Watershed Watch Salmon Society

11/02/2026

Retired biologist John Werring from the Norrish Creek Gravel Stewardship Group was interviewed by Jane Williams on Coop Radio on October 17, 2026, about the devastating impacts of gravel mining in Norrish Creek.

He lays out the issue, a possible solution, and how this isn’t just about one creek but a problem across the province. Full interview available on the Redeye podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/gravel-operation-wrecks-salmon-streams-in-fraser-valley/id1219383671?i=1000797624172

10/29/2026

Flowing through a contaminated site, short on water, and facing off against an illegal ship breaking operation, Washer Creek perseveres.

After a season of intense angling pressure, returning coho were stuck for weeks at the mouth of this small creek. Somehow dozens of wild coho survived and are now making their way upstream.

There are close to 500 small streams like this on Vancouver Island. With a fraction of the budget, staff and attention given to hatchery rivers, Washer Creek could be returning hundreds more coho every year.

Wouldn’t it be nice if wild salmon streams, which in their diversity and resilience hold the key to a future with wild salmon, got the attention they deserve?

10/28/2026

Just one week until our special screening of Running Wild: Return to the River at IMAX Victoria!⁠
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Join Watershed Watch Salmon Society, Raincoast Conservation Foundation, Pacific Salmon Foundation and Wild Salmon Center for an evening celebrating wild salmon.⁠
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📅 Wednesday, November 4⁠
🎬 Event begins at 6 p.m.⁠
🚪 Doors open at 5 p.m.⁠
📍 IMAX Victoria, Royal BC Museum⁠
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Come early to chat with staff and learn about our work to defend wild salmon!⁠
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🎟 Get your tickets: https://sales.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/Selection.aspx?sch=667030
⁠

10/28/2026

A virus is spreading through B.C.’s factory salmon farms, and DFO isn’t treating it as a disease.

The virus is called PRV. It isn’t native to our waters. Genetic research shows it arrived about 30 years ago from northern Europe, likely through salmon farming industry egg transport.

Research has also shown it spreads from factory farms to wild salmon.

None of that is new.

What’s new is that independent scientists finally got inside working farms and found the disease far more often than DFO has been reporting. For over a year, scientists with no ties to the industry got rare, direct access to factory salmon farms in the Broughton Archipelago, through an agreement between three First Nations and the province.

What they found: a virus-caused heart disease on most of the farms they sampled. Three independent pathologists confirmed it.

Yet DFO still doesn’t regulate PRV as a disease agent. The researchers say outbreaks are far more common than DFO reports. Part of the reason: the rules DFO uses to diagnose the disease were developed alongside the fish farming industry itself.

When the people being regulated help write the rules, you don’t get the full picture. That’s why independent science matters.

Read more on our website: https://watershedwatch.ca/external-news-links/

10/27/2026

Big change arrived in Victoria on Saturday, and a lot of you have been asking what it means for wild salmon.

Our executive director has written a letter to our staff, board and supporters. It doesn’t pretend the next few years will be easy, but we’ve been here before and we know what to do.
We’ll keep showing up for the fish, in the meeting rooms, in your feed, and on the water.

We’re going to need you there, too.

Read the letter, then share it with someone who needs it: https://watershedwatch.ca/stories/what-election-means-for-wild-salmon/

10/26/2026

Nature is infrastructure. So why isn't it part of the conversation?

We hear a lot about building Canada's economic future - investing in roads, bridges, ports and pipelines. But what about the natural assets that already help keep our communities safe, our food systems productive and our ecosystems healthy?

New national polling from Abacus Data reveals that Canadians overwhelmingly recognize nature's economic value:
🌱 96% say nature is one of Canada's most valuable economic assets.
🌊 77% support treating investments in natural assets like investments in roads and bridges.
🤝 71% support incentives for partnerships between Indigenous Nations and private-sector organizations to undertake sustainable land management.

This is more than support for conservation. It's support for putting nature to work as part of Canada's economic resilience.

Across BC and in the Lower Mainland in particular, that means recognizing the value of wetlands, connected floodplains, healthy rivers and salmon habitat, and investing in solutions that protect communities while restoring nature.

The public support is there. Now we need governments to translate it into policies, funding and action.

Nature is infrastructure. Let's start treating it that way.

Polling by Abacus Data: Canada's Nature Advantage, September 2026.

10/24/2026

Today, October 24, is Provincial Election Day in B.C.!

If you haven't already voted, we encourage you to get out and cast your ballot!

Find your voting place and plan your trip to the polls 👇
https://wheretovote.elections.bc.ca/

Happy voting, B.C.!

10/23/2026

B.C. votes tomorrow, October 24!

Still getting ready to cast your ballot?

Here are a few resources check out:
Wild salmon and habitat: We've gathered relevant commitments from parties, in their own words.
https://watershedwatch.ca/stories/bc-election-2026-commitments-relevant-to-wild-salmon-and-their-habitats/

Environment and Climate Survey: https://www.organizingforchange.org/bcelectionsurvey

Find out where to vote: https://wheretovote.elections.bc.ca/

Check what ID to bring:
https://elections.bc.ca/2026-provincial-election/voter-id/

Make a plan to vote tomorrow!

Authorized by Watershed Watch Salmon Society, registered sponsor under the Election Act, [email protected]

Read commitments that will impact wild salmon and their habitats from four BC parties’ 2026 platforms, quoted directly, plus key voting information.

10/23/2026

Join us for a special screening of Running Wild: Return to the River at IMAX Victoria!

Watershed Watch Salmon Society, Raincoast Conservation Foundation , Pacific Salmon Foundation and Wild Salmon Center are teaming up for this evening celebrating wild salmon.

📅 Wednesday, November 4
🎬 Event begins at 6 p.m.
🚪 Doors open at 5 p.m.
📍 IMAX Victoria, Royal BC Museum

Come early to chat with staff and learn about our work to defend wild salmon!

🎟 Get your tickets here: https://sales.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/Selection.aspx?sch=667030

Running Wild: Return to the River, is the first immersive, 3D IMAX film to put viewers into rivers and oceans alongside wild salmon on their epic annual migration. Narrated by Academy Award nominee Liam Neeson, it’s an awe-inspiring film about the vital role wild Pacific salmon play on our planet – and the people working to protect them.

10/22/2026

What are B.C.’s political parties saying about watershed security and the environment?

Organizing for Change, of which Watershed Watch is a member, sent the same questionnaire to official parties ahead of the 2026 provincial election. Questions covered watershed security, climate action, biodiversity conservation and more.

The responses received have been posted and you can read them here 👇
🔗 https://www.organizingforchange.org/bcelectionsurvey

Authorized by Watershed Watch Salmon Society, registered sponsor under the Election Act, [email protected]

Environment + Climate Survey: BC Election 2026 Party Responses Organizing for Change sent the same questionnaire to all three official parties in the fall 2026 British Columbia election.The questionnaire asked for party positions on a range of topics, including climate action, biodiversity, conserva...