The pen that collapsed off the San Juans held just one-third as many fish as the pen proposed for our shores.  And the aftermath has been a reminder  that the Salish Sea is really quite a small aquatic neighborhood.

I'm glad that we will finally be taking a serious look at the risks of open-water farming of exotic salmon species.  Pen collapse is not the biggest problem with fish farming  --  there are also the issues of salmon pathogens and parasites constantly released into the whole aquatic flow, along with the antibiotics and pesticides used to keep them down, and quite a few other proven dangers to our native fish.

I hope WA State and Clallam County both take a serious look at all the hazards associated with open-water fish farming.  A handful of jobs is not worth the ruination of our waters.  If fish farming can be made safer for native fish, then we should require the industry to make it so.  If it can't, then we should refuse to host it here.