Speaking Notes
for
The Honourable Geoff Regan, M.P., P.C.
Minister of Fisheries and Oceans
to Announce
Wild Salmon Policy
Vancouver, BC
June 24, 2005
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Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you for joining us today.
During my seven visits to British Columbia as Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, I’ve come to appreciate the special place salmon occupies in the hearts of all the people in this province. They’re a source of food and jobs for thousands of people throughout B.C. and the Yukon. For generations, they’ve provided food and cultural identity for First Nations. To this day, they remain an important symbol of Pacific Canada.
It comes as no surprise that people in this part of the country care deeply about salmon.
They’re passionate about building a brighter future for these stocks.
And they’re serious about the need to change how salmon is managed.
I also care about West Coast salmon. And I’m equally serious about changing how we manage this precious resource in the years to come.
Fish are a renewable resource — but only if we take the steps to conserve, protect, and manage them wisely for the future.
That’s why, in April, I outlined a blueprint for change for all Pacific fisheries — but especially for salmon. I told you about the four components of our plan:
to define conservation objectives;
to strengthen our programs to protect habitat, assess stocks, monitor catches and enforce the rules of the fishery;
to increase First Nations access to economic fisheries; and
to improve the fishery’s economic performance, and give all users the certainty and stability they need.
And last week, I announced that my department has re-allocated $5.2 million to make improvements in a range of areas for the Pacific fishery — specifically the salmon fishery on the Fraser River. Improvements like stepping-up compliance levels, moving forward with organizational change in my department, enhancing our catch-monitoring activities, and improving our science program.
Today, I’m pleased to announce the next step in our strategy for West Coast salmon — our new Wild Salmon Policy.
Before I outline the Policy, I’d like to thank all the groups who had a hand in shaping it.
The Policy is the culmination of years of scientific research and broad consultations. Recreational and commercial fishers, Aboriginal and community groups, and NGOs all made their voices heard as the Policy moved forward.
Each consultation brought us one step closer to the final Policy. The end result is a document I think we can use to shape the future of this resource.
The final Policy sets conservation as the highest priority in all decisions. And it puts forward — for the first time — a framework of concrete actions to restore and maintain healthy and diverse salmon populations.
It includes:
clear objectives to protect the genetic diversity of wild salmon populations;
a focus on ensuring healthy, sustainable fish habitat and ecosystems; and
decision-making that is open and transparent, and that involves the full participation of the fishing industry and First Nations.
To implement this new focus, I’m pleased to announce an investment of $1.1 million. This includes $400,000 that was part of last week’s announcement of $5.2 million to revitalize Pacific fisheries management.
This $1.1 million will support salmon science, and fisheries and habitat management. It will help us kickstart the Wild Salmon Policy. It will help us work towards fulfilling its great promise — to develop a comprehensive, flexible and co-operative approach to manage and conserve Pacific salmon, and to carefully measure our progress as we move forward.
Our new Wild Salmon Policy is not designed to be set in stone. It will grow and develop with the challenges of the future. Longer-term conservation strategies will be shaped by input from First Nations and from stakeholders.
Once again, I’d like to thank everyone who took part in making it a reality, and contributed solutions to build a brighter future for Pacific salmon.
Ladies and gentlemen, we often talk about the importance of salmon’s place in West Coast life. We point out its importance to the history, heritage and culture of so many people in this part of the country.
But Pacific salmon are far more than a nostalgic symbol of days gone by.
I firmly believe that salmon also have a part to play in our future.
We can achieve this future:
by putting conservation first — not just for individual salmon populations, but for their habitat, their ecosystems, and for the genetic diversity that makes salmon so special in the first place.
by refocusing key departmental programs that protect habitat, assess stocks and ensure that the rules of the fishery are being followed; and
by working together to fundamentally change how we manage this resource in the future.
With the new Policy I’m announcing today, with the investment I announced last week, and with the blueprint for change I announced in April, 2005 is fast-becoming a turning point for fisheries on this coast.
I look forward to working with First Nations and the fishing industry to continue reforming how these fisheries are managed over the long-term, and to give Pacific salmon stocks a fighting chance in the years ahead.
Thank you very much.
Author
Topic: Wild Salmon Policy, will need a lot more $. (Read 1644 times)