Tag Archives: Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan
Should the next fisheries minister come from central Canada?
On election night, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s first cabinet casualty came early as Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan tumbled to defeat in Nova Scotia’s South Shore, St. Margarets riding. Her defeat means her successor will inherit the unresolved dispute over Nova Scotia’s Indigenous moderate livelihood lobster fishery. And that potentially means a clean slate for negotiations between all parties involved. And the chief of the band at the centre of that fishery says maybe the best way to establish that clean slate would be to enlist a fisheries minister from the interior, rather than the coasts, where they would be exposed to the pressures of their community. >click to read< 20:33
Politics: Lobster dispute, frustration with Ottawa could turn the tide on the Liberals in Nova Scotia
“Trudeau had the support of the First Nations in the last election. Not anymore. We’re voting NDP,” In rural Nova Scotia ridings such as South Shore-St. Margarets, where the fishery is a major employer, federal Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan is now fighting to keep her job,,, It’s just past the lunch break inside the main assembly shop at Yarmouth Boat Works, These $1.2-million state-of-the-art vessels, with kitchens, sleeping quarters, flat-screen TVs and showers, are meant to venture far out into the ocean and carry thousands of pounds of lobster back to land. Owner Steve Gee says while demand for new boats has slowed, finding skilled workers is hard, despite a good fibreglass technician getting $28 an hour, a decent wage in Yarmouth County. “I need 23 workers, but three showed up today,” he said. “Our latest job posting had 300 applicants, and not one of them was in Canada.” >click to read< 11:31
Canada, Eight B.C. First Nations sign amended CFN Fisheries Resources Reconciliation Agreement
The Government of Canada is committed to a renewed relationship with Indigenous Peoples based on the recognition of rights, respect, cooperation and partnership. Delivering on this commitment, the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, the Honourable Bernadette Jordan and Coastal First Nations President Chief Marilyn Slett, with representatives of CFN member nations, announced the signing of the amended CFN Fisheries Resources Reconciliation Agreement. This amended agreement sets out the next steps to be taken in planning for commercial community-based fisheries encouraging a greater flexibility in community participation and greater access to fishing licenses and quota. It also includes support for the CFN member Nations to make investments in gear, vessels, licences, operations, and infrastructure. >click to read< 07:59
The Pacific Salmon Strategy Initiative – $647M to protect Pacific salmon
Record federal spending to try to save the Pacific salmon population marks the beginning of a new chapter,,, Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan and Environment Minister Jonathan Wilkinson outlined the principles that will guide how $647.1 million announced in the last budget will be spent over the next five years. The Pacific salmon population is drastically declining due to a combination of climate, habitat and harvesting pressures, the government said in a news release. “A generation of Canadians have seen salmon populations decline, some up to 90 per cent in their lifetime,”,,, “There is no quick fix and no one single solution to save this species. This will require patience and all hands on deck.” >click to read< 19:33
N.S. Mi’kmaq to start season with scaled-down plans, RCMP makes statement on Moderate Livelihood Fishery
A Mi’kmaq community is scaling down plans for a lobster harvest in southwestern Nova Scotia next week, after Ottawa threatened to pull traps that aren’t licensed by the Fisheries Department. Sipekne’katik Chief Mike Sack told reporters today that instead of pursuing a “moderate livelihood” fishery with up to 50 traps per boat, Indigenous fishers will begin the season by pursuing a food, social and ceremonial fishery. >click to read< , RCMP Make Statement On Upcoming Moderate Livelihood Fishery – RCMP say they will ensure a coordinated, appropriate and measured approach, if required. Resources will be deployed based on operational needs. >click to read< 14:46
Members of Parliament issue conflicting reports on contentious Moderate Livelihood fishery in Quebec in the Maritimes
Parliamentarians issued dissenting reports Thursday on implementing First Nations moderate livelihood fisheries,,, Although all parties supported the right to a moderate livelihood fishery, the committee was not unanimous. Both the Conservatives and Bloc Quebecois issued dissenting reports. The Conservatives consider moderate livelihood fishing a commercial enterprise and subject to the same regulations, including seasons, as all commercial fisheries, with enforcement and regulation unambiguously under the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. The Bloc called for co-management. The office of federal Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan issued a statement Thursday that said it had received the report that morning and “look forward to reviewing its recommendations closely.” >click to read< 16:09
RCMP investigating gear slashing near Petit-de-Grat, Potlotek lobster traps seized for a ‘variety of reasons,’ says DFO
A dispute in a Cape Breton fishing community is being investigated by the Nova Scotia RCMP. Police described it as a case of “mischief,” and estimated the total financial loss for the traps and lobster is approximately $10,000. RCMP confirm there is no connection between this incident and reports of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans seizing traps from nearby Potlotek First Nation. >click to read< Potlotek Chief Wilbert Marshall 
says federal government failing to accommodate treaty rights – A Mi’kmaw chief in Nova Scotia says a lobster fisherman whose traps were seized last week was fishing in accordance with his treaty rights. The seizure took place on April 30, the first day of the Potlotek First Nation’s spring lobster season. DFO said the removal of gear in St. Peters Bay was part of routine inspections to ensure the individual was compliant with the Fisheries Act. >click to read< 18:55
Sipekne’katik may seek United Nations peacekeepers for contentious N.S. fishery relaunch
The Sipekne’katik First Nation says it is considering asking the United Nations to send peacekeepers to police the self-regulated lobster fishery it plans to relaunch in southwestern Nova Scotia outside the commercial fishing season. On Thursday, Chief Mike Sack said Sipekne’katik fishermen will return to St. Marys Bay in June despite warnings in March from federal Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan that her department will enforce rules prohibiting commercial lobster fishing outside of commercial seasons. “We’re going to send a letter off to the United Nations and hoping that they can come and keep the peace. And it was very obvious to me that we couldn’t rely on the RCMP or DFO,” Sack said. >click to read< 08:44
Sipekne’katik giving back lobster licences to DFO, starting own fishery
Sipkne’katik First Nation will announce Thursday, the voluntary relinquishment and return of their commercial licences to Fisheries and Oceans Canada. At the same event, they will announce their plans for their own self-regulated moderate livelihood fishery and a joint study with Dalhousie University’s marine affairs program. The move sets them squarely at odds with Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan, who in March issued a statement saying that DFO will work with First Nations to implement moderate livelihood fisheries this year but they must occur during established commercial seasons. >click to read< 17:16
Listuguj, Ottawa agree to collaborate on regulations, opens door for moderative livelihood fishery
Listuguj First Nation, the Mi’kmaw community in Quebec just across the river from Campbellton, N.B., has agreed to a five-year rights reconciliation agreement with the Minister of Fisheries and the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations. It could open the door for additional fisheries access through licences and modified quotas, including the possible establishment of a moderate livelihood fishery. Listuguj Chief Darcy Gray said the framework is a “huge step forward” after holding talks with the federal government over the past 4½ years. The deal aims to improve relations between the government and the First Nation, and includes a commitment to upholding the treaty right to harvest and sell fish in pursuit of a livelihood. >click to read< 18:31
Tension over stocks – 3Ps Cod fishery closure ‘not going to happen on my watch,’
Fish harvesters rallied in Clarenville on Wednesday, voicing their fears that the federal government may shut down the cod fishery along Newfoundland’s south coast, a move the local member of Parliament says he won’t support. Dozens of members from the Fish, Food & Allied Workers union protested on the doorstep of the office of Liberal MP for Bonavista-Burin-Trinity, Churence Rogers, filling the parking lot with signs and the air with strong words about the fate of the fishing grounds 3Ps. Fish harvester Brian Careen said he’s spent most of his life fishing in the area, and told the crowd he feared it will be taken away by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. >click to read< 10:58
Feds announces $4.85M to buoy Nova Scotia’s struggling fish and seafood sector
The federal government has announced funding for a dozen projects in western Nova Scotia to buoy the province’s struggling fish and seafood processing sector. Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan says the $4.85 million for 12 projects at 11 companies will help the sector retool and find new markets, positioning the industry for a strong post-pandemic recovery. She says the funding, part of the $62.5 million Canadian Seafood Stabilization Fund announced by Ottawa last spring, is expected to create 60 jobs in rural communities across western Nova Scotia. >click to read< 13:36
Crown-Indigenous Relations should take the lead on the Nova Scotia lobster dispute, pointing to DFO’s lost credibility.
The Liberal government’s “new path” that has been broadly rejected by Atlantic First Nations is an “interim measure,” says Liberal MP Jaime Battiste, to address moderate livelihood fishing,,, Mr. Battiste (Sydney-Victoria, N.S.) is one of three Mi’kmaw Parliamentarians, who together offered solutions to the conflict that has persisted since September,,, For Mr. d’Entremont, part of the problem, though, is that the matter has become an Indigenous relations issue, because of the longstanding problem with DFO’s approach, and lack of enforcement. “We’ve gotten too far into Indigenous rights and what an agreement, or a treaty back in [1760] told us. It’s hard to apply it to today’s economy, in today’s fishing industry, and I don’t know how to fix that,” he said. Mr. d’Entremont acknowledged it’s a perspective that would make some “very mad.” “I recognize the right, but I understand the right can be regulated,” he said. >click to read< 18:00
Bernadette Jordan: Fisheries officers will enforce the rules. Moderate livelihood fisheries must take place within the commercial season
Anyone caught harvesting lobster outside the commercial fishing season this year will have to contend with fisheries officers, says federal Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan. The minister was referring to Mi’kmaw chiefs in Nova Scotia who have uniformly rejected the federal governments mandate that all moderate livelihood fisheries must take place within the commercial season. The Mi’kmaw chiefs say they intend to defy the federal government and fish out of season again this year. They say the federal mandate was imposed without adequate consultation or scientific justification. >click to read< 18:15
P.E.I. Mi’kmaw chiefs denounce DFO’s ‘moderate livelihood’ fishery plan
A news release from P.E.I.’s Mi’kmaw chiefs Thursday called the plan “both unlawful and disrespectful.” “DFO’s continued paternalistic approach to our rights-based fishery goes against the very spirit of reconciliation,” Abegweit First Nation Chief Junior Gould said in the release. Lennox Island First Nation Chief Darlene Bernard said she was “blindsided” by Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan’s announcement, especially since she had taken part in a roundtable discussion with Jordan Wednesday during which they talked about the moderate livelihood fishery. >click to read< 09:36
Feds say all fisheries must operate within the commercial season. Mike Sack says ‘not going to happen’
Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan said in a statement on Wednesday that Ottawa will not issue licenses to fisheries that operate outside the federal commercial season. Last fall, the Sipekne’katik First Nation in Nova Scotia launched its own self regulated, rights based lobster fishery outside the federal fishing season, sparking a violent backlash from commercial fishers. Sack says the federal government has no right to impose its rules and regulations on the Mi’kmaw, and that Sipekne’katik’s fishery will be back this year — bigger and better than ever. >click to read< 07:51
DFO Path Forward Rejected – ‘We’re going to establish our own fishery’
“We’re going to establish our own fishery and our seasons outside of theirs,” Chief Mike Sack said Wednesday. “We’ll push our own season and determine what those months are going to be.” Sack was responding to a letter from Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan that said any moderate livelihood fishery must operate under the rules and regulations of DFO’s commercial fishery. Then the letter spells out the rules under which any moderate livelihood fishery would be negotiated and what Canada is “prepared” to allow,,, Sack said none of that was acceptable. >click to read< 07:17
Sipekne’katik First Nation Chief frustrated, ceases lobster fishery talks with feds
In a letter sent Wednesday to Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan, Sipekne’katik Chief Mike Sack says the department has neither the “desire nor the ability” to recognize and implement the Mi’kmaq band’s constitutionally protected treaty right to fish. Sack expresses frustration with the nation-to-nation discussions and says Ottawa has tried to lump his band’s treaty rights in with regulation of commercial licenses. A spokesperson in the minister’s office was not immediately available for comment. >click to read< 14:31
Owner Operator/Fleet Separation Policies: Measures to prevent corporate takeover of Atlantic inshore fleets go into law
Wednesday, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans published amended Atlantic Fishery regulations that include the so-called owner-operator and fleet-separation policies. The owner-operator policy requires the eligible holder of a fishing licence to be the beneficiary of the licence, and fleet separation prevents processing companies and buyers from also holding fishing licences. “It’s a great day for the inshore fishery and we’re super happy with the results of this announcement,” >click to read<14:16 To read more about this, >click here<
Minister Jordan strengthens protections for inshore commercial fish harvesters on East Coast – Under the authorities granted by the modernized Fisheries Act, Fisheries and Oceans Canada has amended the Atlantic Fishery Regulations, 1985 and the Maritime Provinces Fishery Regulations to clarify the rules governing inshore licences and create new enforceable requirements. >click to read<
Replenishment, or Misguided Retribution?! Trouble brewing ahead of start to Nova Scotia fall lobster season
The recent seizure of lobster traps in St. Marys Bay by federal officials could lead to big trouble on the water. Chief Mike Sack of the Sipekne’katik First Nation says Indigenous fishers whose traps were taken last weekend and on Wednesday will replace them by taking the traps of commercial fishers when the fall season opens Monday in southwestern Nova Scotia, a huge event known as Dumping Day. “Dumping Day is going to be about 400,000 traps that our people get to pick from to replenish our traps,” Sack said in an interview, referring to the start of Canada’s largest and most lucrative lobster fishery. >video, click to read< 08:02
Tension could rise again on Monday in lobster dispute on east coast – The ongoing dispute between Indigenous and non-native lobster fishers could get tense once again. Last weekend, and on Wednesday, agents from Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) seized hundreds of Indigenous lobster traps, ostensibly because the traps were set before the season opens on Monday.. >click to read<
Snow crab fishing rights: First Nations leaders say they’ll drop court action if government agrees to mediated settlement
The chiefs of Madawaska and Tobique First Nations say they have been seeking to exercise their treaty right to fish snow crab for 25 years, and point to volatile protests over lobster fishing as an example of the consequences of letting such disputes go unresolved. “Our Aboriginal right to engage in the fishery is not being recognized, the consequence of that is playing out before us in Nova Scotia,” Tobique Chief Ross Perley said in a news release Tuesday. >click to read< 12:04
Indigenous Services Minister says Mi’kmaw fishermen in Nova Scotia being ‘let down’ by police
“We must also recognize that once again, as evidenced by the scenes of violence, Indigenous people have been let down by the police, those who are sworn to protect them,” he told a news conference in Ottawa this morning.,, Miller was joined by Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan, Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Carolyn Bennett and Public Safety Minister Bill Blair.,, The Sipekne’katik fishery operates outside the federally mandated commercial season. Commercial fishermen say they worry about its impact on lobster conservation, an argument Sack is trying to discredit. Colin Sproul,,, “The real gulf between Chief Sack’s position and mine is this: we respect and support Indigenous fishery access rights, which was ratified by the Marshall decision, but we respect the entire decision,” >click to read< 16:02
Lobster crisis. Is anyone at the helm?
Clearly, Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan doesn’t suffer from NIMBY syndrome (Not In My Backyard). How do we know? Because she’s allowed fisheries tensions to escalate,,, To be fair, the issue has simmered for decades. A 1999 Supreme Court of Canada decision reaffirmed the treaty rights of Nova Scotia’s Mi’kmaw communities to a moderate livelihood fishery. Tempers have flared occasionally over the years, and none of Jordan’s predecessors had the courage to create an industry where the moderate livelihood fishery happened without opposition from commercial fishers. The minister needs to show leadership before someone gets seriously hurt, or worse. >click to read< 12:19
Federal inaction drives lobster feud
A Coast Guard cutter and two helicopters (one RCMP, one DFO) provided little more than backdrop scenery to the boiling tensions on the Acadian shore Monday. Both the First Nations encamped behind a barricade at the Saulnierville Wharf and the predominantly Acadian local fishermen with their own roadblock at the Meteghan wharf 14 kilometres away called on the federal authorities to uphold the law. But whose law do they uphold? Successive federal fisheries ministers have kicked the issue down the election cycle by providing commercial licenses to First Nations bands without negotiating the Supreme Court of Canada acknowledged right of individual Mi’kmaq to make a moderate livelihood off of natural resources. The vacuum left by their inaction is being filled with threats, flares and rubber bullets. >click to read< 10:29
Application deadline extended for fish harvester benefits program – will have until Oct. 5th
Fishers financially impacted by the Coronavirus pandemic have two extra weeks to apply for the federal government’s Fish Harvester Benefit and Grant Program. The original Sept. 21 deadline is now extended to 3 p.m. on Oct. 5 for self employed harvesters to submit their applications online. In a press release Sept. 18, Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan encouraged anyone who thinks they may be eligible to visit the DFO website and learn how to apply. >click to read< 17:44
Nova Scotia: Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan asking sides to meet to de-escalate lobster fishing tensions
And late Friday afternoon the Assembly of Nova Scotia Mi’kmaw Chiefs declared a state of emergency for mainland Nova Scotia because of what it calls political unrest and violence. Early Friday evening Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan issued a statement,, “Our Government’s first priority is to ensure everyone involved remains safe. In Canada, anyone can participate in peaceful protests and that process is fundamental to our democracy,” she said. “At this time, it is imperative that all parties, and the public work together to lower tensions on the water and in our communities, to foster understanding between one another,,, “To that end, I’m extending an invitation for Indigenous leadership and industry leadership to meet with me as soon as possible. >click to read< 15:13
Sipekne’katik First Nation issuing own lobster licences
After a blessing of its fleet on Thursday morning, the Sipekne’katik First Nation will issue lobster fishing licences at the Saulnierville wharf. On Tuesday, the Potlotek First Nation in Cape Breton sent its plan to begin a rights-based moderate livelihood lobster fishery on Oct. 1 to federal Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan. They weren’t asking her permission, but rather for her to consult them on what they intend to do. “We’re tired of waiting and we’re tired of being poor,” Potlotek chief Wilbert Marshall said on Wednesday. >click to read< 08:26
Mi’kmaq planning their own moderate livelihood fishery outside DFO seasons
Canada’s Minister of Fisheries and Oceans is downplaying plans by Nova Scotia Mi’kmaq to create their own moderate livelihood fishery, characterizing the move as part of ongoing negotiations to implement a 21-year-old Supreme Court ruling. “Right now we are working with the First Nations communities to determine what a moderate livelihood fishery looks like. We’re continuing to have those meetings with them,”,, The Trudeau government has managed to get moderate livelihood deals with three bands; one in Quebec and two in New Brunswick. >click to read< 10:55
Quiet seafood truck protest: DFO urged to crack down on illegal out of season lobster fishing
The owner of a seafood company that has trucks parked at the DFO detachment declined an interview and wouldn’t comment about the protest or who organized it. Asked why the trucks are there the company owner simply said, “DFO knows.” The trucks were first parked at the DFO detachment on Aug. 27, the same day hundreds of commercial lobster fishermen protested outside of federal Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan’s office in Bridgewater demanding DFO provide enforcement. As they have in previous summers, fishermen have been raising concerns over what they say is out-of-season commercial lobster harvesting taking place. They say commercial activity is happening under the guise of the First Nations fishery and accuse some fishers of abusing the intent of that fishery. photos, >click to read< 20:38
Time to reform DFO – Unable to protect wild fish while managing commercial fisheries and ocean-based aquaculture
Conservation and angling groups on the West Coast are calling for radical reform of Fisheries and Oceans Canada, saying it appears unable to protect wild fish while managing commercial fisheries and ocean-based aquaculture. The B.C. Wildlife Federation, in a letter to Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan, says the federal department should be “independently reviewed and rebuilt” with a mandate to restore and recover failing salmon 
populations. Many B.C. salmon runs are considered threatened or endangered, including most South Coast and Fraser River chinook, Interior Fraser coho, Fraser River sockeye and Interior steelhead. Some are down to just a few dozen individuals. >click to read< 10:38
