Transcript Fisheries

Action on the water!
Who deals with all this?
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Lead agency for the oceans ---
Fisheries and Oceans Canada
Working in the Arctic, Atlantic,
and Pacific oceans, and across
Canada, to --(1) research our living resources
(2) protect our environment
(3) manage our fisheries
(4) maintain maritime safety
(5) foster maritime trade
and ocean development.
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(1) Researching our living resources
Headlines reflect the challenges
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Research
DFO leads in fisheries science -Tracing migrations
Forecasting abundance
Innovating in
aquaculture
Precautionary approach
--- BUT ---
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Research
Major challenges remain -Un-forecasted declines of
cod and salmon
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Atlantic shellfish boom and bust?
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Environmental
changes still a
puzzle
***
Fish counting
still imprecise
***
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Research
DFO has a strong research team --10 major centres
18 research vessels
1,700 research
staff
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(2) Protecting our environment
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Environment
Canada possesses:
 world’s longest coastline
 most fresh water of
any country
 more lakes than the rest of
the world combined
DFO administers:
 the Fisheries Act
 the Oceans Act
 Marine Protected Areas
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Environment
We face an ocean of work --Land and
ocean-based
pollution
increasing
Ocean
environment
changing in
ways unknown
Arctic
ice
thinning
Oil, gas,
and mineral
explorations cause
conflicts
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(3) Managing our fisheries ...
… in restless waters.
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Fisheries
- Canada’s oldest industry
- 26,000 boats
- more than 100,000 people
- $1.4 billion landings
- 1999 seafood
exports --
Aquaculture - $434
million
$3.7 billion
Recreational fishery $8 billion
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Commercial industry helps support over 1,000 communities
Fisheries
DFO bases management
on science ...
Enforces conservation ...
Guards the 200-mile limit ...
Consults with industry ...
Allocates the catch ...
Working with First Nations…
--- BUT ---
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Fisheries
Fish stocks are vulnerable -Technology outrunning biology
Ecological changes
Strong competition for
limited resources
Conflicts complicate management
Communications, information often weak
Advisory committees sometimes stalemated
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(4) Maintaining maritime safety ...
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… against growing challenges
Safety
With all that water… Who guides the mariners?
The
Canadian
Hydrographic
Service
Seabed mapping
Paper and electronic charts
Tide and Current Tables
Sailing Directions
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Safety
The Canadian Coast Guard
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Icebreaking
Aids to navigation
Vessel traffic control
Radio communication
Distress monitoring
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Fostering Maritime Trade and Ocean
Development
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Fostering trade and development
• Providing hundreds of
Small Craft Harbours
• Helping promote fish trade
• Handling complex intergovernmental affairs:
pushing for high-seas fisheries protection
promoting fisheries co-operation
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DFO works on the front lines:
About 11,000 staff spread across 6 regions
Major research centres in the East
include:
• Gulf Fisheries Centre, Moncton
• Northwest Atlantic Fisheries
Centre, St. John’s
• Bedford Institute of
Oceanography, Halifax
• St. Andrews Biological Station
• Maurice Lamontagne Institute,
Mont-Joli
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Welcome to DFO’s Gulf Region
Moncton Headquarters
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The dark green area is administered
by the Gulf Region Office
Gulf of St. Lawrence
Bay of Fundy
Atlantic Ocean
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Although the smallest in size,
the Gulf oversees several
fisheries of economic
importance to the Atlantic
Region
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DFO Gulf Region
- Approx. 450 employees
- Main Offices :
Moncton (HQ)
Tracadie-Sheila (Eastern N.B.)
Charlottetown (P.E.I.)
Antigonish (Gulf Nova Scotia)
- 23 field offices
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Highlights
Gulf Region facts…
•Shallow water that is rich in nutrients
•Largest freshwater input of any inland sea
•Warmest waters north of Cape Cod
•Most southerly sea ice in northern hemisphere
•Constitutes one of the Canada’s most
productive marine areas
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Highlights
Gulf Region facts…
•Represents less than 1 % of Canada’s exclusive
maritime zone
•Accounts for approximately 20 % of the total catch of
Canadian fisheries
•Over 35 species exploited commercially
•Valuable lobster, snow crab, cod, herring, salmon,
mussels,
scallop and oyster fisheries
•Valuable aquaculture: 63% of Canadian shellfish
production
•Important recreational fisheries
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Highlights
Gulf Region facts…
•Direct relationship with three provinces, three
regions and 14 First Nations Communities
•A bilingual region; 40% francophone 60%
anglophone
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Highlights
The fishing industry is the main employer
for most Gulf coastal communities
# of harbours
# of fishing enterprises
# licences
# of fishers
# of aquaculture sites
# of plants
# of plant workers
Value of exports
173
3,610
28,596
12,234
1,753
145
9,000
$550 M
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Canada’s Oceans Strategy (COS)
Federal statement of oceans policy
based on the Oceans Act (1997)
 Promotes ecosystem-based
management approach
 Based on three core principles:

– Sustainable Development
– Integrated Management
– Precautionary Approach
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Implementing COS by:
Integrated Management (IM)
 Marine Protected Areas (MPAs)
 Marine Environmental Quality (MEQ)

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GULF OF ST LAWRENCE
INTEGRATED MANAGEMENT
Large
Ocean Management Area
Identifying
ecosystem highlights,
significant habitats, threats and conflicts
Public
Integrated Management and
Coastal Management Area workshops
Basin Head Area of Interest
Status
Conserve and enhance the Basin Head
ecosystem including the unique form of Irish
moss.
Expected designation as MPA: 2004
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Marine Environmental Quality

Indicators required to monitor Integrated
Management Plans (IM)
Strategy:
 Develop tools
 Improve knowledge of pollution in sGSL
 Collaborations on coastal & estuarine
health research
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Policy for the Management of
Fish Habitat
Regulatory
 Freshwater and Oceans Planning
 Habitat Enhancement
 Community Outreach & Stewardship
 Scientific Support
 Information Management
 Program Management

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Recreational Fisheries

Some rivers of the Gulf
Region are among the
most important Atlantic
salmon rivers in the
Maritime Provinces and in
the world!

The Miramichi River =
approx. 15% of all Atlantic
salmon returns in North
America.
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Aquaculture
In the Gulf Region, aquaculture
products exceed $30 million each year.
 Main species are blue mussels and
oysters.
 Bay by Bay Management Approach

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Invasive Marine Organisms

Second only to habitat destruction as a
cause of global extinction.

Likely modes of transport:
 ballast water,
 hull fouling of ships,
 trade of live fish,
 aquatic vegetation in packaging marine
products.
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Invasive Species

In the Southern Gulf of St. Lawrence there
are over 30 aquatic invaders

Five Species are expanding:
• green crab Carcinus maenas;
• clubbed tunicate Styela clava;
• oyster thief alga Codium fragile: and
• MSX parasite
• diatom Pseudo-nitzschia fraudulenta
(Domoic acid)
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Strategy: Prevention and Control

Understanding the distribution of invaders, modes of
transport, rates of spread, and their ecology

Studying environmental tolerances, life cycle,
predator-prey and competitive relationships with
native species, and environmental impacts on native
species and habitats.

Inter-agency coordination

Public Education
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Commercial vessels
Guidelines for ballast water management
– Great Lakes since 1989
– All coasts since 2000
– Applies to all vessels entering EEZ
– Mandatory reporting to TC
– Voluntary management (e.g., ballast water
exchange)
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Marine Oil & Gas Exploration

Regulated by Federal/Provincial Boards

Lease holders are required to undertake an
Environmental Assessment (EA)

Developers complain that the regulatory process is
too cumbersome
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Seafood Plant Effluents

848,000 tonnes landed = 90,000 tonnes product
– 148 plants, 201 processing methods
–  very large volume of solid/liquid wastes

Effluent Working Groups established with 3
goals:
– Improve communications
– Establish Best Management Practises guidelines
– Pilot Projects on pollution prevention

BMP guidelines now ready; pilots in preparation
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Environmental Codes of Practice

Aquaculture : Molluscan shellfish

Forestry: best management practices (BMPs) for forest road
construction and tree harvesting

Transportation: technical guidelines and fish passage
criteria for the construction of stream crossings (Culverts and
Bridges)

Wetland Management: international conservation
organizations (such as Ducks Unlimited)

Agriculture: agricultural associations improving
environmental practices on farms
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Southern Gulf Research Network
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Academia, government, industry,
communities

Share information on cooperative research
programs

Improves collaboration and understanding
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Areas of Interest
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Oceans Integrated Management
Fish Habitat/Sport Fisheries/Community
Based Management
Molluscan Aquaculture Management
Invasive Species Prevention and Control
Ballast Water Management
Marine Oil & Gas Exploration
Fish Plant Effluent
Environmental Codes of Practice
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For Additional Information Contact
Catherine Vardy
Science Liaison Officer / Agent de liaison scientifique
Fisheries and Oceans Canada / Pêches et Océans Canada
Gulf Region / Région du Golfe
P.O. Box 5030 / C.P. 5030
Moncton, N.B. E1C 9B6
Tel/tél : (506) 851-3179 Fax/téléc : (506) 851-2387
E-mail / courriel : [email protected]
Or any DFO Office in your Area
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