Emergency SFAB Meetings About Proposed SRKW Fishing Closures

[Charter Tofino]

Bingo!!!!! This is bigger than any one sector. If there is any chance of change it’s by unifying the commercial and recreational communities and maybe some coastal FN and force government to produce more fish. The wild salmon policy is a failure and excuse to do nothing. Alaska produces enough fish for all there sectors to have reasonable access and you don’t see this problem up there. Again no one group has enough money or political influence to go up against the NGO lobby. Time for all of us to grow up.

Agreed on all sectors being involved and the need for an increase in hatchery Fish.

I don’t think we can totally give up on wild fish. One of the major current problems is the Commercial, FN and sportfisherman will never agree or voluntarily cut themselves back when it comes to any of their fisheries. As we’ve seen they will battle dfo and other sectors until there’s nothing left. It’s going to have to change at some point whether it be no fish or a change in views.

 

[fishbadger]

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[wildmanyeah]

I would take a massive cut if it was equally distributed among all sectors.

I retained 5 chinook last year and if fed my family from May to December. With an average meal of salmon once a week.

 

[Derby]

Bingo!!!!! This is bigger than any one sector. If there is any chance of change it’s by unifying the commercial and recreational communities and maybe some coastal FN and force government to produce more fish. The wild salmon policy is a failure and excuse to do nothing. Alaska produces enough fish for all there sectors to have reasonable access and you don’t see this problem up there. Again no one group has enough money or political influence to go up against the NGO lobby. Time for all of us to grow up.

I agree.... u got some connection for us to reach out too??

 

[UkeeDreamin]

Bingo!!!!! This is bigger than any one sector. If there is any chance of change it’s by unifying the commercial and recreational communities and maybe some coastal FN and force government to produce more fish. The wild salmon policy is a failure and excuse to do nothing. Alaska produces enough fish for all there sectors to have reasonable access and you don’t see this problem up there. Again no one group has enough money or political influence to go up against the NGO lobby. Time for all of us to grow up.

Need to correct your misinformation:

Wild Salmon Policy - as DFO still hasn’t fully implemented this Policy, and instead continues to implement outdated stock groupings and management measures/approaches (primarily due to caving to the political pressure of all 3 fishing groups - commercial, rec & FN) the failure is the failure to implement ... pretty typical for DFO.

Alaska/hatcheries - SE Alaska Chinook stocks may be in worse shape than Fraser “river-type”Chinook, with drastic measures and closures affecting all SE Alaska Chinook fisheries for several years now. There’s also an abundance of emerging science on the effects on all pacific salmon stocks as a result of Alaska, Korea and Russia pumping out too many hatchery smolts for “ocean ranching” during a period of reduced ocean productivity.

It doesn’t help any cause when you’re misinformed.

Cheers!

Ukee

 

[getbent]

Bingo!!!!! This is bigger than any one sector. If there is any chance of change it’s by unifying the commercial and recreational communities and maybe some coastal FN and force government to produce more fish. The wild salmon policy is a failure and excuse to do nothing. Alaska produces enough fish for all there sectors to have reasonable access and you don’t see this problem up there. Again no one group has enough money or political influence to go up against the NGO lobby. Time for all of us to grow up.

We can pump out all the fish we want but without the groceries to sustain and feed the smolts and fry it will be all for naught.
This needs to be looked at all levels from the bottom up.

 

[fish4all]

We can pump out all the fish we want but without the groceries to sustain and feed the smolts and fry it will be all for naught.
This needs to be looked at all levels from the bottom up.

Agreed but I find the lack of groceries a bs arguemenr whem Alaska is having huge returns of pinks and chums. I stand corrected on the health of chinook populations in Alaska.

Spesking of chinooks can someone point me to the data on the returns of chinooks to our local spawning rivers in southern BC. Thanks

 

[wildmanyeah]

anyone have the figures on how many seapen reared Chinooks are currently being raised in BC??

 

[Tips Up]

Not much discussion on the effects of Whale Watchers constant harassment of the Whales.
Was this brought up at any of the meetings?

I noted in an earlier post what I have seen out there.
Seems to me that a fleet of whale boats constantly following and leap frogging the whales must have an effect on them?
Would give me a lot of anxiety to be constantly followed while I am trying to feed.

Is DFO monitoring this?
Are they using fly overs to make sure that distance rules and no leap frogging is being followed?
Or does this fall outside of DFO responsibilty and no one is monitoring this?

 

[cohochinook]

Agreed but I find the lack of groceries a bs arguemenr whem Alaska is having huge returns of pinks and chums. I stand corrected on the health of chinook populations in Alaska.

Spesking of chinooks can someone point me to the data on the returns of chinooks to our local spawning rivers in southern BC. Thanks

Part of the problem with lack of food in the ocean right now is these pinks and Chum that Alaska is releasing. They're putting too many out there without this is sufficient nutrients supply. This is reducing the biomass for other salmon species.

 

[OldBlackDog]

There are other countries involved besides the US.
Russia and Japan etc.

There are 5 Billion plus out there!

Part of the problem with lack of food in the ocean right now is these pinks and Chum that Alaska is releasing. They're putting too many out there without this is sufficient nutrients supply. This is reducing the biomass for other salmon species.

 

[OldBlackDog]

5 Billion Hatchery Fish!

A lot more than that now in 2018 almost 7.5 billion!
https://www.census.gov/popclock/

 

[getbent]

Agreed but I find the lack of groceries a bs arguemenr whem Alaska is having huge returns of pinks and chums. I stand corrected on the health of chinook populations in Alaska.

Spesking of chinooks can someone point me to the data on the returns of chinooks to our local spawning rivers in southern BC. Thanks

I know one local hatchery that has for years been pumping out the springs, along with other species, not one Chinook made it back to the hatchery this year.
That is a first, coho and chum made it but no springs and they have always shown up...just passing some info along

 

[profisher]

Tips, the local whale watchers are now going to be following rules that are very close to how the US boats are governed in their waters. No closer than 200 metres and no leapfroging . The pathe in front of the whales is a no go zone. Obviously there will have to be some enforcement to make sure the compliance level is high. Work has to be done to educate the general boating crowds too....many of them are unaware of the new protocols.

 

[wolf]

One of the major current problems is the Commercial, FN and sportfisherman will never agree or voluntarily cut themselves back when it comes to any of their fisheries.

UUUMMMM area 19 20 and 18 have been doing this for about 8 years now???? we have had a reduction of 100% we take apperantlly by DFO numbers less then 3% where the nets in river from FN takes close to 40 %
math does not lie!!!!!

 

[Charter Tofino]

One of the major current problems is the Commercial, FN and sportfisherman will never agree or voluntarily cut themselves back when it comes to any of their fisheries.

UUUMMMM area 19 20 and 18 have been doing this for about 8 years now???? we have had a reduction of 100% we take apperantlly by DFO numbers less then 3% where the nets in river from FN takes close to 40 %
math does not lie!!!!!

That’s not really what was implied by that quote.

 

[wildmanyeah]

One of the major current problems is the Commercial, FN and sportfisherman will never agree or voluntarily cut themselves back when it comes to any of their fisheries.

I think Kelly was just pointing out that we find ourselves in the position we are in today because in the past all the sectors were very success at lobbying DFO to keep fisheries open when they should of been curtailed more so we wouldn't of ended up in the situation we are in today.

Also what about all the fraser river anglers? why should they be completely closed from chinook fishing? They did not even get to fish for pinks last year!

Conservation is bad for business

 

[profisher]

No one has ever proactivly reduced or stopped fishing without the regulators first implementing those changes. Some groups are more willing to work with DFO to accomplish conservation goals than others. Some individuals will never accept reductions. I don't remember commercial fishermen brailing Chinook out of their nets voluntarily, don't remember sports fishermen saying 4 springs a day is overkill lets cut back to two and don't remember any FN saying It is in our best interest to stop taking Sockeye in the Frassr..everyone had to have those conditions placed on them.

 

[The Jackel]

No one has ever proactivly reduced or stopped fishing without the regulators first implementing those changes. Some groups are more willing to work with DFO to accomplish conservation goals than others. Some individuals will never accept reductions. I don't remember commercial fishermen brailing Chinook out of their nets voluntarily, don't remember sports fishermen saying 4 springs a day is overkill lets cut back to two and don't remember any FN saying It is in our best interest to stop taking Sockeye in the Frassr..everyone had to have those conditions placed on them.

Well Pro, i for one and my wife included NEVER (pulling a Wolf here) kept our 4 springs a day when we could, once i myself kept 3 otherwise it was 2 each max, we always thought it was an insane limit to have 4 a day. Now as for the whale watchers, i live on the ocean in Jordan River, and what i see ever day in front of the house with the whale watchers running and gunning at the whales is unacceptable, day in day out. I have never seen the whale in an active feeding mode just swimming for their lives and burning valuable energy. My best guess is they are probably doing most of their feeding at night when the watchers are all tucked in bed. If we take a hit then THEY SHOULD TOO (another Wolf moment )

 

[UkeeDreamin]

One piece of BS that DFO needs to be called out on is any of these closures/measures being brought in for just one year and being called an “experiment” - impossible to get any defensible data without before/after and/or treatment/control data collection over multiple years. DFO has a history of using the “experimental” tag line as a way of sneaking in regs that ultimately become permanent. Remember, the idiotic undersize halibut slot was brought in as an “experiment”but no experimental design was ever produced, controlled data collected or analysis/reporting conducted .... yet we still have those regs to this day! Guarantee you the majority of these “experimental” regs, if allowed to happen, will be here for good!

Cheers!

Ukee