Media Advisory: Communities fight salmon farm expansion at Tribunal

What: Nova Scotia Aquaculture Review Board hearing on Kelly Cove Salmon’s proposed expansion in Liverpool Bay

When: October 7–10, 2025

Where: Bridgewater, Nova Scotia (Days Inn – 50 North St, Bridgewater, NS B4V 4H1) or by livestream (register in advance here).

Who: Ecojustice will represent Protect Liverpool Bay Association, who is participating as an intervenor. Mi’kmaw representatives, local fishers, officials from Region of Queens Municipality and community members are also expected to speak.

Why it matters: Kelly Cove Salmon Ltd., a subsidiary of Cooke Aquaculture, is seeking to expand its operations in Liverpool Bay by adding six more open net pens, increasing farmed fish from about 420,000 to 660,000 in this phase. The decision will set a precedent for future aquaculture projects across Nova Scotia. Local residents, Indigenous communities, and environmental advocates say the expansion threatens wild salmon and the health of coastal ecosystems.

About:

We are a world-leading science and advocacy organization with headquarters in New Brunswick, Canada. Represented at prominent forums, the Atlantic Salmon Federation (ASF) is a family of more than 25,000 members and volunteers passionate about conserving and restoring wild Atlantic salmon. We conduct research on wild salmon throughout the North Atlantic, perform complex river restoration projects, and advocate for legislation that will help to protect wild Atlantic salmon.

The Protect Liverpool Bay (PLB) Association is a group of citizens advocating to keep our bay free from the destructive impacts of open net-pen fin-fish farms and encouraging other Nova Scotia communities to do the same. We know fin-fish farms cannot be safely operated in a marine environment.  We are calling on the Nova Scotia government to reject Cooke Aquaculture’s proposed expansion plans for industrial scale salmon farms in Liverpool Bay

Media Contacts

Shayoni Mehta, communications strategist | Ecojustice
604-685-5618 ext. 249, smehta@ecojustice.ca

Brian Muldoon | Protect Liverpool Bay Association.
902-350-2215, brian.muldoon2@gmail.com

Neville Crabbe, VP communications and special projects | Atlantic Salmon Federation
506-529-1033, ncrabbe@asf.ca

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