Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture Greg Deighan underlined the importance of the cod fishery to Prince Edward Island fishers during a meeting with his federal and provincial counterparts Friday.
The minister was in Halifax for a special meeting of the Atlantic Council of Fisheries and Aquaculture Ministers (ACFAM). The ACFAM is made up of Ministers from the Atlantic provinces, Quebec, Nunavut and the federal government.
Last December, the ministers asked a working group of officials to look at the economic impact of the cod fishery to east coast harvesters, processors and communities. They reviewed the findings of the working group at Friday's meeting.
"Prince Edward Island is not as dependant on the cod fishery as some other jurisdictions; however, there are a number of PEI fishers who depend on cod for their livelihood, and for those individuals a closure would have a substantial impact," said Minister Deighan. "In addition, cod is an important source of supplementary income for many Island fishers. I have asked the federal minister to take that into consideration when a decision is made about the 2003 fishery."
According to the ACFAM task group report released Friday, the cod fishery provides income for close to 400 core fishers in Prince Edward Island, while eight PEI fishers are totally dependent on groundfish – down from more than 30 when the cod moratorium came into effect in the early 1990s. In 2001, cod landings in Prince Edward Island totalled 1.7 million pounds. The landed value to PEI fishers was $1.0 million, with the total value to the provincial economy in the range of $2 million.
In addition to the direct impact on fishing communities, Minister Deighan noted that closure of the cod fishery would affect other aspects of the Prince Edward Island economy. There would be a loss of employment hours in the processing sector as well as in buying and shipping, and changes to the recreational fishery would impact the tourism industry. There are about 35 charter boats which participate in the recreational cod fishery in the summer. These operations contribute approximately $2.5 million to the PEI economy.
"The cod fishery might not have as large an impact on the Island economy as it did in the years prior to the moratorium, when annual landings averaged 7.0 million pounds for a landed value of $2.2 million; however, it is clear that this fishery continues to play an important role," said Minister Deighan. "A closure of the cod fishery would be felt by many individuals, communities and the economy as a whole. That is the message that I left with the federal minister Friday."
Minister Thibault is expected to make an announcement on the future of the cod fishery by the end of March. If there is any significant change in the fishery, Minister Deighan stressed that the federal government must have a plan in place for those fishers affected.
During roundtable discussions at the ACFAM meeting, Minister Deighan took the opportunity to raise other issues of interest to Island fishers including invasive species such as the clubbed tunicate.
"Invasive species is one of the biggest challenges the fisheries and aquaculture industries are facing today. I asked Minister Thibault to strengthen the federal commitment to this issue by dedicating additional resources to find effective ways to manage these species so that we minimize their impact on fisheries and aquaculture operations," said Minister Deighan.
On another issue, the Prince Edward Island minister stressed the need for more resources for long-term monitoring of MSX to help ensure it does not spread beyond the area of Cape Breton where it was identified last fall. While MSX is not a human health concern, it can result in a high mortality rate in oysters, so it is a serious concern to oyster fishers, growers and processors throughout the Atlantic region.