Canadian actor William Shatner has put together a public service announcement on open net pen salmon farms — and he isn’t holding back on how he’s feeling.
“I have been a kind, decent Canadian. It’s the Canadian way,” he said in a video posted on YouTube.
“But when I see what open net salmon farming is doing to the environment and wildlife, I just can’t be Canadian about it any longer. So repeat after me: [expletive] open-net salmon farms!”
The video features Shatner, along with other Canadians including former Canuck goalie Kirk McLean.
The recording is part of a campaign by the Pacific Wild conservation group that opposes the farms which must be phased out by 2029 under a plan announced by federal Fisheries Minister Diane Lebouthillier on Wednesday.
In the video, the 93-year-old Star Trek actor declares his opposition to the farms using numerous apparent profanities, although they are bleeped out.
Shatner then encourages others to adopt similarly frank language to oppose the farms, blaming them for harming wild salmon populations and the environment.
Critics say the farms can spread disease and lice to wild fish although recent science indicates uncertainty over the risks.
Pacific Wild is calling for people to use “un-Canadian” language in letters to political representatives to pressure the federal government to drop its plan to extend fishing licences for another five years.