Province seeking input on controversial Burin salmon farm proposal

A company that wants to build a $250 million salmon farm in Placentia Bay has submitted its environmental impact statement (EIS) to the provincial government.

Greig NL is seeking approval for its proposal to build a land-based hatchery on the Burin Peninsula and a string of sea cages for more thanseven million salmon in Placentia Bay.

In March, the aquaculture company organized a public meeting as part of itsEIS, and now says the full statement isavailable online.

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It has been trying to get the project off the ground for at least three years, with supporters championing the project as a way to create new rural jobs, and detractors arguing that the project would be bad for the marine environment.

Seeking public comments

Minister of Municipal Affairs and Environment Andrew Parsons is now seeking public comments on the proposal and asking they be delivered by July 11.

After July 11, the project will be reviewed by an environmental assessmentpanel, and Parsons. Following that, the two groups will make recommendations to the provincial cabinet.

The previous Progressive Conservative provincial government said it would spent $45 millionto buy an equity stake in the salmon farming project, while the current Liberal provincial government has consistently said it has not decided yet.

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If approved, GreigNL will still need to apply for licenses and approvals from numerous federal and provincial departments.

In March, the company said that if everything went as planned, construction on the project could start by the fall.