Prince Edward Island Fisheries and Aquaculture Minister Allan Campbell says he is being increasingly frustrated by the failure of Fisheries and Oceans Minister Loyola Hearn to respond directly to concerns about the decision to allow mid-water trawls to fish herring in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
“This issue has the potential to devastate the herring and other fisheries in this region, and the federal minister has refused to respond to concerns that have been raised by fisheries organizations in all three provinces,” said Mr. Campbell. “Despite what Mr. Hearn has said, the advisory committee was never consulted on this decision, and at no time did it agree to allow new vessels to enter the fishery.”
Mr. Campbell said the fact that the decision caught everyone by surprise is ample proof that no meaningful consultations ever took place.
Mr. Campbell said that the use of the mid-water trawls has resulted in the collapse of herring stocks in other areas such as the Gulf of Maine. “Mid-water trawls catch everything in their path,” he said. “Unlike purse seine gear, nothing in the path of these trawls can survive, and that will lead to the end of the fishery as we know it. I simply cannot understand why the federal minister has turned his back on the basic principles of conservation and the precautionary approach to fisheries management.”
Mr. Campbell said he is particularly upset that Mr. Hearn has failed to acknowledge the growing evidence about the impact of the use of mid-water trawlers. He commended the Prince Edward Island Fishermen’s Association for its leadership in organizing a united voice against the decision.
“There are already enough concerns about the health of the herring stocks and, if the mid-water trawlers are added to the existing effort in the Gulf, it will only lead to a certain and absolute end to this and other fisheries,” said Mr. Campbell. “We cannot sit back and let that happen, and I am asking that this unwise and unfortunate decision be reversed.”