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What is it?
Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) Science has predicted a significant rebuilding of haddock stock on Georges Bank, and a banner year for the biomass in 2007. This will have implications for harvesting, processing and marketing, from commercial, ecosystem and by-catch perspectives.
A multi-sector Haddock Task Group was struck in November 2004 to advise DFO on local capacity and adaptation measures needed to respond to this stock renewal. The Task Group was comprised of representatives from industry (harvesting and processing), the governments of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, DFO and the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency.
The Minister accepted all recommendations included in the report for implementation in the 2006 groundfish fishery, which commenced on January 1.
What are the recommendations?
Following several consultative meetings, the Task Group offered 11 recommendations to DFO and the Minister.
The eight key recommendations contained in the report are to:
- maintain the exploitation harvest strategy (i.e. keep fishing mortality at or below the F reference) now in place;
- maintain the bilateral process now in place to establish Canadian and United States (U.S.) total allowable catch levels and resource distribution;
- establish a domestic science/management quota to support science and resource management initiatives (completed);
- require Vessel Monitoring Systems for all vessels operating on Georges Bank (completed);
- strengthen monitoring, control and surveillance programs for Georges Bank fisheries;
- maintain current system in place to determine fleet shares as well as provisions for quota transfers, which have been in place since 1996;
- adopt a by-catch reserve system to account for by-catch in the offshore scallop fleet (completed); and
- maintain current policy for federal public investment pending outcome of reports expected to be complete in early 2006.
Additional recommendations are to:
- support the renewal of the bilateral governance regime and, in particular, the newly established International Integration Committee;
- support offshore scallop industry studies that will help reduce by-catches of groundfish; and
- support efforts in other sectors to promote species selectivity and help reduce by-catch.
What's next?
DFO will inform Canadian stakeholders and officials from the U.S. of its decisions through existing consultation fora.
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