On November 17th, 2022, days after her decision to kick Cooke's out of Puget Sound, Hilary Franz, Washington State's Commissioner of Public Lands, signed an order banning net-pens from state waters, forever. Joining California, Oregon, and Alaska in becoming net-pen free. Only BC remains as the lone host of the net-pen industry on the Pacific coast.
Elsewhere in the world earlier this fall, Chile sanctioned Cooke Aquaculture and restricts net-pen operations in protected areas. Norway proposed a 40% resource rent tax on large scale net-pen farmers thus the big players have halted projects and promise to take them elsewhere... well if they do, we all know where they won't be going. And Icelandic salmon farm operator Salmar was fined $1M (cdn) for the escape of 80,000 salmon.
The glaring question surfaces, given the same science why are other regions banning, restricting or penalizing this destructive industry while Canada welcomes and absolves them, even when being sued by them.