Evidence of meeting #78 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 area.
A recording is available from Parliament.
9:25 a.m.
Executive Director, Aquaculture Association of Nova Scotia
Yes, I believe we have that.
9:25 a.m.
NDP
Fin Donnelly NDP Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC
How do you deal with sea lice and disease management in your operations?
9:30 a.m.
Executive Director, Aquaculture Association of Nova Scotia
Speaking specifically for Nova Scotia, for the past 11 years the province of Nova Scotia has not treated for sea lice.
9:30 a.m.
Executive Director, Aquaculture Association of Nova Scotia
It starts out at the hatchery. All fish in all categories are now vaccinated right from smolt level. There is a lot of conversation about biomass, about how many fish are in the water in Nova Scotia right now. We haven't treated for sea lice in 10 or 11 years now.
9:30 a.m.
NDP
Fin Donnelly NDP Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC
That's parasites, but do you have no issues with disease?
We just had an issue on the west coast. Again, I'm more familiar with the west coast. Whether it's PRV, HSMI, or kudoa—
9:30 a.m.
Executive Director, Aquaculture Association of Nova Scotia
Yes, or salmon anemia..... We don't have those issues in Nova Scotia.
9:30 a.m.
Executive Director, Aquaculture Association of Nova Scotia
Yes. The other thing is, in terms of the use of any antibiotics, there is only one opportunity for the issuance of any of those, and that is the provincial veterinarian. He has to sign the order. It's not in a practice where the farmer can make those decisions. It's the provincial veterinarian who makes those decisions in the province of Nova Scotia.
9:30 a.m.
NDP
Fin Donnelly NDP Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC
Can you give us a definition? You were saying that should be a practice. I think you referenced the IUCN saying that they feel that should be an allowed practice.
Can you give us a definition of what you think a sustainable aquaculture operation or practice looks like?
9:30 a.m.
Executive Director, Aquaculture Association of Nova Scotia
Sure. In our opinion, it really is the production of quality seafood, the cultivation of the seafood, the growing, farming, harvesting, and reproduction of quality seafood, and the management of the operations in a profitable manner.
9:30 a.m.
NDP
Fin Donnelly NDP Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC
Thank you.
To the Fundy North Fishermen's Association, thank you for your presentation. Either Ms. Recchia or Ms. Mitchell, I think you have mentioned in your presentation ways you feel your members could best protect the ocean.
What do your members think are the best ways to protect ocean ecosystems?
9:30 a.m.
Executive Director, Fundy North Fishermen's Association
We would really like to see a kind of protection that is about humans living sustainably in nature. I think we have a number of inshore, small-scale fisheries that are that.
It's very problematic for us. It takes something like the herring weir fishery, which is an extremely sustainable fishery. It has been done that way, or similar to that, for thousands of years. In an MPA that protects bottom, driving the stakes into the substrate to create the weir would not be allowed, we believe. That's what we've been told in the past.
I think some of these strict rules about contact with the bottom are problematic. We have a lot of examples of where the inshore fishery is a really good model of humans living with the marine environment. Instead of having an MPA that pushes the fisheries, for the most part, out of the area completely and causes more impact outside the area in squeezing people together, I would rather see something where you have fishermen working with the environment in a sustainable way with the kinds of gear that are not destroying bottom.
9:30 a.m.
NDP
Fin Donnelly NDP Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC
It's more fisheries management and gear type that the government could focus on.
9:30 a.m.
Executive Director, Fundy North Fishermen's Association
I think so.
The other part of this, too, is that there has been a huge emphasis on protecting biodiversity on the bottom, these beautiful places to go diving. Here there's very little diving recreationally because the water is frigid and the currents are unbelievably strong.
There are a lot of places we have asked to be protected, whether it's a spawning ground or a nursery ground, and it's very difficult to get those things protected. We would like to see more protection for the life processes of the species that are important to the livelihoods of our membership.
9:35 a.m.
NDP
Fin Donnelly NDP Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC
Thank you.
A quick response in the remaining time...you spoke about agreeing with the process of speeding up designations of MPAs, but then you also were cautious of how quickly. What's the right balance? What do you think that right time frame looks like?
9:35 a.m.
Executive Director, Fundy North Fishermen's Association
It's really difficult, and to be truthful, our membership is really concerned about MPAs and loss of access to fishing grounds. They would prefer to not have to deal with it all, because it's something that keeps them up at night.
Our biggest concern is that the small boat inshore independent fishery is going to be harmed by MPAs much more so than corporations. We've been talking about aquaculture today. Government can negotiate to give aquaculture another site outside the area, but they're not going to negotiate to give us more fishing grounds.
I think the inshore small boat fishing industry is going to lose the most when they put MPAs in areas that are very heavily fished and very important to our fishing economy. When we can have a relationship where we do something like the Musquash protected area, where we're protecting a nursery ground and a salt marsh habitat, it's important to our membership to see those life cycles protected. We can work with that, but when it's really about pushing us out while still allowing other industries to be compensated or access elsewhere, it's going to be hard on our coastal communities.
9:35 a.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Scott Simms
Thank you, Ms. Recchia, I appreciate it.
Thank you, Mr. Donnelly.
We're going to split time here. We have both Mr. Finnigan and Mr. Morrissey. I'm going to give you three and a half minutes each. Mr. Finnigan is first.
9:35 a.m.
Liberal
Pat Finnigan Liberal Miramichi—Grand Lake, NB
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you to the panel here this morning to talk about Bill C-55 and the marine protected areas.
Mr. Smith, I'll start with you. I'm from New Brunswick. I'm from the Miramichi area, home of the beautiful salmon river.
How far offshore does your industry usually go?
9:35 a.m.
Executive Director, Aquaculture Association of Nova Scotia
Not very far offshore. I would separate it out between finfish and shellfish aquaculture. Shellfish aquaculture is traditionally very close to shore. Particularly in the north shore of Nova Scotia, a lot of bottom culture oyster farming and cultivation is going on right now, and it's very close to shore. Bottom culture is in its natural habitat.
Finfish farming is a little bit different, because I would suggest that, for the most part, you may be a kilometre offshore. It may be a kilometre or two offshore. That's both in the salmon farms in southwest Nova Scotia as well as in the trout farms in the Bras d'Or lakes.
9:35 a.m.
Liberal
Pat Finnigan Liberal Miramichi—Grand Lake, NB
Would it be fair to say that most MPAs would probably be outside your industry area?