Fisheries Committee on Sept. 21st, 2016

[Fin Donnelly, NDP, Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC]

Thanks, Mr. Chair.

I want to go back to the limit reference point again.

I think, Dr. Brattey, you were talking about ocean conditions and said there could be other factors that come into play. Having changing ocean conditions such that stocks are moving would play a role, I assume, in determining what that reference point should be.

[John Brattey]

Yes. If we got into a very long period in which the stock didn't, say, go above 300,000 or 400,000 tonnes, we could be in for—I'm sure you've heard it mentioned—a regime shift in which the stock stabilizes at a much lower level than in the past. If that persisted for a long time, we would perhaps have to revisit the reference point issue and take into consideration that things such as this happen.

We are very aware of the possible importance of the environmental conditions in the long term and of how they can affect the reference point.

[Fin Donnelly, NDP, Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC]

I'm just looking at the next steps that you're suggesting for the science on northern cod. You've mentioned the increased funding to hire more scientists, the continuation of stock and ecosystem monitoring, and then you talked about the collaborations and the partnerships. Concerning the next full assessment, in March 2019, how important is it that, for instance, this committee or others wait to that point to determine management decisions?

[John Brattey]

I don't think you have to wait until 2019, because we do what's called interim stock updates. In the intervening years, we will do an update and there will be a science response report produced and placed on the CSAS website.

In those updates, we don't do a full rerun of all the modelling and all the information. What we do is look at the key stock indicators, and if those show something out of the ordinary, something that causes concern, that will trigger a full assessment in that year. We won't do just an update; we'll go to a full assessment in that year. That decision would typically be made around December or January, and then the assessment would be held in March.

Either way, you won't have to wait until 2019 to get more information about northern cod. There will be an update document in 2017 and 2018 at the very minimum.

[Fin Donnelly, NDP, Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC]

Are there any other steps that you recommend, other than those you've presented here today, that the committee should look at and consider for science or for others in the rebuilding process ?

[John Brattey]

I can't think of anything in particular off the top of my head.

Can any of my colleagues?

[Philippe Morel]

When we look at harvest levels or opportunities, we also take into consideration the recreational fisheries and the quota for indigenous allocations before providing any commercial licences in the long term. We analyze that as part of the decision-making on whether we allow more catch opportunities or fewer, depending on the science report.

[Fin Donnelly, NDP, Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC]

Could you provide the committee with the catch levels for the three: the commercial, the recreational, and the first nation fishery?

[Philippe Morel]

Sure. I have it for last year and this year. This year, stewardship is 10,525 tonnes. That's an estimate, of course. Recreational is 2,000 tonnes; science is 275 tonnes; bycatch domestically is estimated at 25 tonnes; foreign bycatch is 150 tonnes; for food, social, and ceremonial it's about 50 tonnes, and for the Cod Quality projects I referred to earlier it's 475 tonnes.

[Fin Donnelly, NDP, Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC]

Thank you.

[Philippe Morel]

The stewardship is what was allocated as a maximum or an estimate, but the catch reports we have up to now show that by the end of the season, unless there is a big increase, they won't reach 10,000 tonnes.

[Fin Donnelly, NDP, Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC]

Where could we find the historic information on this? You've given us present or current.

[Philippe Morel]

Is it available on the web?

[Brian Lester]

It should be on the department's website as catch statistics over the years. I'm trying to remember if cod is broken down by the zones or if it's broken down individually. We easily could provide this committee the catches from the 1970s and later for where we have data, if that's the desire of the committee.

[Fin Donnelly, NDP, Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC]

If we went to the website, or if the public went to the website, and did a search of catch statistics, would it pop up?

[Brian Lester]

It would likely pop up first in the CSAS reports that science prepares, because they usually have their catch history in there. It would not be broken down by fleet. It would be broken down by Canadian catches and foreign catches, but if there is a desire for a greater breakdown going back to the 1970s, then we could provide that.

[The Chair, Liberal, Scott Simms]

Thank you, Mr. Donnelly, I appreciate it.

Thank you to everybody for this.

I want to thank Mr. Lester, Mr. Morel, and Mr. Swerdfager. It's good to see you again.

Finally, but certainly by no means least, Dr. Brattey, thank you very much. This was exceptional information you brought here today, and we truly appreciate it.

I think I can speak on behalf of everyone in saying thanks to you. We're a lot more knowledgeable as of today. I'm beginning to think you know more about this than Dr.—sorry—Mr. Sopuck over here.

[Robert Sopuck, Conservative, Dauphin—Swan River—Neepawa, MB]

Don't call me doctor.

[The Chair, Liberal, Scott Simms]

I always call him doctor. He's a resident in biology, you could say.

Thank you very much. We're going to break for a few minutes so we can go in camera for members of the committee.

[Proceedings continue in camera]