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.
NDP
Chair, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
Yes. The fishing plan for 2007 has been out for a few weeks and crab fishermen are fishing now.
Bloc
Conservative
Randy Kamp Conservative Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge—Mission, BC
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you, gentlemen, for appearing.
In the past years, did you participate in any of the activities related to the Atlantic fisheries renewal? Did you have any input into that process or attend any meetings? It was a multi-year renewal that the Atlantic fisheries went through-- multi-sectoral and so on. Were you part of that at all?
Chair, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
Okay, sir, there's one thing I should have told you right away: the CCCTPA has only existed for eight months. So we are not an association that is 10 or 12 or 15 years old. We have been built by fishermen who were unsatisfied with what was going on at the DFO and the UPM. So it's a coalition of snow crab fishermen who have built the CCCTPA, and it's a young, young association.
Conservative
Randy Kamp Conservative Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge—Mission, BC
I think some of you belong to other associations, as well as the coalition—at least that's my understanding. It's also my understanding—just to respond to some of the other questions that have been raised—that those associations certainly participated in that broad Atlantic fisheries renewal, which was one of the foundations of the new Fisheries Act.
Do you believe that fisheries resources are a common property resource?
Chair, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
Do I believe what, sir?
Conservative
Randy Kamp Conservative Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge—Mission, BC
Do you believe that the fisheries resources in Canada are a common property resource, as the Supreme Court has said?
Chair, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
We do believe that the fishery belongs to everyone. However, one industry has developed it from top to bottom, starting in 1975. One industry has financed it, protected it, imposed quotas on itself to ensure the resource was protected, invested millions of dollars in the fishery and in aircraft having to go to port, and so on. I believe that the traditional fishers, who built this industry, have priority, and I am referring here to the snow crab fishery.
Conservative
Randy Kamp Conservative Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge—Mission, BC
What's the average income of a snow crab fisher?
Chair, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
That depends on prices and the fleet, among other things.
Conservative
Randy Kamp Conservative Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge—Mission, BC
Give me some numbers, some ballpark figures. You're a traditional fisherman, a crab fisherman....
Chair, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
I am not, but I can ask.
Conservative
Randy Kamp Conservative Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge—Mission, BC
Perhaps they can tell us what their income was.
Chair, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
What is the average income of a crabber?
Aldo Noël member, Captain, Traditional Crab Boat, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
I don't know if he is talking about gross or net income, but as you just said, it depends on the price we are being offered. We can gross $400,000, $500,000 or $600,000 a year, but there are expenses and debts. The debt on boats can total $2 or $3 million. Some have boats that are already paid for. The situation is never the same from one boat to the next. It is difficult to establish a figure. There are good years, and there are bad years. And when the bad years hit, people who have not put money aside for a rainy day, have problems. Do you understand?
Conservative
Randy Kamp Conservative Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge—Mission, BC
Okay. Thank you for that.
I have just one final question, and then if there's any time, I'll pass it over to Mr. Lunney.
During your presentation, Mr. Savoie, I didn't hear much, if any, of the rationale for wanting to restrict it to zone 12, traditional crabbers. I didn't hear you refer much to conservation. Is part of your rationale that the stock is threatened? Is that the reason you don't think it should be expanded to others who are in difficult straits, as Mr. Asselin has said?
Chair, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
The stock will be threatened until 2010. There's a map here showing where the snow crab fishermen fish in zone 12. We can see that all around where the
inshore fishers go, the crab has practically disappeared. There is none left, or there is less and less. These fishers are going more and more into areas where traditional crabbers normally have their base, their fishing area. Yes, the industry is threatened. The traditional crab industry will be threatened until 2010. We cannot allow 600 fishers to invest in this area without imposing limits. Under the Marshall plan, licences were granted to our brothers, which was accepted since they are traditional fishers, like we are. But there are limits, and we must now close the door until 2010 to protect this resource and allow it to recover.
For 30 years, traditional fishers paid everything to build this resource, but since about 2003, other fishers who have never been required to do anything or pay anything are coming in and benefiting from the fishery. I think that is unfair. Given that in addition, the resource is threatened, as traditional crabbers, we must protect the resource and take charge of it. If reinvestments are required, we will make them.
Conservative
Conservative
James Lunney Conservative Nanaimo—Alberni, BC
Thank you.
I just wanted to ask a quick question concerning the factors that were identified by the task force assembled back in 2005 by the Canadian Council of Fisheries and Aquaculture Ministers.
In their report, they commented on some of the challenges facing your industry. They're talking about cyclical weakening of the primary markets in the U.S. and Japan, the cost price squeeze because of the appreciation of the Canadian dollar, and sharp fuel cost increases. So your industry is bearing those costs as well.
Would you care to comment on whether you agree with these factors, or other factors that are stressing fishermen? Are you saying income is down because of some of these factors? I think I heard you say that the cost had currently gone back up, so could you comment on the relevance of those factors in the current fishery?
Chair, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
I can say a few things.
The Japanese buy their crab here too, but they buy a lot from the Russians, who have absolutely no....
Chair, Acadian Peninsula Traditional Crab Fishermen's Coalition Committee
Yes, that's it. The United States Alaskan crab threatens us too.
The dollar, the diesel, the ice that you have to put on boats--
