Washington state court grants Cooke extension to harvest farmed salmon

Cooke Aquaculture on Friday scored a victory in its battle with Washington state Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz over how quickly it needs to remove salmon from netpens in state waters.

On Friday, Washington Superior Court Judge Indu Thomas said Cooke would have until April to harvest its remaining fish pens in Washington state instead of by Jan. 14 as was initially required by Franz and the Washington Department of Natural Resources (DNR).

The judge on Friday granted the extension to "facilitate safe removal of the fish" from the netpens, but reiterated the DNR's request to remove all equipment by April still stands.