Good morning, Mr. Chair. Thank you.
My name is Sean Jones. I've been legal counsel for Wild First on finfish aquaculture issues for over six years. I'm appearing today on behalf of Wild First.
I thank the committee and its members for conducting this important study into science at DFO.
I've also acted on behalf of first nations, including the 'Namgis First Nation and Homalco First Nation, on related issues, including DFO's unlawful regulation of the piscine orthoreovirus, the orderly transition of open net-pen feedlots from the Broughton Archipelago, and the minister's decision to phase out feedlots from the Discovery Islands.
My experience has convinced me that the aquaculture management directorate and the Canadian science advisory secretariat consistently suppress, misrepresent and ignore the scientific evidence demonstrating that open net-pen feedlots of Atlantic salmon threaten the survival of wild Pacific salmon. DFO relies on this suppression and misrepresentation to excuse itself from executing its legal obligations, both domestically and internationally.
I am convinced that the minister, members of Parliament and the Canadian public cannot rely on either the aquaculture management directorate or the Canadian science advisory secretariat for an accurate and objective assessment of the harm that open net-pen feedlots cause to endangered Pacific salmon.
I respectfully suggest in the strongest possible terms that this committee recommend that, first, the minister appoint an independent scientific adviser to advise the minister on the voluminous scientific evidence demonstrating that open net-pen feedlots infect wild Pacific salmon with parasites and pathogens that cause population-level impacts to wild Pacific salmon. This recommendation is consistent with the 2018 independent panel on aquaculture science's conclusion that DFO could not evaluate science objectively and its recommendation that DFO appoint a departmental adviser on aquaculture issues.
Second, the conduct of DFO and the misfeasance of DFO managers should be investigated further and fully by an independent third party such as a commissioner appointed under the Inquiries Act, and preferably by an investigator with the power of subpoena.
Both actions are necessary to ensure the minister has accurate information before her.
I make these recommendations after reviewing tens of thousands of pages of documents released under the Access to Information Act and after being involved in processes in which DFO managers have, among other things, unlawfully suppressed the research of Canadian and international scientists and interfered with scientists' communication of their research to DFO decision-makers. They have misrepresented the content of scientific papers in risk assessments and publicly misrepresented the consensus achieved by scientists during risk assessments, including changing the findings of scientists without their consent. They have departed, without justification, from international standards for diagnosing disease and detecting outbreaks including allowing industry licensees to vote on risk assessments and how disease would be diagnosed. They have adopted unlawful criteria for adopting the precautionary principle and presented conclusions in risk assessments for which there was no evidence and refused to provide evidence to support those conclusions when requested.
This litany of misfeasance by DFO managers parallels its conduct during the collapse of the Atlantic cod fishery, when DFO routinely suppressed and misrepresented evidence of harm. The perniciously ubiquitous nature of this misconduct confirms that it's not the product of a few exceptional bad apples, but the fruit of a poisoned orchard.
Justice Cohen warned of this outcome. The commissioner of the environment and sustainable development found that DFO was vulnerable to claims that it prioritized the interests of the aquaculture industry. Canada's chief scientist confirmed that DFO could not evaluate evidence without bias. DFO has not corrected any of this misconduct.