Dr. Craig Orr

Respectfully, David Suzuki, Ph.D. , Founder, David Suzuki Foundation Daniel Pauly, Ph.D., Director, Fisheries Centre, University of British Columbia Richard Routledge, Ph.*D., Department of Statistics and Actuarial Science, Simon Fraser University Larry Dill, Ph.D., Professor and Director, Behavioral Ecology Research Group, Dept. of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University Mark A. Lewis, Ph.D., Center for Mathematical Biology, University of Alberta Wade Davis, Ph.D., Explorer-in-Residence, National Geographic Society Boris Worm, Ph.D., Marine Conservation Biology, Dalhousie University, Halifax John Volpe, Ph.D., University of Victoria Environmental Studies, Victoria BC Don McQueen, Ph.D., Emeritus Research Professor, York University, Toronto, Adjunct Professor, Simon Fraser University Craig Orr, Ph.D., Executive Director, Watershed Watch Salmon Society, Coquitlam, BC Neil Frazer, Ph.D., Department of Geology and Geophysics, University of Hawaii at Manoa Rob Williams, Ph.D., Univers

Atlantic salmon are the cows of the fish-farming industry , explains Craig Orr , a marine scientist and salmon expert at Simon Fraser University near Vancouver.Farm-raised salmon costs about half as much as fish caught in the wild , so what used to be a seasonal delicacy is now available throughout the year.

Salmon is just part of this fish tale.Today , nearly all of the catfish and more than a third of the shrimp sold in the U.S. come from farms , as do more than half the oysters , clams , and mussels.Worldwide , about 31 million pounds of fish were grown in farms in 1999 , according to fishing-industry researcher H.M. Johnson & Associates.That amounts to about 31% of all seafood sold , up from 19% in 1990.
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Rather than farming more salmon , Orr believes the fishing industry should use fish wheels , which can scoop fish from a narrow salmon run without hooking them.They can be sorted and threatened species thrown back.

LABELS.Finally , there is the issue of keeping the public informed.Few Americans realize that much of the fish they eat is grown on a farm.Orr believes salmon labeling in the markets should be mandatory so that customers know whether they're getting fish that is farm-raised or wild.Consumers would know where their dinner came from , and why one fillet costs so much more than the next.

Ultimately , however , economics will likely rule the day.Without fish farms , prices for salmon and trout would rise as their stocks are depleted.Customers used to the cheaper prices of farm-raised fish would probably find the high prices outrageous.Wild salmon at Fairway Market in Manhattan , for example , costs about twice as much as the farm-raised variety.

In fact, as a contributor to the U.S. economy, recreational fishing now dwarfs the commercial fishing industry, says longtime salmon fisherman and environmental scientist Craig Orr, of the Center for Coastal Studies at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia.Hauke Kite-Powell, a research specialist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, who is working on a database about the ocean's value to the U.S. economy, agrees.He notes that while U.S. fishermen bring in about $3.5 billion in seafood from the ocean a year, recreational fishermen in Massachusetts alone spend more than $1 billion a year.

There are no figures for how many trophy fish are hauled from the water each year.But what it all adds up to is that inceasing numbers of people are chasing fewer and fewer fish -- and put more pressure than ever on marine resources.Even as fishing regulations have become stricter, many fish in the Northeast -- such as the New England cod or the Atlantic whiting -- have been overfished to the brink of collapse.The same is true of the threatened California rockfish, the giant tarpon caught off the southern Texas coast, and even the tasty lake perch I used to catch by the dozen in Lake Michigan with my father.Worldwide, the same is true for hundreds of species.

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But if the next generation hopes to enjoy the same experiences that Craig Orr and Jim Winn have had their whole lives, then fish stocking is only part of the answer.

The first issue of the Journal focuses on concerns related to the marine environment and feature articles by noted scientist Dr. Craig Orr.

Copies of the journal will be distributed to a range of individuals and institutions including libraries, resource centres and universities.

Already , about half the salmon sold in U.S. supermarkets and restaurants comes from fish farms in Western Canada , the North Sea , or South America. ``Atlantic salmon are the cows of the fish-farming industry , '' explains Craig Orr , a marine scientist and salmon expert at Simon Fraser University near Vancouver.Farm-raised salmon costs about half as much as fish caught in the wild , so what used to be a seasonal delicacy is now available throughout the year.

Salmon is just part of this fish tale.Today , nearly all of the catfish and more than a third of the shrimp sold in the U.S. come from farms , as do more than half the oysters , clams , and mussels.Worldwide , about 31 million pounds of fish were grown in farms in 1999 , according to fishing-industry researcher H.M. Johnson & Associates.That amounts to about 31% of all seafood sold , up from 19% in 1990.
...
Rather than farming more salmon , Orr believes the fishing industry should use fish wheels , which can scoop fish from a narrow salmon run without hooking them.They can be sorted and threatened species thrown back.

LABELS.Finally , there is the issue of keeping the public informed.Few Americans realize that much of the fish they eat is grown on a farm.Orr believes salmon labeling in the markets should be mandatory so that customers know whether they're getting fish that is farm-raised or wild.Consumers would know where their dinner came from , and why one fillet costs so much more than the next.

Ultimately , however , economics will likely rule the day.Without fish farms , prices for salmon and trout would rise as their stocks are depleted.Customers used to the cheaper prices of farm-raised fish would probably find the high prices outrageous.Wild salmon at Fairway Market in Manhattan , for example , costs about twice as much as the farm-raised variety.