Evidence of meeting #55 for Fisheries and Oceans in the 39th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was chairman.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Liberal
Chair, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
No, we only received it last week.
Liberal
Scott Simms Liberal Bonavista—Gander—Grand Falls—Windsor, NL
You know the bill was tabled in early December.
Chair, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
Yes.
Liberal
Chair, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
Yes.
Liberal
Scott Simms Liberal Bonavista—Gander—Grand Falls—Windsor, NL
We are to say yes or no in principle. So far, what are your thoughts on Bill C-45?
Chair, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
There are good and bad points, but I do not want to dwell on that. We want to propose constructive solutions, and that is why we are going to respond to the minister's document as quickly as possible.
Liberal
Scott Simms Liberal Bonavista—Gander—Grand Falls—Windsor, NL
For the allocation you have in area 12, are you proposing that it be exclusive to traditional crabbers?
Chair, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
It would be exclusive to the traditional crabbers until 2010.
Chair, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
It's because of the decline of the snow crab.
Liberal
Scott Simms Liberal Bonavista—Gander—Grand Falls—Windsor, NL
What was the response from DFO, when you first asked?
Chair, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
DFO replied that the plan for the fishery had not determined that. In other words that 15 or 16% of the quota went to inshore fishers. Did it not, sir? They are two crabbers.
Liberal
Scott Simms Liberal Bonavista—Gander—Grand Falls—Windsor, NL
How severe is the decline in snow crab for traditional fishers?
Chair, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
We would like to know if the quantity of crab is really decreasing or if the stock is maintaining itself, etc. But we never get any answers. At present, we only know one thing: for 2008, 2009 and 2010, scientists and biologists are saying that quotas should decrease by 20%. If there is a 20% decrease each year, fishers will only be fishing for two days.
Bloc
Gérard Asselin Bloc Manicouagan, QC
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I understand that it must be very frustrating for crabbers to pay for deckhands to study the biomass and at the end of the day, to not get the results of the studies they have paid for.
I would like to gain a better understanding of a point you made at the start of your presentation. According to the French translation, the people on board would not be paid. I didn't really understand. The English and French version are not the same.
Chair, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
Biorex is charging crabbers about $3,300 to put observers on their boats. In the past, the federal government paid a certain percentage of the fees. The Paul Martin government eliminated that funding. Crabbers now pay all of the fees. The current conservative government has changed the legislation, but the wording is unclear. In French, it says that the government will pick up all of the costs, but apparently, it is simply re-establishing the 33% that the previous government had eliminated.
Bloc
Gérard Asselin Bloc Manicouagan, QC
According to the French version, the government would pay for all of the costs, whereas in English, that is not the case.
Chair, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
In English—
Gérard Asselin Bloc Manicouagan, QC
That should obviously be clarified.
I am the member for Manicouagan, which is the north part of the St. Lawrence. Our crabbers are in area 16, which includes the Moyenne-Côte-Nord and the Basse-Côte-Nord. There are traditional crabbers and ground fishers in the area. The ground fishers are faced with a moratorium. They struggling to make a living. These people want to work honourably and earn their living without having to go on welfare or collect employment insurance.
They have successfully obtained temporary allocations for crab from Fisheries and Oceans for the duration of the moratorium. Of course, that has given rise to some frustration for our traditional crabbers, because they oppose sharing the resource. The part of the resource given to fishers who were not traditional crabbers was approximately 10,000 pounds per year, which penalized the crabbers. Since then, the number of traditional crabbers and market prices have increased. There seems to be some kind of a common organization so that everyone in Moyenne-Côte-Nord and Basse-Côte-Nord can get by.
I would like to know if in your area, principally in area 12, there are traditional crabbers—yes, I am convinced there are—and fishers who have temporary crab licences, as is the case in my area. You said that you did not agree with sharing the resource prior to 2010.
Chair, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
Yes, that is correct.
Bloc
Gérard Asselin Bloc Manicouagan, QC
Do you also have fishers back home who, although they are not traditional crabbers, receive temporary allocations for crab?
