After reading the content of some of the posts from the past week or so, I feel there is a need to provide a summary and some of my thoughts of recent events.
In case some of you have not been following, the following events and issues have been or still are taking place in the fishing community:
- Fraser River white sturgeon conservation plan and SARA;
- WLAP’s proposed province wide bait ban;
- Fraser Valley fisheries dialogue between First Nations and recreational anglers;
- Ongoing First Nations and DFO comparative study on the efficiency between drift and set nets;
- Cheam’s loss in application for injunction;
- Abnormality in Fraser River sockeye abundance;
- Low abundance of pink salmon in the Squamish River system;
- CN’s chemical (NaOH) spill into Cheakamus River and massive fish kill;
- And of course, selectivity of Fraser River Chinook recreational fishery.
Three of the above items, received almost no attention at all.
When I first informed all about the
First Nations driftnet study in late July, I did not receive a single feedback or objection via email or in that same thread. 75 views only, with no replies. Doesn’t anyone find it troubling that DFO and First Nations are now conducting a scientific study on an illegal practice that was recently recognized as a legitimate way to fish?
The Fraser River white sturgeon conservation plan was developed by the Fraser River Sturgeon Conservation Society last month, which can change the recreational white sturgeon fishery in the Fraser River from 2006 once the decision on SARA is made, yet when
the plan is made public and feedbacks are requested before September 15th, it received almost no attention. How many sturgeon fishermen have sent their feedbacks in so far? The deadline is only a bit more than one month away.
WLAP’s province wide bait ban proposal is a poor one that can would have tremendous impacts on the recreational fishery if it is approved. When Nick, Chris and Gwyn met with the Minister of Environment and the meeting outline of the presentation was
posted. It also received little attention. Pretty unusual considering the vast number of bait anglers on this discussion forum.
The mood both on and off the internet is different in August, most are eager to get a taste of those delicious salmon that are making their way back into the rivers. There is no doubt this is one of the many joys recreational anglers get to enjoy in Canada, to catch and eat some of the best tasting fish in the world. This year’s abnormal returns and last year’s failures have resulted in DFO taking precautionary steps to ensure sustainability is reached. DFO staff work closely with representatives of the recreational fishing sector numerous times per week. I have to say DFO staffs’ professionalism (enforcement, communication, resource management levels) is fantastic. We voice our interests to them and they are responsive to our concerns most of the time. The reality is, if the fish are not there for the recreational anglers, there will be no openings. Once conservation is met, the law in this country also mandates DFO to award openings to First Nations first before opening opportunities to other sectors. By using this website, I do my best to keep the public updated with the latest escapement numbers and opening information. In return, I expect people to read and understand the reasonings behind DFO’s decisions. It’s frustrating to read comments that rant about the closures and immediately cast all blames on DFO without recognizing what exactly is happening out there. While a fishing licence allows you to fish and harvest the resource within law, it is not a guaranteed ticket to sockeye salmon.
I’m not sure if people are simply ignoring the problem, unaware of what has happened, or unable to appreciate the significant of the damage that the CN Rail chemical spill has done to the Cheakamus and Lower Squamish River. Most of the inhabitants of the Cheakamus River are all
DEAD. An ecosystem consists of all animals and plants in their physical surroundings. The normal pH level reading in the Cheakamus does not indicate the salmon that return from now on are out of the trouble. In fact, they are IN trouble. What are next year’s juvenile salmon going to feed on? When the news of the spill first came out, people shared their anger on CN and sadness, yet no one has recommended solutions to assist the recovery process. What’s even more troubling, people are still willing to head up there and target the pink salmon that are still to come.
Last year, one of my colleagues on the Sportfishing Advisory Committee told me that “
For every fish I keep, I want to bring four back.”
Fishing is important, but the fish are more important. If there are no fish, can fishing still exist? You are not obligated to give back, but it seems too few are realizing what’s at stake this year and too many are taking the limited resource for granted. Please don’t interpret the above as rants, but as concerns. Sometimes those who are involved deeply in these issues, must be questioning themselves, “Why are we bothering?” We don’t look for thanks, we don’t look for recognitions, but we would love to see more people treating the resource with care and getting involved by donating both time and money in various ongoing projects.
Thoughts on dialogue with FN, Cheam issue, selective recreational fishery to come later tonight.
Author
Topic: Some observations and thoughts on recent events (Read 5936 times)