Halibut Management Motion
Submitted by Area 14 SFAC
March, 2012
WHEREAS the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans has only increased the recreational Halibut Quota from 12% to 15% of the Canadian Total Allowable Catch of pacific halibut, and
WHEREAS this allocation is insufficient to allow a full (Feb1 – Dec 31) season fishery, with catch limits of 2 halibut per day and three in possession, and
WHEREAS the late announcement of the new allocation by the Minister has placed the Sport Fish Advisory Board in an untenable position of designing a management strategy in a short time frame for the 2112 recreational season that:
A) Included an untried management regime of one fish per day and 2 in possession with conditions that one fish could be any size, but the second fish must be under 83cm or 15lbs in the round in order to stay within the assigned 2112 TAC, and
B) Did not allow for consultation with the local SFACs for their input:
BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED the Department of Fisheries and Oceans be asked to consider this year’s regulatory measures as EXPERIMENTAL and that discussions re various additional options available at certain levels of TAC for 2013 start taking place with the SFAB Halibut Working Group in a timely manner such that the local SFACs have adequate consultation and input into the 2013 recreational halibut management plan.
Basically the way i read it is that We are only using this slot as experiemental because you backed us into a corner with very short time frame and this is NOT the status quo going foward. Also that in the future you give us some more time so that Process of SFAC/SFAB can be used as intended with proper input and discussion with everyone.
Here is the link to the thread from yesterday
http://www.sportfishingbc.com/forum/showthread.php?18805-Courtenay-Comox-SFAC-meeting/page5
Hopefully someone at the table today told him to stop piping off and making them look bad.
Great motion Brian and im super stoked that it passed. This I hope shows to most that the SFAB as a whole has the right attitude and is on our side, even if there are some wolves in sheeps clothing amonst the ranks.