NR-HQ-01-82E

Dhaliwal responds to the Laforest Panel Report, and increases the 4RST Turbot Quota for the fixed gear fleet

September 6, 2001

OTTAWA -- Herb Dhaliwal, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, today responded to the recommendations of an independent Panel of Experts established to provide advice on a long-standing dispute, the sharing of quota in the 4RST Greenland halibut (turbot) fishery between Quebec and Newfoundland fixed gear fishermen. At the same time, the Minister transferred additional turbot to the fixed gear fleets to mitigate any impacts on fishermen and the processing sector dependent upon their catches.

"I carefully reviewed both the majority and the minority reports of the Panel before making this difficult decision," Mr. Dhaliwal said. "Accordingly, the Quebec fleet will have access to 82% of the existing quota allocated to the fixed gear fleet, while the Newfoundland fleet will have access to 18% of this quota. This sharing arrangement will be phased in gradually over a 3-year period beginning with 88%-12% this year, 85%-15% next year and 82%-18% for 2003." The initial quota for the fixed gear fishery, announced in May, was 3,429 tonnes.

"In order to protect the interests of the fishermen and to minimize any possible impacts stemming from this decision, I am also transferring half of the quota from the inshore mobile gear fleet to the fixed gear fleet," Mr. Dhaliwal added. "This amounts to 321t for this year’s fishery, thereby increasing fishing opportunities for both fleets. In accordance with the minority recommendation of the Panel, the sharing arrangement for this additional quota will be split 92% for the Quebec fleet and 8% for the Newfoundland fleet. This arrangement will also be phased in over a 3-year period, beginning with the current 50%-50% split this year, a 71%-29% split next year and a 92%-8% split in 2003."

Much of the historic turbot catch from the inshore mobile gear fleet was the result of bycatch from the shrimp fishery. Given that this bycatch has been significantly reduced with the use of more selective gear in the shrimp fishery, the transfer of quota from the mobile gear is not expected to adversely affect the mobile fleet.

Based on the current Total Allowable Catch of 4,500t for this stock and the sharing arrangements described above, the Quebec fixed gear fleet will receive 3107t of the allocation in this fishery and the Newfoundland fleet will receive 643t of the total allocation following the 3-year phase-in period.

The decision on a sharing arrangement follows several years of effort between the department and the two fleets to arrive at an acceptable long-term agreement. In September 1999, the two fleets and the department agreed to have the issue reviewed by an independent Panel of Experts, representing the first time that the department has used such a process to recommend a sharing arrangement between fleets.

The Panel, established in the Spring of 2000, was chaired by former Chief Justice Gérard Laforest and included Clément Groleau, a lawyer appointed by the Quebec fleet and Ed Hearn, a lawyer appointed by the Newfoundland fleet. Its mandate was to review the respective positions of both parties and their history in the turbot fishery and to recommend a long-term resolution for the sharing of the quota for 4RST turbot.

The majority report, submitted by Justice Laforest and Mr. Hearn, concluded that the original 1995 agreement between the two fleets, establishing an 82%-18% sharing arrangement, was intended to be long-term and should be given considerable weight. While both parties were not completely satisfied with this agreement, both felt that it was the best possible compromise and both gained something from it. The majority report also found that, since 1995, the two fleets have, in most years, fished according to an 82%-18% split of the quota, whether as a result of the initial agreement or as a result of the transfer of unused quota from the mobile fleet.

A minority report, submitted by Mr. Groleau, argues that the original 1995 agreement was not intended to be long-term and that a split of 92% for the Quebec fleet and 8% for the Newfoundland fleet was more reflective of the participation by these two fleets. The minority report argues that the majority conclusion gives too much weight to the original 1995 agreement.

In 1995, at the request of the Quebec fleet, DFO agreed to split the 4RST quota so that the Quebec fleet could implement an Individual Quota system for this fishery, thus providing them with a fixed share of the overall quota. Prior to 1995, the 4RST fixed gear turbot fishery was a competitive fishery where fishers were permitted to catch as much as they could from the overall quota -- there were no fixed shares for either fleet. With the downturn in groundfish stocks in the early 1990s, the Newfoundland fleet began fishing a larger portion of this fishery. During the 1980s, Newfoundland fishermen harvested less that 10% of the fixed gear quota annually. Since 1991, the Newfoundland fleet has harvested between 11% and 26 % of the fixed gear quota.

"I want to thank the members of the Panel for their work in reviewing this difficult issue and for their recommendations," Mr. Dhaliwal said.