Valdez right over the heads of the whales and other sea life..." Click here to read the full document. Click here to learn the truth about trophy hunting in the Great Bear Rainforest.

	First class BC wilderness cruises, coastal tours and charters on the West Coast of British Columbia aboard the 54 ft. Great Bear II, out of Vancouver, BC. · Queen Charlotte Islands · Haida Gwaii · Great Bear Rainforest · Gulf Islands · Princess Louisa Inlet · · Desolation Sound · Howe Sound · Indian Arm · Whale Watching · Bear Viewing · Wilderness Adventures · Copyright © 1998-2010 Ocean Adventures Charter Co. Ltd