PEI Fisheries and Tourism Minister Kevin MacAdam says that he not only understands the frustration of the Island Oyster Growers Group regarding the riparian rights issue, he shares it as well.
"This is an issue my staff and I have been working on for more than one year now and I clearly want to see a resolution so that our oyster growers can get on with their expanding businesses," said Mr. MacAdam.
The Minister pointed out that his Department has been actively supporting the development of the oyster industry through a number of initiatives including increasing production on leases and assisting in the introduction of off bottom culture techniques to the Province. "My Department, in cooperation with ACOA and DFO, have been offering programs through the Primary Resource Development Program to assist growers to develop their leases. We share the enthusiasm of the industry and believe that the programs will provide substantial increases to oyster production," said the Minister. The Department has also worked cooperatively with the PEI Lending Agency to develop the Shellfish Aquaculture Financing Program which supports oyster culture.
"Regarding the water rights, the Coast Guard under the Navigable Waters Protection Act, are the ones who must grant permission and that is the current issue we are dealing with," said Mr. MacAdam.
The Minister pointed out that he and his staff have devoted much time and effort to this issue in the past year. "I have been in contact with Minister Anderson on the raparian rights issue, my staff has had numerous meetings and discussions with DFO and with industry through the Aquaculture Alliance on the issue, and we have even cost-shared staff at the DFO office to prepare all the necessary documents for processing each lease site application," said Mr. MacAdam.
"I want to clearly emphasize there is no 'magic bullet' solution to this issue. We can only solve it through the cooperative efforts of ourselves, DFO/Coast Guard and the industry," said the Minister. "As far as provincial legislation assisting to resolve this issue, we do not yet have clear direction since we are awaiting final word from DFO/Coast Guard on what flexibility can be applied to resolving the matter."
"That does not mean we have been sitting on our hands, in fact, we have been exploring options with our legal counsel. I can assure you I am not prepared to go off half-cocked to introduce legislation unless I can be assured it will assist in solving the problem and until consultation is carried out with the industry and the federal government," said Mr. MacAdam.
The Minister took strong exception to remarks by NDP Leader Herb Dickieson regarding the Minister's commitment to the industry and the fact that he did not respond to the Oyster Growers Group. "Firstly, I do not need any lessons from Dr. Dickieson on developing the oyster industry, the record of our government and my Department speaks for itself; secondly, Dr. Dickieson should get his facts straight in that I replied to the Aquaculture Alliance with a copy to the Oyster Growers Group back on March 4 and; thirdly, I would challenge Dr. Dickieson to, for once, work cooperatively toward a solution to a serious problem instead of trying to score political points on the backs of hard working industry people who make our aquaculture industry successful," said Mr. MacAdam.
"The bottom line in all of this is we need a cooperative approach to solve this problem, and I assure oyster growers that we are working and will continue to work with the federal government and the industry to reach a solution," concluded the Minister.