This project aims to develop genomic tools to enhance Eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica) aquaculture in Canada. Genomic tools have the power to improve selective breeding programs by accelerating production, increasing profitability, and ensuring environmentally responsible practices. However, genomic tools are lacking for the Eastern oyster. This study will design and validate the first high-density panel of genomic markers specific to C. virginica. The partner organization (L’Étang Ruisseau Bar Ltd.) is the leading producer of Eastern oyster hatchery seed.

The North Coast Innovation Lab (NCIL) is a place-based initiative for people who are invested in the future of Prince Rupert to work together on tangible projects and initiatives that build a resilient economy as a tool for community well-being. Forthcoming student Project Coordinators provide capacity to the efforts of the NCIL through action-research, project prototyping/piloting, social innovation methodology application & understanding, and community learning activities and presentations reflecting the efforts and outcomes of the NCIL.

Flaxseed possesses many useful and valuable components, some in high concentration (oil, protein and fibre) and some as minor components (lignan, orbitides), as well as anti-nutrients such as cyanogenic glycosides and cadmium, which all need to be monitored during development and final production.

The project will quantify spatial variation in food web quality associated with round goby / dreissenid mussel invasion and terrestrial dissolved organic carbon to understand how it may mediate the nutritional state (fatty acid content), body size, and Hg contaminant load of sportfish. We will work across existing spatial aquatic gradients in historical inorganic Hg sediment contamination, abundance of exotic round gobies and dreissenid mussels, and terrestrial DOC in the Upper St. Lawrence River. The Upper St.

The proposed research will examine differences amongst existing and potential alternatives for storing retrievable buoy line/rope on the ocean floor in ropeless fishing systems. Prior research has yet to evaluate respective strengths and weaknesses of alternatives (i.e. spooling, coiling, bagged). The proposed research will test the various methods of rope containment at varying depths and water conditions. It is predicted that loose coiling methods may become tangled and unreleasable in strong underwater currents/tides.

For this project, we propose to integrate the data about Fraser River salmon populations into a multi-species, multi-population database, and develop an interactive data visualization tool that allows fisheries scientists and managers to explore this data at different spatial and temporal scales. The objective of this project is to provide fisheries scientists and managers with the tools to easily and comprehensively track annual trends in salmon data, and explore these trends for their possible drivers.

Mysis diluviana, a shrimp-like crustacean, is an invasive species in Okanagan Lake. As part of a strategy by the BC government to reduce the impact of this species on the natural lake ecosystem, Piscine Energetics Inc. has been harvesting Mysis from Okanagan Lake since 2000 and retails the harvested Mysis as fish food to the ornamental aquarium industry. There are indications that Mysis could also be an effective source of nutrition for rearing trout and salmon in hatcheries.

In 2015, Canada exported $6 billion in fish and seafood. Fishing is important not only economically, but also socially, and environmentally. In order to have seafood now and into the future, sustainable development of the fisheries is important. One way to make sure that fishing is being done in this way, is to recognize and reward harvesters for sustainable fishing practices using recommendation lists, eco-labels, and traceability systems. This research will study local management and governance decisions that led to changes for sustainable development in Newfoundland fisheries.