Farmed Salmon Escapes Fish raised in aquaculture production can
cause serious harm when unintentionally or intentionally
released from aquaculture facilities. Escaped fish can harm wild
fish populations, other species and the ecosystem. Fish in open
net pens escape in small numbers even during normal operations,
and can escape in large quantities when nets are damaged by
storms or predators, such as sharks and sea lions. Atlantic
salmon escapes on the U.S. and Canadian West Coasts are common;
there were 350,000 known escapes in 1997 and farmed Atlantic
salmon have been found thousands of miles away from the closest
salmon aquaculture facilities. In the Pacific Ocean, escaped
non-native Atlantic salmon have already been found breeding near
aquaculture operations in both British Columbia and South
America. Escapes are a significant concern because they occur on
a regular basis. Escaped fish potentially travel great distances
and are a threat to the long-term health and fitness of native
populations. In early 20