Do aquaculture operations undergo an environmental assessment?
Yes. In the vast majority of cases, aquaculture operations undergo a thorough environmental assessment and appropriate mitigating measures are adopted before their facilities can be approved. For example, before the Government of Canada grants approval to an aquaculture, the federal department or departments involved must ensure that an environmental assessment is done under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act. This environmental assessment is carried out to determine the significance of the potential adverse environmental effects that an aquaculture facility may pose. In addition, as part of the federal review of aquaculture proposals, all aquaculture site applications are reviewed pursuant to the federal Fisheries Act to ensure the site does not impact fish and fish habitat.
