Two separate talking points highlight the concern over the local fishery on the north coast this week, the Daily News on Wednesday featured a couple of items of interest to those who are involved in the sport, commercial and recreational fisheries of the northwest.
The first item of note was a front page article on a meeting held in Terrace earlier this week which sought out some common ground among stakeholders after the introduction of a report from the Skeena Independent Science Review Panel, over one hundred participants took part in the discussion sessions designed to get a better understanding of what the Review panel had come up with in its findings. The Daily provided some background on the sessions and some of the feedback from participants.
The second article of the day featured details of the City of Prince Rupert's efforts to provide information to the federal government in order to come to the aid of the local fishing fleet. The city is seeking a break from the Feds when it comes to the licencing of fishing vessels, especially if those vessels will be tied up for the season. The city is hoping to intercede on behalf of local fishermen with an eye for a licence holiday much like there was back in 1998, when poor returns resulted in the boats remaining tied up.
SKEENA FISHERY PARTNERS SEEKING COMMON GROUND
All-day stakeholder meeting in Terrace ends with plans for more collaboration
By Kris Schumacher
The Daily News
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Pages one and two
There was broad support expressed yesterday by both the federal and provincial governments for nearly all of the recommendations by the Skeena Independent Science Review Panel at a full day meeting in Terrace.
The Terrace Best Western hotel had 100 or so stakeholders gathered yesterday to hear the four-member panel explain the reasoning behind its 23 recommendations for how management of the Skeena River fisheries could be improved, including additional monitoring, data collection and better communication among all groups involved. In the span of several months, three scientists and one fisheries consultant reviewed current and historical data and science to determine what measures would be needed to make the Skeena an ecologically sustainable and commercially viable watershed in years to come.
Fisheries and Oceans Canada was represented by Dave Peacock, head of North Coast stock assessment, and Sue Farlinger, Pacific regional director of fisheries and aquaculture management, both of whom thanked the panel for their diligent report and it's funder the Moore Foundation. Peacock acknowledged that there was another technical group of partners who have been active during the past three or four months toward developing new governance concepts, and said for this review they were participating in a different capacity than the way things had been done in the past.
"As a general statement, the governance advice as an overview is similar to that of our working group, and we've ended up with a product strikingly similar to your recommendation, clearly one where there is common ground to move ahead," said Peacock.
"Your report made me rethink how we looked at things, because you stressed communication and information and taking two steps backward it makes me think that's the critical aspect. Looking at the challenges moving forward on the watershed, maybe we shouldn't worry about wordsmithing, decision making aspect and get back to concentrating on communication and information."
Peacock went on to say he wasn't sure about the recommendation of formally implementing the Wild Salmon Policy into the Skeena watershed, but that perhaps it could be moved forward as a pilot [fishery] integrated with the WSP. Peacock also said there would be challenges in trying to implement some of the habitat recommendations, because they would require changes in national DFO policy, and that having every possible detail passed through a science-based committee may be unrealistic.
"Something I think we need to remind ourselves and make people aware of is, we have to be careful we don't completely reinvent the wheel," he said. "We agree with the observations that we need to maintain a conservative approach to management. We've made most of the mistakes already over the last couple of decades so there's not too much more we can do wrong, and we need to sit down and learn from that."
The only other recommendation DFO really questioned was the implementation of size selective nets, and said that any proposed gear would need to undergo a serious experimental and evaluation phase. Peacock called all the monitoring recommendations "excellent," especially giving the commercial fleet more assessment capacity.
He closed his address by reiterating the importance of the report in highlighting the need to reestablish and improve communication between DFO, the Ministry of Environment, First Nations, and other user groups.
"We had really reached a point where we had such a fractured expression of diverse interests that really it deteriorated, and I think you've been kind in your characterization of how broken the communication and interaction has been," said Peacock. "That's what we need to mend, so I really think you've brought us back to the middle. We have lots to talk about, and it's an essential first step to try and move forward."
It was suggested by Peacock and supported by others later that an 'interim technical group' be formed immediately, with representation from all stakeholder groups, because waiting for a formal watershed group would not help to address the uncertainties of this season.
"We really have a challenge on our hands this year," said Peacock. "We have reduced forecasts of steelhead, Chinook, and sockeye. We think we're going to have relatively poor pink return, and chum is probably going to be terrible. Some people will be dissatisfied with the fishing plan, which isn't prescriptive. We haven't got decision rules to deal with every combination of different results. It's going to be a test for us, and we need to start off on the right foot by greatly improving the interaction and communication, and try to put water on the smoldering patches before they become bush fires."
Be sure to read The Daily News tomorrow to read the reactions from the Ministry of Environment, Skeena Fisheries Commission, and the many stakeholder groups who attended.
Spare fish fleet from licence cost says city
By Leanne Ritchie
The Daily News
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Page three
The city is hoping the federal government will not sink the North Coast fishing fleet by requiring fishermen to pay licence fees during a year when they may be kept tied up.
Coun. Joy Thorkelson suggested council write Fisheries and Oceans Canada and ask for a licence holiday, similar to what was granted in 1998, as there will be little opportunity for commercial fishing this season.
"We know it is kind of last-minute. The season is starting up on June 24th but we are hoping this added push from all the communities on the North Coast will make a difference, particularly in light of the fact fishermen will lose their boats (if they can't fish,)" she said.
On the Fraser River, there are few salmon returns forecast this year, while on the North Coast, they anticipate 350,000 sockeye, very few chum, coho or pinks, said Thorkelson.
On Monday night, council agreed to send a letter to Fisheries and Oceans Canada asking DFO to consider a licence holiday, similar to what was done during the disastrous fishing season a decade ago.
At that time, with few fish, the federal government recognized fishermen would not be making any money and did not require licence holders to pay their annual licence fees. In addition, they made one-time payments to boat owners to help fishermen survive until the next season.
"If you don't fish, in particular in a community like ours on the North Coast, you don't have money to pay your moorage or your gear storage," said Thorkelson.
She explained that fishermen and other stakeholders are currently working on plans that would reform the fishing industry; help ensure locally caught fish are processed locally and eliminate the dependence on salmon.
However, there will be no improvements to the fleet if there are no boats left to fish with, said Thorkelson.
"We have to keep our infrastructure and our infrastructure are our boats. If our boats sink, we can't food fish, we can't commercial fish, and we can't get transportation in from the villages. We have to keep those boats in decent shape. "
The Marine Conservation Caucus and Integrated Harvest Management Committee have already endorsed the concept of the licence holiday. The latter group is based out of Vancouver and is made up of environmentalists, First Nations, fishermen and sports fishermen from the whole coast.
"I think the power here is that we endorse the concept of a plan to keep the fishing fleet intact over the course of a non fishing season," said Prince Rupert Mayor Herb Pond.
The first item of note was a front page article on a meeting held in Terrace earlier this week which sought out some common ground among stakeholders after the introduction of a report from the Skeena Independent Science Review Panel, over one hundred participants took part in the discussion sessions designed to get a better understanding of what the Review panel had come up with in its findings. The Daily provided some background on the sessions and some of the feedback from participants.
The second article of the day featured details of the City of Prince Rupert's efforts to provide information to the federal government in order to come to the aid of the local fishing fleet. The city is seeking a break from the Feds when it comes to the licencing of fishing vessels, especially if those vessels will be tied up for the season. The city is hoping to intercede on behalf of local fishermen with an eye for a licence holiday much like there was back in 1998, when poor returns resulted in the boats remaining tied up.
SKEENA FISHERY PARTNERS SEEKING COMMON GROUND
All-day stakeholder meeting in Terrace ends with plans for more collaboration
By Kris Schumacher
The Daily News
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Pages one and two
There was broad support expressed yesterday by both the federal and provincial governments for nearly all of the recommendations by the Skeena Independent Science Review Panel at a full day meeting in Terrace.
The Terrace Best Western hotel had 100 or so stakeholders gathered yesterday to hear the four-member panel explain the reasoning behind its 23 recommendations for how management of the Skeena River fisheries could be improved, including additional monitoring, data collection and better communication among all groups involved. In the span of several months, three scientists and one fisheries consultant reviewed current and historical data and science to determine what measures would be needed to make the Skeena an ecologically sustainable and commercially viable watershed in years to come.
Fisheries and Oceans Canada was represented by Dave Peacock, head of North Coast stock assessment, and Sue Farlinger, Pacific regional director of fisheries and aquaculture management, both of whom thanked the panel for their diligent report and it's funder the Moore Foundation. Peacock acknowledged that there was another technical group of partners who have been active during the past three or four months toward developing new governance concepts, and said for this review they were participating in a different capacity than the way things had been done in the past.
"As a general statement, the governance advice as an overview is similar to that of our working group, and we've ended up with a product strikingly similar to your recommendation, clearly one where there is common ground to move ahead," said Peacock.
"Your report made me rethink how we looked at things, because you stressed communication and information and taking two steps backward it makes me think that's the critical aspect. Looking at the challenges moving forward on the watershed, maybe we shouldn't worry about wordsmithing, decision making aspect and get back to concentrating on communication and information."
Peacock went on to say he wasn't sure about the recommendation of formally implementing the Wild Salmon Policy into the Skeena watershed, but that perhaps it could be moved forward as a pilot [fishery] integrated with the WSP. Peacock also said there would be challenges in trying to implement some of the habitat recommendations, because they would require changes in national DFO policy, and that having every possible detail passed through a science-based committee may be unrealistic.
"Something I think we need to remind ourselves and make people aware of is, we have to be careful we don't completely reinvent the wheel," he said. "We agree with the observations that we need to maintain a conservative approach to management. We've made most of the mistakes already over the last couple of decades so there's not too much more we can do wrong, and we need to sit down and learn from that."
The only other recommendation DFO really questioned was the implementation of size selective nets, and said that any proposed gear would need to undergo a serious experimental and evaluation phase. Peacock called all the monitoring recommendations "excellent," especially giving the commercial fleet more assessment capacity.
He closed his address by reiterating the importance of the report in highlighting the need to reestablish and improve communication between DFO, the Ministry of Environment, First Nations, and other user groups.
"We had really reached a point where we had such a fractured expression of diverse interests that really it deteriorated, and I think you've been kind in your characterization of how broken the communication and interaction has been," said Peacock. "That's what we need to mend, so I really think you've brought us back to the middle. We have lots to talk about, and it's an essential first step to try and move forward."
It was suggested by Peacock and supported by others later that an 'interim technical group' be formed immediately, with representation from all stakeholder groups, because waiting for a formal watershed group would not help to address the uncertainties of this season.
"We really have a challenge on our hands this year," said Peacock. "We have reduced forecasts of steelhead, Chinook, and sockeye. We think we're going to have relatively poor pink return, and chum is probably going to be terrible. Some people will be dissatisfied with the fishing plan, which isn't prescriptive. We haven't got decision rules to deal with every combination of different results. It's going to be a test for us, and we need to start off on the right foot by greatly improving the interaction and communication, and try to put water on the smoldering patches before they become bush fires."
Be sure to read The Daily News tomorrow to read the reactions from the Ministry of Environment, Skeena Fisheries Commission, and the many stakeholder groups who attended.
Spare fish fleet from licence cost says city
By Leanne Ritchie
The Daily News
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Page three
The city is hoping the federal government will not sink the North Coast fishing fleet by requiring fishermen to pay licence fees during a year when they may be kept tied up.
Coun. Joy Thorkelson suggested council write Fisheries and Oceans Canada and ask for a licence holiday, similar to what was granted in 1998, as there will be little opportunity for commercial fishing this season.
"We know it is kind of last-minute. The season is starting up on June 24th but we are hoping this added push from all the communities on the North Coast will make a difference, particularly in light of the fact fishermen will lose their boats (if they can't fish,)" she said.
On the Fraser River, there are few salmon returns forecast this year, while on the North Coast, they anticipate 350,000 sockeye, very few chum, coho or pinks, said Thorkelson.
On Monday night, council agreed to send a letter to Fisheries and Oceans Canada asking DFO to consider a licence holiday, similar to what was done during the disastrous fishing season a decade ago.
At that time, with few fish, the federal government recognized fishermen would not be making any money and did not require licence holders to pay their annual licence fees. In addition, they made one-time payments to boat owners to help fishermen survive until the next season.
"If you don't fish, in particular in a community like ours on the North Coast, you don't have money to pay your moorage or your gear storage," said Thorkelson.
She explained that fishermen and other stakeholders are currently working on plans that would reform the fishing industry; help ensure locally caught fish are processed locally and eliminate the dependence on salmon.
However, there will be no improvements to the fleet if there are no boats left to fish with, said Thorkelson.
"We have to keep our infrastructure and our infrastructure are our boats. If our boats sink, we can't food fish, we can't commercial fish, and we can't get transportation in from the villages. We have to keep those boats in decent shape. "
The Marine Conservation Caucus and Integrated Harvest Management Committee have already endorsed the concept of the licence holiday. The latter group is based out of Vancouver and is made up of environmentalists, First Nations, fishermen and sports fishermen from the whole coast.
"I think the power here is that we endorse the concept of a plan to keep the fishing fleet intact over the course of a non fishing season," said Prince Rupert Mayor Herb Pond.
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