Tag Archives: Newfoundland and Labrador
Federal Fisheries minister ignored DFO advice by reopening commercial cod fishery
Federal Fisheries Minister Diane Lebouthillier ignored the advice of staff within her department when she reopened the commercial cod fishery off Newfoundland and Labrador last June. A briefing note dated May 9 reveals that Fisheries and Oceans Canada recommended maintaining the long-time moratorium on northern cod based on scientific evidence, but that political advisors within the minister’s office argued reopening the commercial fishery and hiking quotas would be “politically a victory.” Senior policy advisor Paul Carrigan wrote that DFO staff were concerned about an increase to quotas and the return of offshore boats in the fishery, which would “increase the stocks’ risk of decline.” more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 06:47
FFAW Rotted with NL Liberal MPs’ Support for Return of Draggers
The FFAW says documents filed by Ottawa to defend reopening of a commercial cod fishery show all Liberal MPs supported the feds’ decision. The reopening once again gives local processors and NAFO countries access to the resource with offshore draggers, while the stock remains in the cautious zone. Pretty notes there was a promise for the first 115,000 metric tonnes of the 2J3KL northern cod quota to be allocated to inshore harvesters and Indigenous groups. He calls the actions of the six Liberal MPs — Gudie Hutchings, Seamus O’Regan, Joanne Thompson, Churence Rogers, Yvonne Jones, and Ken McDonald — “a total betrayal.” more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 07:01
All NL MPs Supported Breaking Historical Agreement for Northern Cod, Injunction Documents Show
Documents submitted by the Government of Canada as part of the federal injunction filed by FFAW-Unifor in July show that all Liberal MPs in the province supported breaking the longstanding agreement on Northern cod to allow offshore draggers access while the stock remains in the cautious zone. “Documents are quickly coming in from DFO staffers via the federal court process. What we’ve seen thus far is a Liberal caucus of NL politicians who supported breaking the 40-plus year agreement to our province – and while it’s certainly not shocking at this point, it should be a real eye opener to the people of our province who elected these individuals to office,” says FFAW-Unifor Greg Pretty. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 09:30
Newly reinstated Newfoundland cod fishery temporarily paused as landings hit limit
The federal government has temporarily paused parts of the newly reinstated commercial northern cod fishery off the east coast of Newfoundland as landings approach the seasonal limit. Fisheries and Oceans Canada says that as of Monday evening, fishers from the east coast of the island cannot fish cod until Sept. 15, when the second half of the season is set to begin. The first half of the season was set to end on Sept. 14, but officials say fishers have almost caught the maximum amount of fish allowed during that period. Labrador fishers will be confined to the region’s southeast coast until Sept. 15. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 17:23
NAFO Moving Forward with Offshore Dragger Access Despite Legal Injunction and Historical Agreement for Northern Cod
Despite vocal opposition from industry and environmental groups, the North Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) is making strides towards allowing international and domestic offshore draggers back on the Northern cod grounds as early as this fall. The European Union (EU) is awaiting approval of their harvesting proposal from the NAFO Commission to get access to the fishery. “It is our strong opinion that the NAFO Commission should defer reopening the offshore allocation for the 2J3KL northern cod fishery. The reopening of the commercial cod fishery was done under poor faith by Minister Lebouthillier and Prime Minster Justin Trudeau; with both went against the advice of science, environment and industry, and also broke a four-decade commitment to our province,” says Pretty. “By lifting the 32-year moratorium on commercial fishing on June 26, 2024, the Government of Canada is further corporatizing public resources, limiting the economic sustainability of coastal communities, and breaking a decades long promise to the province of Newfoundland and Labrador,” Pretty explains. more, >>CLICK TO READ<<07:50
EU seal ban causing more harm than good, says Swedish researcher
Danny Pottle is an Inuk elder, who experienced first hand the impacts of the anti-sealing movement growing up in Rigolet, Labrador.
A Swedish researcher says the European Union’s ban on the import and sale of all seal products has caused more harm than good, and now is the time to lift the 15-year-old ban. Sven-Gunnar Lunneryd, who researches aquatic resources at the Swedish University for Agricultural Sciences, says ending the ban would help seal hunters and restore depleted fish stocks. His research demonstrates that in the Baltic Sea, where the grey seal population has recently increased rapidly, having a negative impact coastal fisheries in the region. “We maybe need to half the seal population to get the chance for depleted fish stocks to recover,” said Lunneryd. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 09:53
After a harrowing rescue in the cold Atlantic, a fisherman wanted two things: A new guitar, and Nickelback tickets
After a harrowing rescue in the cold North Atlantic, and more than 48 hours on a life raft with six of his fellow crewmates, fisherman David Tiller wanted two things: A new guitar, and tickets to see an upcoming Nickelback concert in St. John’s. He’s gotten more than he bargained for: Multiple brand-new instruments, including a black guitar signed and christened by former Great Big Sea frontman Alan Doyle. The present was gifted to Tiller by Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Andrew Furey on Friday. “I couldn’t be happier with the amount of responses, I mean all the people that thought about us is just overwhelming.” Tiller and his six crewmates from the Elite Navigator have become known as Newfoundland and Labrador’s “Lucky Seven.” Video, photos, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 13:54
The Newfoundland cod moratorium is over — but the risk remains
After more than 30 years, the federal government has announced it’s lifting the moratorium that shut down commercial cod fishing in Newfoundland and Labrador in the 1990s. The end of the moratorium includes a 46 per cent increase in total allowable catch from 13,000 tonnes in 2023 to 18,000 tonnes. Just before the collapse in the late 1980s, the total allowable catch was about 240,000 tonnes. Additionally, international offshore fisheries were allocated a quota of 1,000 tonnes, accounting for about five per cent of the total allowable catch. Reactions to the announcement have been mixed. Some organizations, like the Association of Seafood Producers, have voiced their support for the moratorium ending. Others are more skeptical. The union representing inshore fish harvesters, for instance, has asked the government to reverse the decision. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 09:28
Letter to Prime Minister Trudeau and Minister Lebouthillier Re: Northern Cod
Dear Prime Minister Trudeau and Minister Lebouthillier, We write today on a serious matter needing your attention. On behalf of 320,000 workers across the country, including more than 14,000 members of the Fish, Food and Allied Workers (FFAW) Union in Newfoundland and Labrador, we are calling on you to reverse a recent decision with respect to the northern cod moratorium. The decision to end the moratorium and grant access to corporate offshore interests flies in the face of what was committed by your government and decades of past fisheries management practice. We also are concerned with the impact this will have on a fishery that is still recovering. Your government must uphold its 2015 commitment to allocate the first 115,000 tonnes of northern cod quota to inshore harvesters and Indigenous groups and immediately reinstate the Northern cod stewardship fishery under the same conditions as 2023. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 07:53
DFO drops investigations into alleged controlling agreements; inshore fisheries advocate calls for independent inquiry to find out why
The federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) has shut down three separate investigations in this province into alleged illegal controlling agreements that give processing companies control over inshore boats and quotas — including one case that included a harvester’s confession— with no charges laid. DFO officials have yet to say why the cases were closed last week, and whether controlling agreements remain illegal as a means to prevent the corporate takeover of inshore fisheries in Atlantic Canada and Quebec. DFO officials have yet to say why the cases were closed last week, and whether controlling agreements remain illegal as a means to prevent the corporate takeover of inshore fisheries in Atlantic Canada and Quebec. In a July 4th letter to Foss, Paul Didham with DFO’s Conservation and Protection division confirmed the department has decided “not to proceed in this matter.” “Therefore, please be advised that this investigation is now concluded, and no charges pursued.” more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 19:11
Canada lifts 30-year cod fishing ban off Newfoundland and Labrador to mixed reactions
The Canadian federal government has lifted the 30-year fishing ban for Northern cod off the north and east coasts of Newfoundland and Labrador – a “historic milestone” for the seafood industry in Canada’s Maritimes. This means that commercial fishing for Northern cod will resume in NAFO Divisions 2J3KL for the 2024 season. “We will cautiously but optimistically build back this fishery with the prime beneficiaries being coastal and Indigenous communities throughout Newfoundland and Labrador,” said the Honourable Diane Lebouthillier, Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard in a press release. “As a government, we remain steadfast in our commitment to fostering sustainable and economically prosperous fisheries that honor our shared resources for generations to come. I encourage all participants to prioritize safety and enjoy a rewarding season on the water.” more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 09:51
Furey says changes to cod catch are an ‘affront’ to N.L. in letter to federal fisheries minister
In a letter to Diane Lebouthillier, dated July 3, Furey says the provincial government is concerned about the changes, announced June 26. “Changes that provide increased access to foreign fleets, coupled with the risk of overfishing, are an affront to the patience and commitment to stewardship demonstrated by the hardworking harvesters and processors of this province,” says Furey in the letter, posted to X, formerly known as Twitter. “The province simply cannot support fish being harvested by foreign countries at the expense of our own harvesters.” Furey’s letter is the latest public rebuke by N.L.’s Liberal government — currently the only provincial Liberal administration in the country — of the federal Liberals. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 14:51
O’Regan Rejects FFAW’s Calls to Reverse Commercial Cod Fishery
The union is demanding that Ottawa reverse its decision and maintain a stewardship fishery for cod, citing what they believe could be the detrimental impacts of foreign draggers now having access to the stock. O’Regan says once the stock goes from the critical to the cautious zone, and enough fishing has happened that it is essentially a commercial fishery, there are certain obligations that kick in. He says the cod quota can’t be increased to the point where it crosses certain lines and then say ‘nothing to see here.’ O’Regan says that the NAFO agreements are binding, and if people want an increase to the quota there are obligations they have to keep. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 08:24
Spectre of draggers returning to cod fishery drives FFAW to call to reinstate moratorium
Newfoundland and Labrador’s fisheries union is calling on the federal government to revert its decision to end the moratorium on cod fishing and reinstate a stewardship fishery, a week after the federal Liberal government called the move “a historic milestone.” Greg Pretty, president of the Fish, Food and Allied Workers union (FFAW), told reporters in a press conference on Tuesday — the 32nd anniversary of the 1992 cod moratorium — there’s real concern that everything done over the last 32 years to rebuild the stock will be undone if offshore draggers, both Canadian and international, are allowed to fish cod in Newfoundland and Labrador waters again. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 07:38
Newfoundland and Labrador Harvesters Call for Reestablishment of Northern Cod Stewardship Fishery
St. John’s, NL – On the 32nd Anniversary of the historic Northern cod moratorium, fish harvesters in Newfoundland and Labrador are calling for an immediate return of the Northern Cod Stewardship Fishery, following an announcement from the federal government earlier this week that they plan to return the important species to commercial status and allow offshore draggers to access the stock. “As a province, we are demanding the federal government return our important northern cod resource back to a stewardship fishery and ensure the species is protected as it continues to rebuild,” says FFAW-Unifor President Greg Pretty. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 10:03
DFO warns Canadian fishers about participating in French halibut fishery
On Friday, Fisheries and Oceans Canada issued a statement saying it has requested formal consultations under the Proces-Verbal to reach an agreement related to quota allocation. The government describes Proces-Verbal as “a treaty that has allowed Canada and France/Saint Pierre and Miquelon to cooperate on the management of fish stocks that are present in our two domestic fishing waters.” The move follows word that a French-flagged ship recently landed 30 tonnes of halibut in Saint Pierre and Miquelon that is believed to be destined for the United States via the Port of Halifax. The fish was caught outside Canada’s 200-mile limit off Newfoundland and Labrador in an area known as the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization Regulatory Area, according to industry sources. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 06:46
End of cod moratorium touted after 32 years as Ottawa approves small increase in commercial catch
Thirty-two years after the federal government announced a moratorium that shut down Newfoundland and Labrador’s cod industry, Fisheries Minister Diane Lebouthillier said Wednesday that it is reopening. But what the federal government described in a statement as the “historic return of the commercial northern cod fishery” will amount to just a small increase in fishing activity that had been allowed during the recent years of the moratorium. “Ending the northern cod moratorium is a historic milestone for Newfoundlanders and Labradorians,” Lebouthillier said in a statement. “We will cautiously but optimistically build back this fishery with the prime beneficiaries being coastal and Indigenous communities throughout Newfoundland and Labrador.” The Fisheries and Oceans announcement comes with political overtones. Video, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 09:40
Harvesters Won’t Fish for Panel Price, Colossal Failure of Price Setting Panel Continues
The offer from the Association of Seafood Producers (ASP) fails to provide a fair distribution of value and highlights the total failure of the price setting system in the province, and harvesters are refusing to fish. “The ask here is straightforward—capelin harvesters are seeking a fair share of the value derived from the capelin fishery. We are proposing a formula-based system that would account for market uncertainties and ensure that the value is evenly split between processors and harvesters. We need to guarantee that at least half the value of the fishery remains with the workers in Newfoundland and Labrador,” explains FFAW-Unifor President Greg Pretty. “If ASP members are serious about this being a shared industry under threat, then give us our fair share,” says Trevor Jones, fish harvester and Negotiating Committee member. “If the Province is serious about preserving the inshore fishery and keeping the value of the fishery in the hands of workers in this province, then they have to take a stronger stance. A minimum price must be a fair price,” says Jones. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 11:12
DFO Rejects FFAW Working Group Proposal for Buddy Up in 2J3KL Northern Cod, Harvesters Forewarn of Offshore Draggers Coming
Despite an overwhelming majority voting in favour of buddy-up in cod, late yesterday afternoon DFO advised the FFAW that buddy-up will not be implemented in 2J3KL for the 2024 season. Harvesters fear that DFO is failing to manage the fishery in a way that supports the continued economic success of coastal communities in Newfoundland and Labrador and warn that the Department is threatening to allow offshore draggers access this fishing season. “Owner-operator fish harvesters who rely on the cod fishery have systematically and democratically worked over the last several months to find ways to improve our northern cod stewardship fishery, for the economic feasibility of the 2J3KL fleet,” says FFAW-Unifor Greg Pretty. “This fleet determined that the way to move forward was approving buddy-up but including important criteria that would ensure the fishery lasts more than a few days,” Pretty explains. “Moreover, harvesters are very fearful that the Liberal Government is positioning themselves to give away the northern cod resource to offshore draggers this fishing season,” Pretty says. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 14:23
Fishery co-op plans on hold after province freezes processing licences
June 13th, 2024 – The Fisheries Protective Co-operative has put organizing efforts on hold following a decision by the provincial government to institute a freeze on the issuance of new fish processing licences. “We hit a wall that we didn’t see coming,” says organizer Ryan Cleary. “The plan is to move forward when the freeze is eventually lifted,” added Merv Wiseman, another key co-op organizer. The FPC was preparing an application to process groundfish at a seal-processing facility in Fleur de Lys on the Baie Verte Peninsula when an official with provincial Fisheries revealed this week that a licence freeze is in effect. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 09:12
NLGIDC are disappointed in DFO’s management approach for Unit 1 Redfish for 2024-2025
Late on Friday, May 31, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) unveiled its management plan for Unit 1 redfish in the Gulf of St. Lawrence for the 2024-25 period. The plan sets a Total Allowable Catch (TAC) of 60,000 tonnes for the next year (from May 15, 2024, to May 14, 2025). While this TAC level is seen as reasonable, the decision to allocate the majority of the quota to the offshore fleet has greatly disappointed inshore fleets and Indigenous groups in the Gulf of St Lawrence. “Many inshore harvesters, processing operators, and coastal communities were looking forward to a more equitable distribution of this resource among all fleets in the newly recovered redfish fishery in the Gulf,” said Bill Barry, founder and CEO of Barry Group Inc. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 14:23
DFO Doubles Down on Redfish Giveaway: NL MPs Fail to Step-Up for Provincial Fishery
Late yesterday evening, DFO released the 2024-2025 Management Plan for redfish. The cowardly move came after the close of NL business hours and doubled down by taking owner-operator resources and handing them off to corporations. Earlier this spring, the original announcement made by Minister Lebouthillier gave away nearly 60% of the Canadian redfish quota to the corporate fleet, despite the inshore, owner-operator fleet having taken the lead on science and sustainability measures in recent years. With the Gulf shrimp fishery all but closed and non-shrimpers waiting for redfish to return, this is another blow to a group that’s been in survival mode for the last several years. “Once again, FFAW-Unifor members have been maligned by our two Ministerial Marionettes, Seamus O’Regan and Gudie Hutchings,” said FFAW-Unifor President Greg Pretty. “Sadly, their strings continue to be plucked by the Offshore Groundfish Oligarchy. >>CLICK TO READ<<11:49
New cod migration data: Study co-author George Rose says northern cod have returned to historical migration patterns
The co-author of a new study in the Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences says Newfoundland and Labrador’s northern cod have returned to their historical migration patterns with potentially major implications for the provincial fishery. George Rose, co-author of the study with the Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries at the University of British Columbia, says the new data suggests a return to the commercial cod fishery one day is possible. The study followed 90 large northern cod equipped with tags that transmitted data to satellites for over a year. Researchers found northern cod have re-established historical migration patterns and confirmed capelin can influence their timing and duration in inshore waters. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 06:42
Inuit inshore harvesters of northern Labrador have scheduled a protest for Tuesday morning, May 28th, at 8 a.m.
Inuit inshore harvesters of northern Labrador have scheduled a protest for Tuesday morning, May 28th, at 8 a.m. (8:30 a.m. in Newfoundland) outside all Nunatsiavut Government buildings in the province. “We encourage all Inuit harvesters, their families, and non-harvesters alike to support us against this grave injustice,” says organizer and Inuit harvester Lisa Blandford. In past years the Nunatsiavut government has distributed its annual federal allocation of shrimp off northern Labrador to more than 20 inshore harvesters or designates. This year, however, seven Inuit harvesters say the Nunatsiavut government has denied them a 2024 share of northern shrimp quota in favour of an Inuit designate with a factory-freezer trawler, displacing as many as 40 inshore harvesters along the north Labrador coast. The inshore harvesters have also raised questions of conflict of interest involving current and past members of the Nunatsiavut government and have DFO documentation from 2003 that dictates shrimp quota to be assigned specifically to the inshore. DFO is expected to open the shrimp fishery off northern Labrador in fishing zones 4 and 5 any day. Contact Lisa Blandford: 709 897 7531 – 13:20
FFAW President Greg Pretty not seeking re-election, will retire
Fish, Food and Allied Workers (FFAW) union president Greg Pretty is retiring after more than 40 years with Newfoundland and Labrador’s largest private sector union. Pretty presided over the fisheries’ union during a tumultuous term that included two contentious tie-ups in back-to-back snow crab seasons. When asked on Friday if he would do anything differently, Pretty said no. “We had to have tie-ups to move this agenda. It was contrary to regulations and legislation, but it had to be done and it paid off,” he said. “We’re in a much better situation right now in 12 short months. So no, I don’t have any regrets.” Video, more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 11:38
Conne River salmon on the road to extinction, says DFO study, with aquaculture a leading factor
A new comprehensive review of Atlantic salmon in Conne River, on Newfoundland’s south coast, says aquaculture operations are the biggest reason for the population decline — and if things don’t change, the fish could be wiped out. Travis Van Leeuwen, a Department of Fisheries and Oceans research scientist and co-author of the report, released in April, says the river had at least 10,000 large and small salmon, but since 2020 fewer than 300 adult salmon return to Conne River every year. Marine cage culture salmonids started in the mid-1980s at Bay d’Espoir and later expanded east into Fortune Bay. In 1992, Newfoundland and Labrador’s commercial salmon fishery ended. But while the salmon population in rivers in other areas of the province bounced back, Conne River’s continued to decline. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 16:49
With crab season underway, potential job action looms for fish plant workers without a contract
Crab is coming into processing plants in eastern Newfoundland, but the lack of a contract for unionized workers could throw a wrench in the season. Joey Warford, the industrial-retail-offshore council member representative for the Fish, Food & Allied Workers union, said plant workers have been without a deal since December. “We’re hoping to get a deal done but, you know, that remains to be seen. The members are speaking loud and clear on their needs and their wants,” Warford — who said he represents about 1,000 plant workers in without a deal in Witless Bay, Bonavista, Triton and New Wes Valley, more, >CLICK TO READ<< 19:25
SEA-NL advises Ottawa to increase northern cod harvest, but not to lift ’92 moratorium
April 30th, 2024 – Seaward Enterprises Association of Newfoundland and Labrador (SEA-NL) has called on Ottawa to increase the 2024 northern cod harvest, but under a continued inshore stewardship fishery that bans offshore factory-freezer trawlers. “Lifting the moratorium and restarting a full-fledged commercial fishery for northern cod will open the gates to offshore draggers, foreign and domestic, which the stock is not ready for,” says SEA-NL President Bruce Layman, a Carbonear-based inshore fisherman. The debate on whether to lift the moratorium and restart a commercial fishery has picked up since last fall when DFO introduced a new assessment model that elevated the stock’s scientific status to “cautious” from the “critical” zone. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 13:02
Cod stock reassessment prompts calls from producers to end moratorium
A recent reassessment of Newfoundland and Labrador’s northern cod stock has some in the industry calling an end to the commercial moratorium implemented in 1992. Alberto Wareham, president and CEO of Icewater Seafoods in Arnold’s Cove, says last year’s reassessment — the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, in reviewing historical data, moved cod from the “critical” zone to the “cautious” zone — could signal the potential for a limited commercial harvest. “We’re hoping now with more confidence in the stock we would see a reopening of a commercial cod fishery,” he said. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 10:48
Fisherman slammed to the ground by a police officer now ‘considering legal option’
The fisherman who was left with a broken hip after he participated in a blockade last month is now “considering legal options” against the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary (RNC), according to a report. Richard Martin, 52, was “slammed to the ground by a police officer,” according to a CBC report. The incident happened on March 20, when hundreds of seafood harvesters were blockading Confederation Building in St. John’s, preventing public service workers and politicians from accessing the sprawling complex. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 15:17
