44th Parl. 1st Sess.
May 30, 2022 11:00AM
- May/30/22 3:09:08 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, all fisheries are important. All conservation measures are intended to make sure that we maintain a healthy stock. That is the responsibility of DFO.
With respect to the capelin decision, we are reviewing the science. We will be coming out very soon with a determination for the harvesters in the coming weeks.
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- May/30/22 9:23:12 p.m.
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Madam Chair, I would like to thank the member for the story of his family early on and their connection with fisheries and for his concern about wild Pacific salmon. They have been such a high priority for British Columbians and for this government, and this is even more critical today given the complex challenges facing the species, including, as he mentioned, climate change, changes in land and water use, and B.C.'s year of floods, fires and slides.
The PSSI will include habitat, hatcheries and harvest approaches to conserve and restore Pacific salmon. The department is continuing to work to ensure that new and ongoing investments, activities and Pacific salmon programming are properly aligned with other partners to achieve maximum and key results. In particular, programs and actions will be implemented to respond to the historic declines of the Pacific salmon by putting in place conservation approaches and plans to prioritize Pacific salmon populations and support their recovery.
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- May/30/22 9:39:25 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, what we will do is prioritize the conservation of the wild Pacific salmon while making opportunities available to the sport fishery in such a way that it does not undermine the conservation of wild salmon.
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- May/30/22 9:51:36 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, that brought me back to a time when I was in opposition, in the opposition lobby, visiting with some representatives from an oceans conservation organization who told me about ghost gear. It was the first time I had heard about it and the idea that this fishing gear is trapping and killing fish and even whales endlessly, because it was abandoned in the ocean.
I am so pleased to say that our government is taking action on that. The member did a great job of laying out how important that is. We have a ghost gear program. The results of this program have been very impressive so far. Approved projects are funded based on activities under four pillars: abandoned, lost or otherwise discarded fishing gear; responsible disposal, like the one he saw and I have seen at Steveston Harbour; acquiring and piloting innovative technologies to do these things; and international leadership.
This will be available for a wide range of individuals, companies, businesses, not-for-profits, indigenous organizations, research institutions and other levels of government. I really encourage interested parties to apply. The applications are due by June 6 this year at 11:59 p.m. Pacific time.
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- May/30/22 10:21:45 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I would like to thank the member for his evident passion and commitment to nature conservation as well as the other aspects of indigenous reconciliation and the economic benefits of such.
I love the term “nature-based solutions”, but I also think about it as ocean-sourced climate solutions. These are actions that protect, sustainably manage and restore ecosystems while providing human well-being and biodiversity benefits, and this is just what an MPA is all about.
Marine protected areas protect ecologically important species, habitats and ecosystems. They improve the health of the ocean. They strengthen its resilience against climate change impacts, such as ocean acidification, coastal erosion, coastal flooding and sea-level rise. As well, they help to grow our seafood diversity and abundance. MPAs also improve coastal defences, such as shoreline buffers and barriers to storms. They help waves disperse and protect reefs. They provide carbon and greenhouse gas absorption through protected habitats such as marshes and seagrass meadows.
The role of MPAs and a climate-resilient ocean are critical reasons why we need to conserve 30% of our oceans by 2030 and ensure their effective management through monitoring, compliance, enforcement, partnerships and stewardship efforts.
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- May/30/22 10:25:23 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I thank the member for the glowing reviews of the Cape Breton—Canso area. I think my parliamentary secretary appreciated that very much.
Marine protected areas are an important tool in supporting the local economic prosperity of coastal communities. The question is about how we decide how to protect areas within an MPA. It is by using the best available knowledge. Areas of ecological and biological significance are identified, and protection approaches are advanced, through an extensive process of consultation, engagement and scientific and socio-economic assessments to ensure that the protections will be effective. This will include members of local communities, of course.
Following this process and depending on the MPA's unique conservation objectives, activities may either be allowed, limited or prohibited. Once an MPA is established, the activities that are allowed to occur are managed in an adaptive manner that is flexible in response to ocean changes. An adaptive management approach is conducted with local partners in order to effectively protect over the long term.
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- May/30/22 10:37:54 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, my goal is to grow the fish and seafood sector. To do that, we need to have abundance in the stocks. Therefore, the conservation steps that we take are for—
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- May/30/22 10:41:34 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, stocks can recover if we are managing them carefully and with conservation in mind. At the same time, we will be exploring the intersection between seals and the fish that they eat.
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- May/30/22 10:57:23 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I thought the member's comments were very insightful, especially when he was talking about this being an enormous and complicated undertaking. When we think about the country of Canada, with two and a half times the length of coastline of any other country in the world and oceans on three different coasts, it is enormous and complicated. That is one of the reasons that ministry officials work with the local harvest community and other stakeholders as they seek to translate data into conservation or fishery action.
Our government did indeed create new tools to continue to promote healthier marine ecosystems and more abundant fish stocks across the country. We now have legislative and regulatory mechanisms in place that will protect existing fish and fish habitat, prioritize rebuilding depleted fish stocks and incorporate indigenous knowledge into decision-making. Among these tools are the fish stock provisions in the Fisheries Act that create modern safeguards on fish stocks. These provisions create binding obligations to maintain prescribed fish stocks at sustainable levels and to develop and implement rebuilding plans for depleted stocks.
This has significantly strengthened our fisheries management framework. It is a major step toward better restoring and rebuilding our fish stocks, which are essential to supporting sustainable fisheries in the long run. It is a virtual circle: Ensuring that we have healthy fish stocks supports more resilient marine ecosystems, and thus they provide greater economic returns for Canada's harvesters.
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- May/31/22 12:00:37 a.m.
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Mr. Chair, yes, I understand the difficulties when the crab licences were allocated due to a court decision to the local first nations. It would be great to just add some licences, but because of conservation concerns that is not possible. We are now working with harvesters and have a budget to negotiate a settlement for that capacity.
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- May/31/22 12:04:21 a.m.
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Mr. Chair, I am interested in more details on the specific facility that the member is referring to, but I want to say that conservation is our bottom line. It is our top priority.
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