1 of 1 2 of 1

There appears to be intense opposition to fish farming in B.C. waters, according to a new poll by Mainstreet Research.

It indicates that 74.6 percent of B.C. respondents prefer an immediate ban on open net-pen salmon farms.

Forty-eight percent of respondents said they "strongly" supported this.

"Despite a quarter of residents not having an opinion, those who do have an opinion on an immediate ban are certainly in the vast majority," Mainstreet Research president Quito Maggi said in a news release. "This goes for both those who say they support an immediate ban and those who say they agree that the government should impose immediate restrictions and a phased-in ban by 2025."

The poll was commissioned by a group called Wild First.

"Whether it is protecting resident killer whales that rely on wild salmon as a food supply (82%), protecting the local grizzly vear population (66%) or reconciliation with Indigenous nations who rely on the coastal habitats as a food supply (63%), it's clear B.C. residents support immediate action," Wild First spokesperson Tavish Campbell said in the news release.

The poll was based on telephone interviews with 1,496 adults between April 10 and April 15. There's a margin of error of +/- 2.53 percent and it's accurate 19 times out of 20, according to Mainstreet Research.