From Chuck StrahlStrahl calls on DFO to act on new Fraser River Salmon Fishery Report 2005-03-22 - Blame laid at the feet of DFO mismanagement for loss of fish in 2004
Ottawa – This time, let’s hope the government will listen and act.
In a unanimous report, the Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans today outlined causes for the disastrous 2004 salmon run, including DFO mismanagement and lack of enforcement. It also made several recommendations to help the fishery get back on track.
“I hope the government will listen and act on this latest investigative report into the Fraser River Salmon fishery,” Chilliwack-Fraser Canyon MP Chuck Strahl said. “Many studies have been done in the past, have made excellent recommendations and the federal Liberal government has ignored them with predictable results.”
Over the past twelve years, the sockeye salmon fishery has been in major crisis mode four different times. The 2004 crisis saw the disappearance of 1.6 million sockeye. Study after study has pointed to mismanagement and abuse as the cause of the disaster and has called on the government for greater enforcement measures. This latest report is no different.
“Poor mismanagement is at the core of why so many fish disappeared last year,” Strahl said. “The government did not provide the resources necessary to count fish, perform scientific research and enforce regulations – DFO needs to clean up its act immediately so that there is a fish resource for present and future generations.”
In its recommendations, the Standing Committee Report urged the government to bring in better enforcement procedures, including the establishment of an enforcement branch in DFO Pacific Region, separate from fisheries management. It also called for an increase in the number of fisheries officers.
“Hopefully with more resources dedicated to enforcement, rules regarding over fishing will be respected,” Strahl said. “Poaching must stop, or the fishery won’t survive.”
The Committee made a total of twelve recommendations, including the disallowance of drift net fishing above the Mission Bridge, a closure to all fisheries when water temperatures get too high, and a review of the many reports over the past twelve years with a promise of implementing and funding all recommendations.
The Twelve RecommendationsTherefore the Committee recommends:
Recommendation 1
That, in agreement with the 1995 report of the Fraser River Sockeye Public Review Board, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans establish an enforcement branch in DFO Pacific Region, separate from fisheries mangement; and
That this new branch be headed by a regional director, Enforcement, with extensive law enforcement experience, who would report to an assistant deputy minister, Enforcement, and who would be responsible for developing and maintaining enforcement capability at a level of competence and coverage that would ensure that the Minister’s mandate to conserve and protect Canada’s Pacific fisheries resources will be fulfilled.
Recommendation 2
That the Department of Fisheries and Oceans restore the number of fishery officers in the Lower Fraser River area at least to the highest level of the 1994-2003 period. DFO’s Conservation and Protection Branch should also be given all the resources necessary to carry on their enforcement activities and statutory responsibility to conserve the fishery, particularly during fisheries’ closed times.
Recommendation 3
That the Department of Fisheries and Oceans and the Fraser River Panel adopt and use more stringent guidelines for closing the fishery when water temperatures reach dangerous levels. In particular, the Department should not shy away from limiting all fishing opportunities, both below and above the Mission bridge when the conservation of salmon stocks is at stake.
Recommendation 4
That the Department of Fisheries and Oceans undertake immediately a study on the impacts of drift gillnets and set gillnets in the Fraser River on the mortality of migrating salmon. In particular, the so-called “drop rate” and any compounding effects of elevated water temperature should be studied. In the interim, the Department should disallow the use of drift gillnets above the Mission bridge pending the findings of the study.
Recommendation 5
That the Government of Canada mandate an independent body to review the findings and recommendations of reports of the past 12 years investigating the management of the Fraser River sockeye salmon fishery, including the recommendations of this committee’s 2003 report on the matter and those of the current report. The mandate should include determining which previous recommendations have been effectively implemented, and which others should still be implemented; and,
That the Government of Canada commit the necessary resources to implement the resulting recommendations.
The Committee believes that the PFRCC is the best suited body to carry out such a review. This assignment would fit well with the current mandate of the independent body. It is interesting to note that the PFRCC was established in response to a recommendation of the Fraser Report on the 1994 sockeye salmon fishery. The Committee received testimony from both the Chair and the Scientific Advisor of the Council, and it feels that they have a very good understanding of the situation.
The Committee further recommends:
Recommendation 6
That the government of Canada ensure, as a matter of priority, that the Mission hydroacoustic station be equipped with the latest technology, and establish additional acoustic estimation stations at various strategic locations in the Fraser and Thompson rivers to accomplish quantitative estimates of fish and their stock identity.
Recommendation 7
That the Department of Fisheries and Oceans re-establish the threshold of 25,000 fish for the mark-recapture method to be used for the estimation of spawning escapement.
Recommendation 8
That the Government of Canada support, fund, and collaborate with a scientific consortium established to study and fill the knowledge gaps related to the biology and the management of wild Pacific salmon. The Committee would like to see such a consortium developed as a Network of Centres of Excellence, and would encourage the Department of Fisheries and Oceans to be a partner in this NCE. As a matter of priority, the following knowledge gaps should be investigated:
• the impact of elevated temperatures in the Fraser River and other B.C. watersheds;
• the quantitative estimates of spawning fish; and
• the development of predictive models of river conditions.
Recommendation 9
That the Department of Fisheries and Oceans allocate more resources and implement procedures to ensure that prosecutions are not dropped because the chain of evidence has been broken.
Recommendation 10
That the Department of Fisheries and Oceans promote stability and corporate continuity at the upper management level in the Pacific Region.
Recommendation 11
That, in agreement with the 2004 Report of the Commissioner for the Environment and Sustainable Development of Canada, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans collect and analyze information to provide up-to-date assessments on habitat conditions and Pacific salmon stocks that are below departmental targets and declining.
Recommendation 12
That the Government of Canada secure and increase the annual budget of the Pacific Fisheries Research Conservation Council to enable it to hire professional, independent staff.
The above recommendations are offered in the belief that, if implemented, the systemic problems that led to the collapse of the Fraser River sockeye salmon fishery will be addressed. However, it is clear that DFO’s track record of implementing recommendations is unacceptable and the Committee is concerned that its recommendations will, like recommendations from its previous reports, be ignored. Therefore, the Committee is asking the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans for a written response indicating his intention to implement this report’s recommendations. Because of the need to prepare for the upcoming season, the Committee is asking for that response within 60 days of the tabling of this report. If such a commitment is not forthcoming, or if it appears that in spite of a commitment no serious attempt is being made to implement the recommendations, the Committee will use all possible means to convince the Government of Canada to conduct a judicial inquiry into the Fraser River sockeye fishery, and that the focus of this inquiry be on enforcement and other issues relating to how the fishery was managed in 2004.