NAFO Moving Forward with Offshore Dragger Access Despite Legal Injunction and Historical Agreement for Northern Cod
August 12, 2024, ST. JOHN’S, NL – 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.
The 115,000mt commitment is historically referenced dozens of times; as recently as in the 2021 management plan for 2J3KL Groundfish as well as in a 2015 letter from Justin Trudeau, and as early as 1982 with the Kirby Report and then-Fisheries Minister, Romeo Leblanc. Specifically, the promise was that the first 115,000mt of 2J3KL Northern cod quota would be allocated ONLY to inshore and Indigenous groups, before offshore/corporate groups gained access. This was to reflect the economic and historical dependency the inshore fleet has on the resource, which is repeatedly cited by the federal government pre-1982. Instead, at a total harvest amount of nearly 19,000mt, Canadian and international offshore draggers are being permitted access to harvest Northern cod.
“Historic overfishing by offshore draggers was the primary factor that contributed to the collapse of Northern cod, and their preference to fish on pre-spawning aggregations is gravely concerning to those of us working towards the recovery of a culturally and economically significant species,” says long-time fish harvester, FFAW Inshore Council member, and 2J3KL Cod Working Group member, Glen Winslow.
“It’s certainly a massive disappointment that our own federal representatives have failed to stand up for our province. People like Seamus O’Regan, Gudie Hutchings, Churence Rogers, Joanne Thompson, and Ken McDonald have completely failed to show any integrity in their elected positions,” Pretty says. “NAFO should be standing up for those who say it’s too soon to allow offshore draggers back on the stock and reject the EU’s proposal for a 2024 fishery,” he concludes.
Courtney Glode (she/her)
Director of Public Affairs
FFAW-Unifor
T: 709-576-7276
M: 709-743-4445
368 Hamilton Ave.
St. John’s NL A1E 1K2
