Tag Archives: commercial fishers
Commercial fishers demand stricter enforcement and penalties for illegal lobster sales – Federal and provincial governments need to step-up enforcement
Uncertainty on the future of the commercial fishery will potentially put the sustainability of the lobster catch and jobs at risk according to the leaders of the Coalition of Atlantic and Quebec Fishing Organizations and the Unified Fisheries Conservation Alliance (UFCA). The upcoming meeting of fisheries ministers from across Canada is a unique opportunity to make sure the commercial fishery remains sustainable. Action is needed from both federal and provincial officials. For the Government of Canada, keeping independent enforcement officers on the water is critical to making sure no one fishes out of season. “Enforcing one set of rules for everyone is the key to a strong fishery. Impartial, independent enforcement officers at Department of Fisheries and Oceans is at the heart of a sustainable fishery,” according to Gordon Beaton, president of the Gulf Nova Scotia Fleet Planning Board. “We are concerned about potential changes to enforcement, we need more, not less, independent enforcement of the rules.” Science, not politics, should be driving decisions on the fishery. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 17:40
Commercial and recreational fishers call for overhaul of SA and Queensland permit system
Some commercial fishers in South Australia are calling for an overhaul of the recreational fishing sector, including the introduction of a permit system and a phone app for reporting their catch. SA and Queensland are the only states where recreational anglers are not required to hold permits. Elsewhere they need permits to fish from boats and in some jurisdictions, licences are required to fish from land.But commercial operators from the Marine Scalefish Fishery in SA are required to pay an annual base fee of $3,000 and those who hold quota licences pay thousands on top of that. Lower Eyre Peninsula commercial fisher Hugh Bayly would like that to change. “It’s grossly unfair,” he said. “We are paying huge amounts of money to manage a resource which everyone has a right to access and the recreational sector pays nothing.” photos, more, >>click to read<< 18:12
Commercial rock lobster fishers on Tasmania’s east coast are worried about a proposal
Rock lobster fisher Adam Johnson had hoped his children could follow in his footsteps, but a proposed change to how the industry operates has him worried about the future. At the moment, bigger rock lobster boats carrying 60 pots are only able to fish off the west coast. The government is now proposing to expand that, to include the north-west, and north-east. Break O’Day Mayor Mick Tucker is strongly opposed to the change — in the council’s submission to the government he labelled it reactive, ill-advised and inequitable. The former commercial fisherman is worried if the change is made as proposed, the local industry will further contract, ultimately impacting local services and the town’s economy. >click to read< 19:14
British Columbia: Hooked on halibut: For many commercial fishers, it’s a family affair
The commercial halibut season is underway along the coast of British Columbia and boats are already starting to deliver the flat fish to dinner plates. From now until early December, the B.C. halibut fleet will haul in an estimated 5.7 million pounds of halibut. The Americans will take the lion’s share of this year’s 41-million-pound total allowable catch, nearly 80%, because their territory stretches over California, Oregon, Washington and all of Alaska to the tip of the Aleutian Islands and covers nine of the 10 designated halibut-fishing areas along the Pacific Coast. Tiare Boyes and Cheri Hansen weigh in on what it’s like to work on the water during the halibut fishing season. Photos, >click to read< 11:14
Significant Commercial Fisheries closures in BC – DFO to offer licence buyback to those ready to call it quits.
Federal Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan today announced “an initial step towards longer-term reductions in fishing pressure on stocks of conservation concern with significant commercial salmon closures for the 2021 season.” Jordan also announced there will be a federal fishing licence buyback offered to commercial fishers who are ready to call it quits. DFO’s Salmon Integrated Fisheries Management Plan for 2021-22 will result in closures to about 60% of commercial salmon fisheries in B.C. for 2021. >click to read< 15:22
Australia: Cheap lobsters on Christmas tables as prices plummet due to China import ban
Commercial fishers operating in Victoria, Tasmania, and South Australia are supplying record volumes to the domestic market after China’s ban on Australian live lobster imports. With the crustaceans removed from restaurants and markets in China, (you know the drill),,,Tasmanian commercial fisher Jason Hart this week sold his catch directly to the public at the Strahan wharf. “I’ve never had to worry about selling them from the wharf before,” Mr Hart said. “Even when our markets have been bad you can still on-sell the fish. But I’ve never seen it like this,,, >click to read< 13:48
