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Recreational groundfish fishery to open in 3Ps
St. John’s … Fisheries and Oceans Canada announced today that a recreational groundfish fishery will open in August along the south coast of Newfoundland and Labrador, between Cape St. Mary’s and Burgeo.
The fishery will occur in NAFO subdivision 3Ps. Recreational groundfish fishing for cod will not be permitted in waters off the east coast of Newfoundland and Labrador (2GH, 2J3KL) or the Gulf of St. Lawrence (4RS3Pn, 4T).
The season for 3Ps will extend from August 1 – September 15, 2005. Recreational fishers will be issued 15 cod tags per licence and, as in previous years, all cod harvested must be tagged. Other groundfish harvested do not need to be tagged however the daily bag limit is 15 groundfish per person. The retention of Atlantic Halibut, and Spotted and Northern Wolffish is prohibited.
The recreational groundfish fishery in 3Ps will be open to all residents of Newfoundland and Labrador. Non-residents are also eligible to participate in the fishery.
Recreational groundfish licences are limited to one per person and they will be available beginning July 25th, 2005, at Canada Post outlets throughout 3Ps, as well as at other select locations around the province. The cost of the licence is $10 plus applicable taxes.
Consultations will be undertaken in other provinces over the next year to develop a uniform approach to a recreational fishing policy in Atlantic Canada.
The return of fishing logs included with the licence remains mandatory. It is important that logs be returned in order to provide timely and accurate catch and effort data on the fishery. DFO resource managers and scientists use this data to evaluate the fish stock and develop effective management and conservation strategies for this fishery.
Fishery officers will continue to enforce the regulations, both at sea and dockside. They will investigate complaints and lay charges where appropriate. DFO reminds the public that the fishery may close on short notice if conservation concerns arise such as excessive amounts of cod being landed or high levels of non-compliance to the regulations.
Recreational fishers are encouraged to exercise caution on the water and follow safe boating practices.
For more information:
Susan Keough
Communications Officer
Fisheries and Oceans Canada
St. John’s, NL
(709) 772-7628
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