Evidence of meeting #145 for Fisheries and Oceans in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was million.
A video is available from Parliament.
Liberal
Bobby Morrissey Liberal Egmont, PE
What's your definition of begun? I'm talking about activity on the wharf. Don't give me that kind of an answer.
Director General, Fisheries and Licence Policy, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
I understand that full well. I'm not familiar with the specifics of the project you might be alluding to, so we could follow up.
Liberal
Bobby Morrissey Liberal Egmont, PE
Yes. Some are delayed. You lose credibility with your fishers.
I want to go on because I'm going to share my time with Mr. Finnigan.
This is about the Coast Guard. You made reference to coordinating and the services that are available—to my colleague, Mr. Fraser—when the lobster season opens in southwest Nova Scotia.
I've been working for some time with fishermen in P.E.I. about getting better supports coordinated with the Coast Guard and DND search and rescue. We keep getting push-back.
In the spring of the year, in the Gulf region, which affects P.E.I, Îles-de-la-Madeleine and up to northern New Brunswick, the water temperature is around zero, versus the opening of the lobster season in southwest Nova in November when the water temperature is probably around 10 Celsius or so. You all know the impact of the water.
There appear to be two standards when it comes to providing rescue service capability for opening up of lobster seasons. It's something I would like to see the Coast Guard coordinate more with DND. I'm not saying reduce the services. The services in that area should be as adequate and strong as they are in southwest Nova. In my opinion they're not.
Could you provide to the committee, between DND and search and rescue, what services and asset capability is available at the opening of that November lobster fishery?
Commissioner of the Canadian Coast Guard, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
I'd be happy to summarize that for the committee.
The Coast Guard is adapting to climate change in real time. As we go through shoulder seasons, in particular—and shoulder seasons are the seasons between our summer icebreaking and our winter icebreaking, and our winter icebreaking and our summer icebreaking—we have to look very carefully at how we're deploying assets to make sure we have maximum coverage. Because those seasons are becoming more unpredictable, the ice and the water temperature are more unpredictable.
We would be happy to summarize our search and rescue posture in the seasons you're talking about.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Ken McDonald
Thank you, Mr. Morrissey.
I think you said you were either sharing or splitting. I know you're not splitting; you're sharing.
You have a minute and a half left.
Mr. Finnigan.
Liberal
Pat Finnigan Liberal Miramichi—Grand Lake, NB
I have several questions, but one in particular.
The Atlantic fisheries fund was set up to do commercial fisheries especially. I know there's been some talk with the Higgs government in New Brunswick to possibly use a chunk of that money to do some restoration projects on the river, especially the Miramichi, but other rivers.
Can anybody tell me how those talks are going? Are they willing to partner on that fund sharing, using that fund for those kinds of projects?
Deputy Minister, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
I'm not in a position to comment on any discussions like those.
Liberal
Pat Finnigan Liberal Miramichi—Grand Lake, NB
Right now there is no funding for project restoration, and there is a chunk of money there. I know there's been some negotiation. We need some money to restore some of those river issues we're facing.
Deputy Minister, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
We're well aware of the needs of habitat restoration. Certainly the Government of New Brunswick is interested in this, as are we. Whether we can do it under this particular program is another question.
Liberal
Pat Finnigan Liberal Miramichi—Grand Lake, NB
Some money is supposed to have been transferred to use traditional knowledge in the management of the Miramichi River. Can you tell me what amount of money? I'm getting different answers from different people. Do we know what that fund is, and is it adequate?
Deputy Minister, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
Specifically on the Miramichi River, Jen, do you know?
Assistant Deputy Minister and Chief Financial Officer, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
I think we would have to get back to you on that.
Liberal
Conservative
Mel Arnold Conservative North Okanagan—Shuswap, BC
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you all for being here. We'd like to see you more often, but it's like pulling teeth to get the minister and the officials here.
Earlier in the minister's testimony, he referred to the B.C. salmon restoration and innovation fund being a parallel or a mirror of the Atlantic fisheries fund. That's an interesting comparison.
From what we've seen, most of the funding in the Atlantic fisheries fund has been geared toward the upgrading of equipment, processing and more efficiencies within the fishing and processing fleet.
I beg to differ, but I don't believe that's necessary on the B.C. coast. In fact, the opposite may be true. We may be overfished for the state of our stocks.
Is that the case? Was the minister incorrect in stating it's going to mirror the Atlantic fisheries fund?
Deputy Minister, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
The two programs do differ, as you imply. The B.C. salmon is a restoration fund. It's aimed at restoring fish habitat, habitat for salmonids. It doesn't have the same streams that the Atlantic fisheries fund or the Quebec fisheries fund has in supporting industry.
Conservative
Mel Arnold Conservative North Okanagan—Shuswap, BC
On the DFO website, it refers to “Innovation to encourage the development of new technologies to increase productivity”. Is that productivity of the fishing fleet, or productivity of the streams and so on?
Deputy Minister, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
Are you referring to the Atlantic fund or the B.C. fund?
Deputy Minister, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
That's productivity of the fisheries.
Deputy Minister, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
Productivity is a technical term. It describes how many new salmon arrive.
Conservative
Mel Arnold Conservative North Okanagan—Shuswap, BC
Thank you for that clarification.
We've all seen the measures being taken to help restore the southern resident killer whales. In doing some research, it's not easy to see that the southern resident killer whales are not at their lowest level ever. That was in 1976, when they were down around 71. They rebounded to 98 by 1995, a fairly significant recovery over a time period of about 20 years.
What allowed them to increase during that time? With the measures being taken right now to restrict fisheries—commercial fisheries, recreational fisheries—are equivalent measures being taken to address the pinniped predation situation? We've seen reports stating that harbour seal consumption around that same time frame, the mid-seventies to the mid-nineties, and current now, was three and a half million individual chinook. Now it's at 27.4 million individual chinook. Are the same steps being taken to manage those competing predators that are being taken against fishing opportunities?