cohochinook
Well-Known Member
Today’s announcement about 2021’s Chinook salmon fishery is a tragedy for the south coast public Chinook fishery which, for two years, has faced Chinook-non-retention regulations for the bulk of the key spring and summer fishing period. Once again, it finds itself in the same situation.
Sure, the Minister decided to offer some “tails and scales” in a tiny portion of Area 16, but this does little to provide the lifeline that the region needs to sustain any semblance of the most financially valuable and historically important public fishery on the west coast of North America—let alone Canada. How did this happen?
When then Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) Minister Johnathan Wilkinson imposed Chinook-non-retention for the 2019 fishery it came as a shock to the public fishery and public fishery advisors. Since then, fishery representatives have worked diligently with the Department of Fisheries Pacific Region staff to develop fishing proposals for 2020 that would avoid upper Fraser River stocks of concern. These were developed using the most up-to-date data available. Wilkinson’s successor, Bernadette Jordan, rejected those 2020 plans, and in fact, increased the severity of non-retention orders. Prior to the April 2021 season, the previous year’s proposals were revised and fine-tuned. They were reviewed by the Pacific Region DFO staff, and assessed as low risk to stocks of concern.
There has always been concern within the public fishery that regulations were being made based on politics and not data. In spite of this, the SFAB has operated in good faith with the department by developing fishing plans in concert with the DFO, based on the best information available, which in some cases included 40 years of data collection. This concern was so great that the Minister of Fisheries and the Prime Minister were questioned in the House of Commons about this. Prime Minister Trudeau confirmed that fisheries decisions are made based on science.
CONTINUE READING THE STORY IN LINK BELOW
islandfishermanmagazine.com
Sure, the Minister decided to offer some “tails and scales” in a tiny portion of Area 16, but this does little to provide the lifeline that the region needs to sustain any semblance of the most financially valuable and historically important public fishery on the west coast of North America—let alone Canada. How did this happen?
When then Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) Minister Johnathan Wilkinson imposed Chinook-non-retention for the 2019 fishery it came as a shock to the public fishery and public fishery advisors. Since then, fishery representatives have worked diligently with the Department of Fisheries Pacific Region staff to develop fishing proposals for 2020 that would avoid upper Fraser River stocks of concern. These were developed using the most up-to-date data available. Wilkinson’s successor, Bernadette Jordan, rejected those 2020 plans, and in fact, increased the severity of non-retention orders. Prior to the April 2021 season, the previous year’s proposals were revised and fine-tuned. They were reviewed by the Pacific Region DFO staff, and assessed as low risk to stocks of concern.
There has always been concern within the public fishery that regulations were being made based on politics and not data. In spite of this, the SFAB has operated in good faith with the department by developing fishing plans in concert with the DFO, based on the best information available, which in some cases included 40 years of data collection. This concern was so great that the Minister of Fisheries and the Prime Minister were questioned in the House of Commons about this. Prime Minister Trudeau confirmed that fisheries decisions are made based on science.
CONTINUE READING THE STORY IN LINK BELOW
Op Ed: BC’s Public Salmon Fishery Screwed Again by Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan - Island Fisherman Magazine
The 2021 recreation Chinook salmon announcement is a tragedy following two years of non-retention regulations for the bulk of the season.
islandfishermanmagazine.com
Last edited:
