Evidence of meeting #62 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 interests.
A recording is available from Parliament.
9:30 a.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Scott Simms
Thank you, Mr. Kristianson. I appreciate it.
Mr. Doherty, for five minutes please.
Before you start, it looks like we'll have to extend our time, but if we can put in two full rounds, we'll have Ms. Jordan, Mr. Arnold, Mr. Morrissey, and Mr. Donnelly to end. That will probably take us close to the top of the hour, if it's okay to extend that into our committee business.
Is that okay?
9:30 a.m.
Conservative
Todd Doherty Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thanks to our guests today.
I'll ask you to be as concise as you can because I have a number of questions and only five minutes.
To both of our guests today, do you feel that B.C. is shouldering more than its fair share of the conservation efforts?
9:30 a.m.
Chair, Sport Fishing Advisory Board, Sport Fishing Institute of British Columbia
I think there is a growing perception that we're being asked to. If you take, for example, RCAs and include them in the total, you can quickly get up over the 5%. Whenever we raise that issue with Fisheries and Oceans officials, they say, “Oh, yes, but we're not talking about a number that relates to this coast.” When people say that, it leads to suspicion that somehow we're a target here maybe for areas where people don't want to do other things. I can't say that's happening. There's certainly a perception that that could be the case.
9:35 a.m.
Executive Director, Sport Fishing Institute of British Columbia
I wouldn't really have anything else to add. Gerry has captured it.
9:35 a.m.
Conservative
Todd Doherty Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
I'm going to go back to some of your testimony as it relates to consultation. My colleague, Mr. McDonald, suggested that you would say that this government has done very well in terms of the consultation, yet I think some of your testimony would suggest the opposite. The Internet-based letter writing campaign was mentioned a couple of times. Those with deeper pockets, perhaps, have got the officials' ear more than others. I guess my question to you would be, do you feel that between local versus third-party interests, perhaps it's more heavily weighted toward the third-party interests?
9:35 a.m.
Chair, Sport Fishing Advisory Board, Sport Fishing Institute of British Columbia
I wouldn't have argued that. Certainly, my comment about deep pockets was not related to any activity that I've observed taking place. What I'm saying is that you need to ensure that, by funding the expenses, for example, of people who participate in these processes, you ensure that it isn't an issue of people who have access to money as opposed to ones who don't.
9:35 a.m.
Conservative
Todd Doherty Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
But with all due respect, Mr. Kristianson, you mentioned the mapping process and the tier 2 process—
9:35 a.m.
Chair, Sport Fishing Advisory Board, Sport Fishing Institute of British Columbia
Right.
9:35 a.m.
Conservative
Todd Doherty Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
—and you mentioned that there are others, say, our local fishers and our recreational fishers, who cannot afford to be there. They don't have the same backing as perhaps others who are at the table in terms of the mapping process.
9:35 a.m.
Chair, Sport Fishing Advisory Board, Sport Fishing Institute of British Columbia
Well, I don't think that's what I intended to say. As long as the advisory process that DFO has for the recreational fishery operates as it always has, local anglers are represented and they're not out-represented.
The irony is that to some extent the ability to mount the counter-activity, of course, has nothing to do with big business or other interests. This has been the environmental movement exercising its muscles.
9:35 a.m.
Conservative
9:35 a.m.
Chair, Sport Fishing Advisory Board, Sport Fishing Institute of British Columbia
Yes.
9:35 a.m.
Conservative
Todd Doherty Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
It is the environmental movement, perhaps foreign environmental movements as well.
Is the web-based letter-writing campaign from inside or outside of Canada?
9:35 a.m.
Chair, Sport Fishing Advisory Board, Sport Fishing Institute of British Columbia
I think this was all domestic. I do not see it as a....
9:35 a.m.
Conservative
Todd Doherty Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
Okay.
Mr. Chair, if you and committee members will indulge me, I would like to read this into the record for our consideration:
That the Committee invite the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans to appear before the Committee, no later than June 15, 2017, in relation to the study of the Supplementary Estimates (A) 2017-18.
9:35 a.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Scott Simms
Duly noted, and it will be discussed in our committee business as well.
9:35 a.m.
Conservative
Todd Doherty Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
Thank you.
Mr. Kristianson, you mentioned again the definitions to be used as we move forward, and I think you gave a great example about the recreational versus commercial tuna fishery. On the west coast we have a number of different areas—for example, the glass sponge reefs we spoke of. Do you have any other suggestions that the committee should take under advisement in terms of those definitions and how we or the government should be consulting as we move forward?
9:35 a.m.
Chair, Sport Fishing Advisory Board, Sport Fishing Institute of British Columbia
As the government moves forward on this, I think there are well-established processes that exist to allow the various interests to be part of the process, particularly the fishing interests, but also local government interests and others.
9:35 a.m.
Conservative
9:35 a.m.
Chair, Sport Fishing Advisory Board, Sport Fishing Institute of British Columbia
Pardon?