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Overview to Aquaculture Activities Regulations (AAR)

The Aquaculture Activities Regulations (AAR) specify the conditions under which aquaculture operators in Canada may install, operate, maintain or remove an aquaculture facility, or undertake measures to treat their fish for disease and parasites, as well as deposit organic matter.

The AAR permits aquaculture activities to take place within specific restrictions to avoid, minimize, and mitigate any potential detriments to fish and fish habitat (as mandated under sections 35 and 36 of the Fisheries Act). The Regulations also set out overarching federal thresholds and additional requirements to existing provincial programs for environmental monitoring and sampling by the aquaculture industry.

Other federal departments also have a mandate related to AAR. Health Canada (HC) ensures that pesticides and drugs used and sold in Canada meet acceptable environmental and human safety standards under the authority of the Pest Control Products Act. Both Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) and Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) have responsibilities for regulating the deposit of deleterious substances under authority of the Fisheries Act and the Canadian Environmental Protection Act in Canadian waters. DFO, ECC, and HC engage in coordinated efforts respecting science, compliance and enforcement activities related to the deposit of deleterious substances. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is responsible for maintaining a high degree of food safety in Canada (under the authority of the Feeds Act or the Food and Drugs Act), which involves testing seafood products for certain chemicals of concern, including pesticides and drugs used at aquaculture sites.

The AAR require aquaculture owners and operators to submit annual reports on their activities to the appropriate Regional Aquaculture Management Office no later than April 1 of the year following the year being reported on.

They also require aquaculture owners and operators to notify Fisheries and Oceans Canada of their intent to utilize pest control products when required; any morbidity (unhealthy fish) or mortality events in wild fish; any exceedances of Biological Oxygen Demanding (BOD) matter thresholds; and, when they submit an application to a provincial or territorial authority for a new or expanded site.

This has resulted in the receipt of comprehensive information provided in a number of areas, including drug/pesticide deposition, monitoring of ocean floor, BOD matter deposition, etc. Consequently, and in collaboration with relevant provincial partners, this initiative enhances Canada’s well-established environmental protection regime to manage potential impacts to aquatic resources.

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