Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, Mr. Swerdfager, for being here today. I have a few questions. I may just pose them, and if you can't respond to them in the time, maybe you can let the committee know, if you could.
First, does DFO have evidence to demonstrate that fish farms are not contributing to the decline of sockeye and chinook on B.C.'s west coast, our west coast?
Secondly, you're probably familiar with the new video that's around, by Alexandra Morton, that five-minute clip showing what she demonstrates as evidence of viruses and sea lice coming onto natural fish. My second question is, then, why not at least move the current fish farms away from the egress of smolts as they leave B.C.'s Canadian rivers?
My third question actually has two parts. One is that in British Columbia the forestry practices code that we have now is insufficient to actually address the problem of logging right down to the edge of rivers. It has really devastated a lot of salmon habitat for breeding purposes. Will the Government of Canada work with the Government of British Columbia to change those forestry practices to make the barrier farther away from the edge of rivers? Lastly, will you increase the number of fisheries officers that we have in British Columbia?
Thank you.