Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thank you, special guests, for your input and the perspectives that you all bring to the table today. I'd like to direct my questions to Mr. Pearce to start.
DFO recently provided the committee with written responses to questions raised by committee members about the pinniped population in and on the B.C. coast. The DFO responses stated:
The current harbour seal population is in line with historic population norms....
Steller sea lion populations in BC waters have increased by approximately 4-fold since surveys began in the early 1970s.
Do you agree with these statements?