Scientist earns second international award
Nanaimo's Richard Beamish receives new honour for contribution to North Pacific marine science
Spencer Anderson, Daily News (Nanaimo), Published: Wednesday, October 24, 2012
A respected Canadian fisheries researcher living in Nanaimo has received a second international award in recognition for his work.
Dr. Richard Beamish was in St. Petersburg, Russia, earlier this month for the North Pacific Anadromous Fish Commission annual meeting, where he and fellow researcher Prof. Vyaches-lav Shuntov shared the organization's award for their salmon conservation efforts.
But while in Russia, Beamish was privately informed that he had also been tapped to receive North Pacific Marine Science Organization - called PICES - Wooster Award for his contribution to North Pacific marine science. He and his wife consequently flew from St. Petersburg to Hiroshima, Japan, to receive the honour in person.
Considered a leading researcher on the effects of climate on fish populations, Beamish also received the Order of Canada in 1998 for early research on acid rain. He is also an emeritus professor at the DFO.
Beamish praised the work of both organizations, which are made up through partnerships between Canada, Japan, Korea, the U.S. and other countries.
He also called for an 'International Year of the Salmon' conference of scientists from both organizations, whose combined knowledge of the North Pacific and salmon Beamish said are key to unlocking the mystery behind why salmon populations grow and shrink.
"I think we're close to understanding the fundamental mechanisms that regulate Pacific Salmon abundance," he said.
With that knowledge, he added, scientists would be able to use detailed analysis of the climate and other factors to construct a model that will allow them to predict how salmon populations in the North Pacific will fluctuate.
It could also help explain why populations of pink and chum salmon are at record-high levels, while chinook and coho are not doing as well, he said.
"Sooner or later, we will have this knowledge, and once we know that, it will appear to be quite simple," he said.
