Fisheries Management Agreement Signed with Abegweit First Nation
Another First Nation in Atlantic Canada has entered into an agreement with the federal government that will support its Indigenous and Treaty rights to fish.
The Abegweit First Nation, Scotchfort, Prince Edward Island, signed a five-year renewable Collaborative Fisheries Management Agreement on April 14 that will provide it with funding to support implementation and governance related to its fisheries management activities.
The agreement recognizes the Mi’kmaq Indigenous and Treaty ...
2023 Right Whale Regulations Released
The Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) has released its 2023 fisheries regulations to protect the endangered North Atlantic right whale from entanglements in gear.
The hotspots for closure protocols are the Bay of Fundy, the Roseway and Grand Manan Basins and the Gulf of St. Lawrence. In these zones, any right whale that is detected — whether acoustically or visually — will result in a 15-day closure for all non-tended fixed gear within 2,000 square kilometres of the detection.
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Elver Fishery Shutdown Devastating for Licence Holders
Citing conservation and safety concerns, the elver fishery in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick was shut down by Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) this spring, leaving licence holders with empty nets and unanswered questions.
By way of a Fisheries Management Order, the elver fishery was closed on April 15 by DFO for 45 days, ending the season.
“All elver harvesting is now prohibited and subject to enforcement action. DFO will continue to work closely with the RCMP and local police to ...
SFA 4 Makes a Strong Showing in 2022, But DFO Lacks a Full Picture
The Department of Fisheries and Oceans’ (DFO) Northern shrimp stock assessment for 2022 was only able to focus on shrimp fishing area (SFA) 4, but found the stocks there to be healthy.
“DFO has focused its effort on the comparative fishing. That was necessary to ensure continuity of the time series, so there was no survey for SFA 5 and 6,” said Northern shrimp lead Nicolas Le Corre.
Within SFA 4, the shrimp was deemed to be in the “healthy zone” in the precautionary approach ...
Union Against Oil Spill Tests by DFO in N.L. Waters
Above: A boom used to contain oil spills for the purposes of skimming. Credit: the Canadian Coast Guard
The Fish, Food and Allied Workers Union (FFAW) is calling for an immediate halt to tests by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) that are set to spill oil and chemical dispersants off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador.
The tests are part of a Multi-Partner Research Initiative (MPRI) that aims to, “advance scientific knowledge and science-based decision ...
Harvesters Air Grievances at DFO Outreach Meetings
Above: Fish harvesters from Petty Harbour-Maddox Cove recently gathered at the town’s community centre to speak with representatives from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. Photo by Nick Travis
The Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) recently held a series of community outreach meetings in select towns in Newfoundland and Labrador, including Petty Harbour.
Many fish harvesters at these meetings were concerned about the very short cod season in 2022. With no ...
North Atlantic Right Whale Entanglement off North Carolina Linked to LFA 33
Above: An aerial survey team located an entangled adult male right whale (#1218) “Argo” off of Surf City, North Carolina. The rectangle behind the flukes is the trailing entangling gear. The survey was conducted by Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute with funding from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Credit: Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute, taken under NOAA permit #24359
For the first time in more than five years, a North Atlantic right whale ...
IUU Fishing: Far From a Foreign Problem
With everything going in the fishery throughout Atlantic Canada, oftentimes, it is hard to take a step back and look at the global fishing picture — after all, don’t we have enough to worry about here?
However, once and while, it is a worthwhile practice to pause for a second and compare our various fisheries here with others being prosecuted around the world. While we always have our issues, for the most part, our commercial fisheries are well run, with conservation and the future top ...
Taxpayers Invest in Stock Rebuilding, so They Should See the Benefits: Researcher Claims
Jennifer Silver, an associate professor at the University of Guelph, says that attention to socioeconomics needs to be considered by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) alongside economic and biological impacts when rebuilding fish stocks.
“Some fisheries, both in the Atlantic and in the Pacific, are known to be quite dominated by some corporate players where the access to the fisheries themselves are concentrated,” said Silver.
“If we’re investing in the science and ...
DFO Pledges Additional Funds for Ghost Gear Cleanup in Spring 2023
Above: Photo courtesy of Clean Harbours Initiative
The Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) has been funding industry members to retrieve lost fishing gear as part of their Ghost Gear Fund since 2020 and has recently added funding in response to the damage from Hurricane Fiona.
The fund began as an initiative of its zero plastic waste agenda, wherein DFO set up a fund that industry members can apply to for monetary assistance to retrieve ghost gear in their local waters.
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