About a year and a half ago, or a year and a bit, I met with Transport Canada officials. Their statement to me was that we have to reduce the speed of ferries to protect the southern resident killer whales. My reply was, “Do you understand that if we do reduce the speed of ferries, it will increase the noise?” There was dead silence. They asked us to prove it to them, so we had to prove it to them using their own data and other data that we had.
I think we talked about unintended consequences and we talked about regulations that may not fit every part of this sector. I think there needs to be ample consultation before those regulations are put forward. There needs to be a little bit more discussion with industry on that. I see a change within TC and Fisheries and Oceans. I definitely think they heard the message that industry was concerned. To be frank, I've seen them very receptive to comments. I'm quite happy to see that.
In terms of whales, I've talked to the same fishermen you've talked to in the same part of the world. I was on a lobster fishing boat between midnight and noon earlier this summer, and I heard an earful on the regulations. I do think we need to be very careful on how we implement regulations. In the Bay of Fundy, Whitetail Fisheries—I was on their boat—expressed concerns about the way the regulations would be implemented and the stop to fishing that was put in by Fisheries and Oceans.
I do think we need to have a little bit more consultation and debate.