Lobster fishermen in our area aren’t very happy with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.
The issue is an at-sea observer program to monitor bycatch.
In a news release, the Southwest Lobster Science Society (SLSS) says five separate fishermen’s associations joined forces in 2017 to form the Society to work towards a partnership-based approach to fisheries management and conservation; a move which was touted to be a historic partnership between industry, environmental non-governmental organizations and regulators.
Fisherman Bernie Berry, president of the SLSS, says DFO can’t or won’t make a final decision especially on the ‘hail out’ policy.
The Feds want boats to give six hours notice before leaving the wharf and two hours before they return to allow for inspections.
That’s not always possible given the nature of the maritime weather conditions.
He says DFO says they have a ‘modified system.’
“But they won’t tell us what ‘modified’ means. We’re saying just tell us what the plan is. We understood that both plans, the fishermen’s plan and DFO’s plan, were supposed to be in place by mid-February, early March at the latest. Our plan has been in place since November. DFO won’t make a decision on what they’re plan is moving forward. It’s causing confusion throughout the whole industry, even with fishermen who have chosen to go with the DFO plan. Here we are and we don’t have any definitive answers. It seems DFO can’t fall on a simple black and white answer. It’s always a grey area with them”
Colin Sproul, a director of the SLSS says they offered fishermen an alternative at-sea observer plan which would not only collect supplementary scientific data but would do so without enforcing a ‘hail out’ procedure which requires fishermen to phone an automated system at least six hours prior to leaving the wharf.
The computer tells the fishermen whether or not they have to call a monitoring company.
Sometimes the fishermen have to wait for several hours for an observer to arrive, depending on where they have to come from.
“For the first time in history, lobster fishermen have taken the initiative for the management of their industry and they don’t like it. DFO sees that as an intrusion on their territory. They (DFO) needs to make a decision on the at-sea observer program. We’ve been obstructed by DFO at every level and at every turn needlessly on this project. Fishermen will have a future in co-managing our fishery here. This our past and it’s our future and our way of life and we’re not going to go away. We’re going to keep advocating for what’s in the best interests of fishermen here.”
(FILE PHOTO)
