Regaining Lost Protections: Status of the Revisions to the Canadian Fisheries Act

Fisheries ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
C.T. Hasler ◽  
J.G. Imhof ◽  
N.W. Lapointe ◽  
S. Metikosh
Keyword(s):  
Fisheries Act

scholarly journals Fishery Audit 2019

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oceana ◽  
Devan Archibald ◽  
Robert Rangeley
Keyword(s):  
Federal Government ◽  
Habitat Destruction ◽  
Fish Populations ◽  
Fish Stock ◽  
Strong Base ◽  
Research Survey ◽  
The Government ◽  
Auditor General ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Fisheries Act

Healthy fish populations are critical to healthy ecosystems: they feed communities, support economies and are essential to our survival. But our oceans are facing growing threats and greater uncertainty. Overfishing, climate change, habitat destruction and pollution are degrading the underwater world and putting the marine life we all depend upon at risk. Much is at stake, as the status quo is demonstrably not working. The number of stocks in the healthy zone has decreased since Oceana Canada released its 2018 Fishery Audit, and the number in the critical zone has increased — including crab and shrimp stocks. This isparticularly worrying if the depletion of crustaceans becomes a trend, as the value of Canada’s seafood industry depends heavily on them. Progress on implementing rebuilding plans remains slow and many critically depleted stocks, including northern cod, are still without a plan. As well, Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) has not yet indicated how and by when it will collect adequate catch monitoring information, needed to measure and manage bycatch (the incidental catch of non-target fish) in all Canadian commercial fisheries. Meanwhile, only two of the 11 recommendations from the 2018 Fishery Audit have been implemented. DFO has made some progress since the last Fishery Audit was released. In 2019, DFO published more information to help assess fish stock health, and some elements of fishery monitoring became more transparent. DFO also implemented some of the recommendations from the 2016 Auditor General report on sustainable fisheries, including developing timelines and priorities for rebuilding plans for depleted fish populations. Most importantly, a modernized Fisheries Act became law in June 2019. For the first time in the Act’s history, rebuilding plans are now required for depleted fish populations. The government has committed more than $100 million over five years to assess and rebuild fish stocks. This brings Canada into the group of nations with modern fisheries laws and could signal a historic turning point in the health of Canadian fisheries. The impact of the new Act will depend on the strength and pace of regulations, currently under development. The regulations will outline what rebuilding plans must include, and Oceana Canada is advocating that, at a minimum, they should specify a timeline and target, aimed at rebuilding stocks to healthy levels. In the year ahead, the federal government must develop strong and effective regulations to support the rebuilding provisions in the Fisheries Act and accelerate the implementation and enforcement of existing policies. Fortunately, there is a strong base of support for new regulations to rebuild stocks, new funding commitments and much-needed increases in DFO’s science capacity to get the job done. We have the tools needed to modernize Canada’s approach to fisheries management and rebuild fish populations, and Canadians want to see this happen. In a recent Abacus Data market research survey, 98 per cent of Canadians said it was important that the federal government work to rebuild abundant fish populations. If the government fails to take these actions, we can expect the number of healthy stocks to continue to decline and depleted populations will fail to recover, impoverishing the oceans and the coastal communities who depend on them.

Non-Lethal Sampling Methods for Assessing Environmental Impacts Using a Small-Bodied Sentinel Fish Species

2002 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 195-211 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle A. Gray ◽  
Allen R. Curry ◽  
Kelly R. Munkittrick
Keyword(s):  
Fish Species ◽  
Environmental Effects ◽  
Monitoring Program ◽  
Survey Study ◽  
Paper Mills ◽  
The Past ◽  
Slimy Sculpin ◽  
Receiving Waters ◽  
Study Designs ◽  
Fisheries Act

Abstract Under the Canadian Fisheries Act, pulp and paper mills and metal mines must conduct a cyclical monitoring program for potential environmental effects that includes a fish survey. Study designs for the fish survey have been evolving over the past few years, and there has been increased emphasis on the use of small-bodied fish species. Increasing concerns about the potential impacts of sampling programs on the fish populations in smaller receiving waters have led us to develop non-lethal sampling methodologies that will satisfy the information requirements for the environmental effects monitoring program. This manuscript outlines the use of a non-lethal sampling program to collect information on age distributions, growth rates, reproductive performance and fish condition in populations of slimy sculpin inhabiting forested and agricultural sections of a small New Brunswick river.

Historian and Courts:R. v. Marshall and Mi'kmaqTreaties on Trial

2003 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 123-131 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas C. Harris
Keyword(s):  
Eighteenth Century ◽  
Supreme Court Of Canada ◽  
Treaty Rights ◽  
Fishing Rights ◽  
Canadian Law ◽  
The Supreme Court ◽  
Hunting And Fishing ◽  
Court Of Appeal ◽  
Fisheries Act ◽  
Commercial Hunting

In September, 1999, the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) released its decision inR v. Marshall. Donald Marshall Jr., no stranger to Canadian law, had been convicted of catching eels out of season, without a licence, and selling them, contrary to the federalFisheries Act. He admitted the offences, but appealed his conviction to the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal and then to the SCC on the grounds that the 1760–61 treaties between the Mi'kmaq and the British recognized his right, as a Mi'kmaq, to catch and sell fish, and that this right was protected under the guarantee of Aboriginal and treaty rights in the Canadian constitution. Justice Binnie, writing for the majority of the SCC, overturned the convictions. The Mi'kmaq, he held, did have treaty rights based on the 1760–61 treaties to catch and sell fish, including eels.The Mi'kmaq were delighted. After many years and many appearances before Canadian judges (R. v. Syliboy, R. v. Issac, andR. v. Simon), it appeared that the courts were finally prepared to recognize what the Mi'kmaq had long believed: that the eighteenth century treaties were the foundation of their relationship with Canada, that the treaties were still in force, and that they guaranteed commercial hunting and fishing rights in their traditional territories.

scholarly journals Authorized net losses of fish habitat demonstrate need for improved habitat protection in Canada

2017 ◽  
Vol 74 (3) ◽  
pp. 285-291 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brett Favaro ◽  
Martin Olszynski
Keyword(s):  
Fish Habitat ◽  
Monitoring Data ◽  
Access To Information ◽  
Habitat Protection ◽  
Information Processes ◽  
The Stability ◽  
Fisheries Act

Fish habitat is essential to the stability and productivity of fisheries. In Canada, the primary legal tool for protecting fish habitat is the federal Fisheries Act. In 2012, this law was changed to narrow the scope of habitat protection. The government’s position was that the previous regime went beyond what was necessary to protect fish and fish habitat. Here, we tested that assertion by examining Fisheries Act authorizations to harmfully alter, disrupt, or destroy fish habitat issued by Fisheries and Oceans Canada during a 6-month period in 2012, obtained using access to information processes. We found the majority of projects (67%) were authorized to impact more habitat than proponents were required to compensate for, likely resulting in a net loss of fish habitat. Our analysis show an aggregate net loss — defined as authorized impact minus required compensation — of 2 919 143 m2 authorized across 78 projects. Drawing from these results, we present four recommendations for an improved habitat protection regime under a renewed Fisheries Act, emphasizing the need to establish a public registry for authorizations and monitoring data.

scholarly journals Sustaining Canadian marine biodiversity: Policy and statutory progress

FACETS ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 264-288 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey A. Hutchings ◽  
Julia K. Baum ◽  
Susanna D. Fuller ◽  
Josh Laughren ◽  
David L. VanderZwaag
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Climate Change Impacts ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Marine Biodiversity ◽  
Discretionary Power ◽  
Sustainable Fisheries ◽  
Fisheries Policy ◽  
Biodiversity Policy ◽  
Fisheries Act

A 2012 Expert Panel Report on marine biodiversity by the Royal Society of Canada (RSC) concluded that Canada faced significant challenges in achieving sustainable fisheries, regulating aquaculture, and accounting for climate change. Relative to many countries, progress by Canada in fulfilling international obligations to sustain biodiversity was deemed poor. To track progress by Canada since 2012, the RSC struck a committee to track policy and statutory developments on matters pertaining to marine biodiversity and to identify policy challenges, and leading options for implementation that lie ahead. The report by the Policy Briefing Committee is presented here. It concluded that Canada has made moderate to good progress in some areas, such as prioritization of oceans stewardship and strengthening of the evidentiary use of science in decision-making. Key statutes were strengthened through amendments, including requirements to rebuild depleted fisheries ( Fisheries Act) and new means of creating marine protected areas ( Oceans Act) that allowed Canada to exceed its international obligation to protect 10% of coastal and marine areas by 2020. Public release of mandate letters has strengthened ministerial accountability. However, little or no progress has been made in reducing regulatory conflict with Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO), decreasing ministerial discretion under the Fisheries Act, clarifying the role of science in sustainable fisheries policy, and accounting for climate change. Five future policy challenges are identified: (1) Ensure climate change impacts and projections are incorporated into ocean-related decision making and planning processes; (2) Resolve DFO’s regulatory conflict to conserve and exploit biodiversity; (3) Limit ministerial discretionary power in fisheries management decisions; (4) Clarify ambiguities in how the Precautionary Approach is applied in sustainable fisheries policy; and (5) Advance and implement marine spatial planning. Since 2012, there has been progress in recovering and sustaining the health of Canada’s oceans. Failure to further strengthen biodiversity conservation threatens the capacity of Canada’s oceans to provide ecosystem services that contribute to the resilience of marine life and the well-being of humankind. Unprecedented and enduring changes in the ocean caused by climate change have made the achievement of meaningful progress all the more urgent.

scholarly journals PENERAPAN SANKSI PENGEBOMAN IKAN MENURUT UNDANG-UNDANG NO. 45 TAHUN 2009 TENTANG PERIKANAN DI PERAIRAN HALMAHERA UTARA

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 94
Author(s):  
Dyah Retno Puspitasari
Keyword(s):  
Economic Factors ◽  
Fish Resources ◽  
Inhibiting Factors ◽  
Legal Sanctions ◽  
The Law ◽  
Fisheries Act

Catching fish with fish bombs is against the law, in accordance with the regulations on legal sanctions for fish bombings stated in Law No. 45 of 2009 concerning Amendments to Law No. 31 of 2004 concerning Fisheries, in Article 85 fish catchers who damage the sustainability of fish resources in the NKRI fishery region can be sentenced to a maximum of five years in prison and a maximum fine of two billion rupiah. The research objective was to determine the inhibiting factors of the application of fish bombing sanctions according to the Fisheries Act in North Halmahera waters. The method used in this study is normative juridical research, with a statutory approach. The inhibiting factors are the lack of legal awareness of the fishermen community, due to economic factors - to improve the welfare of fishermen, as well as the lack of patrol boats for supervision in the Halut waters by the Halut Water Police Unit, so there is a need for coordination among institutions other than Sat Polair Halut, namely the Marine Service and Fisheries, also the community itself.

scholarly journals Quantifying Restoration Offsets at a Nuclear Power Plant in Canada

2019 ◽  
Vol 64 (5) ◽  
pp. 593-607 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lawrence W. Barnthouse ◽  
Cherie-Lee Fietsch ◽  
David Snider
Keyword(s):  
Power Plant ◽  
Nuclear Power Plant ◽  
Nuclear Power ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Habitat Restoration ◽  
Cooling Water ◽  
Lake Huron ◽  
Life Stages ◽  
Eastern Shore ◽  
Fisheries Act

Abstract In Canada, the Fisheries Act requires all water takers to avoid, mitigate and offset fish losses. To satisfy the act’s requirements, operators of power plants are required to undertake habitat restoration projects to compensate for fish impinged and entrained at cooling water intake structures. Scaling the quantity of restoration needed, and measuring whether adequate compensation has been achieved, requires a metric that expresses the losses and gains in comparable units. Development of such a metric is especially difficult in the case of power plants, because the losses often consist of a mix of species and life stages that are very different from those produced by technically feasible restoration projects. This paper documents the method that has been developed for quantifying offsets for impingement and entrainment at the Bruce Generating Stations on the eastern shore of Lake Huron, and demonstrates how the method is being used to estimate the offset to be provided by removal of a dam on the nearby Saugeen River.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document