The snow crab management plan, the closure of the cod fishery, shrimp quotas, the longstanding issue of herring seiners, and oyster enhancement were among the key issues Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture Greg Deighan raised in a private meeting with his federal counterpart in Halifax Wednesday.
Minister Deighan requested the meeting with federal Minister of Fisheries and Oceans Robert Thibault to discuss Prince Edward Island concerns regarding several federal fisheries announcements this spring. Following the meeting, Minister Deighan said progress was made on some issues.
Under the snow crab management plan announced in May, PEI's 28 permanent snow crab licence holders saw their allocation reduced by 35 per cent, while PEI's portion of the shared allocation also suffered a major drop.
"While the snow crab management plan was announced as a three-year management plan, Minister Thibault indicated during our meeting that he is willing to revisit the issue of the shared quota next year. So, I am hopeful that we will see changes in this allocation before the next fishing season," said Minister Deighan.
Prince Edward Island had recommended that the allocation of shared snow crab quota be based on numbers of core fishers in the Gulf. Minister Deighan said the current plan is inequitable as PEI has the largest number of Gulf core fishers, almost 30 per cent, yet received the smallest allocation of snow crab.
Turning to the groundfishery, Minister Deighan expressed concern that the financial programs put in place to assist those individuals most affected by the cod closure do little to alleviate their situation. To be eligible, fishers must have earned 25 per cent of their revenue from cod, which was difficult with the reduced quotas and other restrictions in place in 2002. As well, the assistance is available for only a 12-week period and to those who are unemployed; and there has been no information to date on programs for alternative employment.
"It is critical that those who relied on the cod fishery have the support they need to make the transition to another fishery or another occupation," said Minister Deighan. "Minister Thibault did indicate that there will be other programs announced in the future so the Province will continue to work closely with the federal government to ensure that Island interests are represented."
In addition to the Island fishers who rely on groundfish for their livelihood, the cod fishery provided an important source of supplementary income for close to 400 core fishers in PEI, as well as additional employment hours for those in the processing sector. It was also an essential element of the charter boat fishery which is a key component of the tourism industry in Prince Edward Island. Minister Deighan noted that there is some indication that progress is being made on having a special arrangement to allow catch and release of cod on charter vessels.
The Gulf shrimp and northern shrimp management plans announced this spring were other issues on which Minister Deighan voiced frustration to the federal minister. PEI receives less than one per cent of the total allowable catch of northern shrimp, and is the only Eastern Canadian Province without a permanent allocation of the resource. The Province was seeking an increase in allocation and wanted the share to be made permanent in 2003. Neither request was considered despite a 117 per cent increase in quota in the fishing area where PEI's temporary allocation is fished.
Turning to the Gulf shrimp fishery, the total allowable catch was reduced by seven per cent this year: however, PEI's temporary allocation was reduced by 28 per cent from 210 metric tonnes to 152 metric tonnes. The PEI government has requested permanent access to 1,000 metric tonnes of Gulf shrimp to allow for a PEI-based fishery that could lead to processing and related spinoff activity.
"We will continue to present PEI's position to the federal minister at every opportunity," said Minister Deighan. "We strongly believe that Prince Edward Island should have permanent access to both Gulf shrimp and northern shrimp resources, and we will continue to press that point."
Minister Deighan also took the opportunity Wednesday to impress upon the federal minister the need to resolve the longstanding issue of large herring seiners fishing close to shore in the eastern end of the province. Island fishers are concerned that the large fishing vessels are damaging lobster habitat and jeopardizing local herring stocks.
"Fishers reluctantly accepted a temporary solution last fall so that the fishery could proceed without disruption, but they want a long-term plan put in place before another season begins," said Minister Deighan. "It was an administrative error that caused this problem to begin with, changing the boundary of the seiner exclusion zone. I asked the federal minister to simply restore the original boundary."
In other items at Wednesday's meeting, Minister Deighan renewed his call for the federal government to provide funding for oyster enhancement work to assist the PEI industry, which has been impacted by high winter kill this year. Minister Deighan said he will continue to bring the concerns of Island fishers to the attention of the federal minister during the Atlantic Council of Fisheries and Aquaculture Ministers meeting in September.