VANCOUVER – The Cohen Commission is looking at the impact salmon farms are having on wild salmon, and for the first time the public can listen to the proceedings in real time online.

The Wilderness Committee has partnered with the online news site rabble.ca to set up a live audio streaming of the ongoing inquiry. The live feed can be accessed at the rabbletv page: http://rabble.ca/rabbletv

“There is a huge amount of interest about what is happening to wild salmon, and what is going on in the Cohen inquiry," said Tria Donaldson, Pacific Coast campaigner for the Wilderness Committee and a contributing writer with rabble.ca. "Now people all over the country can tune in and hear for themselves what evidence is being submitted."

The Cohen hearings, currently taking place in Vancouver, has been investigating different factors that may be contributing to the decline of the Fraser sockeye for over a year.

The aquaculture portion of the hearings continues until September 8. This week’s testimony will continue to explore the role of fish farming in the decline of the Fraser sockeye. Witnesses will include the province's head fish veterinarian Gary Martin, the head of aquaculture at the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO), Andrew Thompson, as well as Dr. Ian Flemming, an expert on Norway's salmon farms.

“We hope that having this livestream available will focus more attention on these important proceedings, because so many people in Canada care about our iconic wild salmon,” said Donaldson.

Contact:

Tria Donaldson, Pacific Coast Campaigner, Wilderness Committee, cell: 250-686-9249