 Fur Farms: Eco-Nightmare“Farmed furs are the mainstay of the fur trade, accounting for some 85 per cent of the industry’s turnover."
Source: International Fur Trade Federation Nova Scotia: ‘Mink stink’Statistics Canada reports over 900,000 minks are raised in Nova Scotia (NS) each year on over 80 mink farms. Nova Scotia is a strategic location for fur farms because operators buy cheap fish byproduct from local fisheries to feed the minks.
Roughly 85 percent of the province’s mink farms are located in Digby and Yarmouth County.
While some individuals believe these farms contribute to the local economy, a growing number of residents are becoming increasingly alarmed over the runoff and pollution associated with fur production.
Community residents have specifically been concerned about the “stink” caused by ‘blue-green’ algae (cyanobacteria) which is blooming in the Wentworth / Carleton River Watershed, near Yarmouth.
The algae is so toxic, residents are urged to stay out of the lakes and avoid all contact with lake water. Ingesting the water could cause diarrhea and vomiting.
In addition to concerns about water quality, residents also fear that the ‘mink stink’ has reduced local property values by as much as 40 percent in some areas.
While the government originally denied the fur farms were causing any problems, scientific reports have now confirmed the problem is definitely coming from improperly disposed carcasses, manure, urine, and waste feed from local mink ranches.
Furthermore, the majority of fur farms are located at the headwaters of the Tusket River, which makes it easy for waste to drain into the local watershed.
Photo: Hillside Farm, Digby County, NS. Photo credit: John Horton.
John Horton is a retiree living alongside the Carleton river in Forest Glen, Nova Scotia. The Tusket/Carleton Wentworth river right runs through the front of his property. He knows first hand what the mink farms have done to the local waters.
Horton believes between budget cuts to the Department of the Environment, investments into making fur farms larger coupled with no oversight or corporate accountability, has created a disaster for the environment.
“The excrement from mink, fecal matter, particles from hay and bedding, washes during pelt processing, it all flows into the river in the same way”, says Horton.
“Our water smells because unacceptable levels of bacteria are feeding on unacceptable levels of nutrients that is suspended animal matter. It's a sewer. Ugly green cyanobacteria dominates the core lakes and rivers downstream from those mink farms.”
But despite constant complaining to the Department of the Environment from Horton and other local residents, not much is being done to clean up the local rivers.
“Money is to be made whenever pollution is involved. Never in my life have I seen a government ignore the majority of the people and cater to a minority industry”, adds Horton.
No laws to protect the environment In 2010, the provincial Department of Agriculture passed the Fur Industry Act. The act provides a framework, but cannot be enforced until regulations, guidelines and standards are developed. The municipality of The District of Yarmouth did however pass a bylaw to increase the amount of space a farm must be set back from a well or body of water from 328 feet to 500 feet. This new minimum setback distance from lakes and rivers is applicable for buildings, manure storage facilities and burial sites for the disposal of dead animals used in conjunction with fur ranches, and hog and chicken farms. While this bylaw is a start, it does nothing to put an end to the constant pollution and animal suffering associated with fur farms. Further reading: The impacts of the mink industry on freshwater lakes in Nova Scotia: An overview of concerns By the David Suzuki Foundation Water quality survey of ten lakes located in the Carleton River Watershed Area of Digby and Yarmouth Counties, Nova Scotia By Acadia University A You Tube video dedicated to exposing mink farms in Nova Scotia can be seen here: Dim lights References: Halifax Meda-Co op, Murky Waters: Contentious mink farms, Jan 25/2011 International Fur Trade Federation, iftf.com, Feb 14/2011 |
