Fishery Notice

Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) recommends an emergency bivalve shellfish harvesting closure be put into effect, as a result of a lift station bypass failure in the Comox Estuary. While performing work at the Jane street pump station at 81 Jane Place in Comox, a bypass line failure was reported at approximately 10:00am on May 26, 2026. The pump station is where Comox gathers its sewage to be sent via force main to the treatment plant. This has caused a flow of effluent which is draining into the Courtney River Estuary, a short distance from the marine environment. Efforts to contain the spill have begun, but at this point it is estimated that 200m3/hour of untreated sewage is spilling into the Courtney River Estuary.  
 
ECCC has completed dilution modelling and given the above, has reason to believe the sanitary conditions in several Pacific Fishery Management Areas will be degraded to the point where accepted water quality standards of the Canadian Shellfish Sanitation Program (CSSP) have been exceeded. Given that overlay waters are a pathway by which pathogenic micro-organisms and other contaminants may be introduced into bivalve shellfish, ECCC concludes that the degree of contamination of the water would likely pose a risk to public health if the bivalve shellfish were harvested for consumption.
 
In accordance with Section 6.2 of the CSSP manual (https://inspection.canada.ca/en/food-guidance-commodity/fish/canadian-shellfish-sanitation-program#s6c3), ECCC recommends that the following Pacific Fishery Management Subareas be placed immediately in closed status under emergency closure to prevent the harvesting of potentially contaminated bivalve shellfish.

Pacific Fishery Management Subareas 14-9 to 14-11, 14-14 and 14-15.  
 
Without verification sampling, the closure shall remain in place for a minimum of 21 days after flows cease. Alternatively, ECCC may consider verification sampling of both water and shellstock after a minimum of 7 days following spill cessation. ECCC will advise DFO if changes in the status of the emergency closure are warranted.

On the mapping site SHELLI (https://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/shellfish-mollusques/cssp-map-eng.htm) you can find this closure by searching for Prohibition Order PSN-2026-408. 

Note that this notice does not describe other sanitary closures which may be in effect, or Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning (PSP, red tide) and other marine biotoxin closures. For an area to be open and safe for harvesting, both biotoxin and sanitary need to be open. For information on sanitary contamination and biotoxin closures please go to the Fisheries and Oceans Canada mapping site SHELLI to determine where there is safe harvest at https://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/shellfish-mollusques/cssp-map-eng.htm. 

Specific species limits, restrictions and maps for each subarea are available at https://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fm-gp/rec/bc-zones-cb-eng.html and at local DFO offices.

For more information contact DFO.PACCSSP-PCAMPAC.MPO@dfo-mpo.gc.ca.

Fisheries & Oceans Operations Center - FN0518
Sent May 26, 2026 at 1520

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Printed from the Pacific Region web site on June 10, 2026 at 0238